The Kite Runner (3)

Much of what I have to say has already been mentioned by Ellen and Kate, but here is what I sent to Allyson...

I actually finished 'The Kite Runner' a few weeks ago, having made an early start but also since I found it to be quite an easy read. I must admit that I also watched the movie when I was only about half way through the book. Of course this gave away the ending, but I was surprised at how close the movie followed the book. This only spurred me to finish the book faster, to see if the plot lines were indeed the same.

For me, the story of Amir and Hassan was incidental. I found it to be cliched and highly predictable, and in that regard, I was not particularly moved by their story. However, what I really enjoyed was the insight into life in Afghanistan. I knew (know?) very little about Afghanistan and Afghani culture and history, and so it was nice to be able to get a better feel for life there, both prior the the coup and Russian invasion as well as the situation under the Taliban rule.

I got the impression that in the early 1970's that life was on the whole good and that there was to some extent freedom and choice (at least for the Pashtuns). To me, the tradition of the kite flying symbolised this freedom. However, you also got the feeling that there was a dissidence towards the ethnic groups that at some point was going to explode.

From the book, it seems that the Afghans are very proud people, and I think that this was reflected most in the behaviour of the Afghans in California. I can really imagine that a general would dress up in a suit each and every day, in preparation for an immediate return to Afghanistan should his country request him to do so. Also that there was still a strong sense and respect of cultural beliefs, even when in a foreign country. It was these aspects that I enjoyed most about the book.

One thing that I noticed, however, was that the imagery of Amir's childhood and life in California was very vivid. But when he returned to Afghanistan, the description of the country in its present state did not seem to have the same impact. The book was published in 2003 but it was only in 2007 that Khaled Hosseini returned to Afghanistan after he and his family left in 1976. I can imagine that Hosseini was able to draw on his own personal experience when describing Amir's childhood and his life in the USA. But with no first hand experience of life in Afghanistan in the early 2000s, there was no personal reference. I think this lack of first hand experience of the Afghanistan under Taliban rule was reflected in his writing.