Kite Runner is the first book of Khalid Hosseini. It is a critically acclaimed book so even though I had the book for a long time, I didn’t venture to read it. The reason I felt it would be preachy. But once I began reading the book I was indeed proven wrong.
Kite Runner is a fictional novel based on the life of a boy from Afghanistan called Amir and his servant friend Hassan, the kite runner. The story starts with how the boys grew up in the then peaceful Afghanistan, their dreams, hopes and their struggles.
Moves on with how life separates them and again reunites them in the most unusual bond. The author has beautifully described about Afghanistan, the quiet lives that people lived which is so much in contrast to the Afghanistan as we know of today. Set in the backdrop of Afghanistan, one cannot help but empathize with the after effects of the war. The book clearly highlights that sometimes death is the easier way out than the misery of living in such war stricken countries.
The story is of normal people who commit mistakes in life, feel guilty and try to learn from it. The book talks about the fears that we as humans have, how these fears take control of us and make us a weak person. Kite runner although being a fictional story talks about the relationships in so much depth that you feel that you have met the characters in real. The most prominent part of the story is it speaks about relationships and human virtues like sacrifice and loyalty in such a subtle manner that not even once the book becomes stretchy or boring. The best part of the story is the fact that it ends in a positive tone, that there is always light in the end of the tunnel. The book may not be an enjoyable read but definitely a thoughtful read.