On a score of 1-5 stars (5 being the best), how do you rate
* Couldn't stand it!
0%
[ 0 ]
**
4%
[ 1 ]
***
12%
[ 3 ]
****
25%
[ 6 ]
***** Loved it!
50%
[ 12 ]
Gave up on it (explain why below)
0%
[ 0 ]
Didn't read this one
8%
[ 2 ]
Total Votes : 24
Author
Message
sparkymarky Moderator
Joined: 22 Jul 2006 Posts: 630 Birthday: 6th October
Location: norwich,norfolk
Posted: Wed Dec 20, 2006 12:33 pm Post subject:
cannot praise this book enough-loved it espeically as i know very little of life in afghanistan and the taliban!!very emotional,very compelling-didn't expect to enjoy this but i sooo did!!
i think you can excuse the coincidences because it is fiction not real-life though these sort of things can happen in real world as well sometimes-i have known many incidences occurr that i would not have believed could be connected unless i saw them happen.
KATEY-if you read this trust Sparky and give it a go-you may be pleasantly surprised as this is a very emotional and heartwarming novel that has more than its fair share of tragedy but leaves you feeling the strongest of human characteristic traits that is HOPE!
When I first started the book, I liked it, but thought its not for me. I thought it was well written and I liked the way the characters developed. The last 100 pages I couldn't put it down and when I finished it I realised I had been crying. I like a book that loses you and I felt this one did. I gave it 4 stars, I really enjoyed but felt not enough to give it 5. I would highly recommend the book to everyone who has not read it. _________________ Currently reading On Beauty by Zadie Smith
Joined: 22 Jul 2006 Posts: 7637 Birthday: 7th July
Location: Shropshire
Posted: Thu Jan 04, 2007 6:05 pm Post subject: Kite Runner Reading Guide
A reading group guide from the publisher of The Kite Runner, Bloomsbury. Can't wait to finish it and join in with the discussion.
Quote:
Title : The Kite Runner
Author : Khaled Hosseini
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
About the book
In brief:
One chilly Afghan winter’s day in 1975 Amir witnesses a dreadful act that irrevocably changes both his life and the life of his dear friend, Hassan. It is not simply Amir’s presence that scars him, it is his failure to act, a failure that will haunt him until he gathers his courage, confronts his demons and finds ‘a way to be good again’.
In detail:
In The Kite Runner Khaled Hosseini explores the nature of friendship, of forgiveness and of redemption, set against the turbulent background of his native Afghanistan.
The son of a rich and popular merchant, Amir leads a privileged life, wanting only to please his beloved but demanding father, Baba, and to play with Hassan, the child of Ali, Baba’s lifelong servant. Both Amir and Hassan are motherless. They spend almost all their time together, playing games and sharing stories in their favourite pomegranate tree. An encounter with Assef, the local bully, in which Hassan springs to Amir’s defence has appalling consequences, destroying their friendship and driving Amir to desperate measures to rid himself of Hassan, measures which result in a puzzling reaction from his father. When Ali and Hassan decide to leave of their own accord, Amir’s relief is short lived; he knows that his cowardice has been detected.
Baba and Amir are soon in flight themselves when the Russians invade. They flee first to Pakistan, then to America where Baba’s old life of influence and power is at an end. They make a new life for themselves, embracing the San Francisco Afghan community, one of whom Amir eventually marries. But Amir remains haunted by his failure to protect Hassan, unable to enjoy his success as a novelist and his marriage to Soraya, convinced that their inability to have a child and his father’s death are punishments visited upon him.
Amir is rescued by a phone call from Baba’s old friend, Rahim Khan, who offers him the chance of redemption. Once in Peshawar, where Rahim is dying, Amir learns that he is to find Hassan’s lost son. In so doing, he must summon his courage and face not only his old enemy, but also the destruction that has been wrought upon his homeland. In return, he is rewarded with the truth about his relationship with Hassan and a greater understanding of his beloved Baba.
About the author:
Khaled Hosseini was born in 1965 in Kabul where his father was a diplomat and his mother taught Farsi and history. The family left Afghanistan in 1976 when Hosseini’s father was posted to the Afghan Embassy in Paris. Following the 1978 coup and the subsequent Russian invasion, the Hosseinis emmigrated to the United States, receiving political asylum in 1980. The family settled in San Jose, California where his father initially found work as a driving instructor, later becoming an Eligibility Officer dispensing welfare to needy families, many from the Afghan community . Hosseini is now a physician and lives with his wife and two children in Northern California.
The Kite Runner, Hosseini’s first novel and, reputedly, the first to be written in English by an Afghan, met with great critical and popular acclaim when it was published in 2003.
For discussion:
The novel begins ‘I became what I am today at the age of twelve’. To what is Amir referring? Is his assertion entirely true? What other factors have helped form his character? How would you describe Amir?
Amir had never thought of Hassan as his friend, despite the evident bond between them, just as Baba did not think of Ali as his friend (page 22). What parallels can be drawn between Amir and Hassan’s relationship, and Baba and Ali’s? How would you describe the relationship between the two boys? What makes them so different in the way they behave with each other? What is it that makes Amir inflict small cruelties on Hassan? Had you already guessed at the true relationship between them? If so, at what point and why?
It is Amir’s dearest wish to please his father. To what extent does he succeed in doing so and at what cost? What kind of man is Baba? How would you describe his relationship with Amir, and with Hassan? How does that relationship change and what prompts those changes?
Khaled Hosseini vividly describes Afghanistan, both the privileged world of Amir’s childhood and the stricken country under the Taliban. How did his descriptions differ from ideas that you may already have had about Afghanistan? What cultural differences become evident in the American passages of the novel? How easy do the Afghans find it to settle in the US?
After Soraya tells Amir about her past, she says ‘I’m so lucky to have found you. You’re so different from every Afghan guy I’ve met’ (page 157). What do you think of the reasons that Amir puts forward for this? Could there be others? How do Afghan women fare in America? Are they any better off than they were in Afghanistan before the Taliban seized power?
On the drive to Kabul Farid says to Amir ‘You’ve always been a tourist here, you just didn’t know it.’ (page 204) What is Farid implying? What do you think of his implication? Amir feels that he is 'home again' (page 210) but how well does he know or understand his country?
How does Hosseini succeed in bringing the horror of the Taliban to life? Why did he choose the role for Assef that he did?
'There is a way to be good again' (page 2) promises Rahim Khan, a phrase which resonates throughout the novel. Does this prove to be the case for Amir? How important is Rahim Khan to him?
After reading Amir's story Rahim Khan writes to him: 'the most impressive thing about your story is that it has irony.' (page 2. It is surely an irony that Hassan, whose ignorance Amir pillories, points out that there was no need for the man to kill his wife to weep tears, he could simply have smelled an onion. How important is irony in the book? Were their other instances that particularly struck you?
How significant is the tale of Rostam and Sohrab? What does it mean to Hassan, and to Amir?
How important is religion in the book? What attitudes do the main characters have to it? How do they compare to the popular Western idea of Islam?
What is the significance of kites in the book? What do you think they symbolise? Who is the eponymous kite runner?
_________________ Reading: Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow by Peter Hoeg
Reading Challenge 2009: 8
2008: 4
2007: 10
Joined: 22 Jul 2006 Posts: 7637 Birthday: 7th July
Location: Shropshire
Posted: Fri Jan 12, 2007 11:57 am Post subject:
I've finished The Kite Runner at last. A very sad read, it brought tears to my eyes more than once, but I found I could easily put it down and not pick it back up again. It really dragged in places and I didn't really care for the characters (apart from Baba) until after halfway through the book.
Spoiler:
I loved the way Baba was described through Amir's child eyes as a giant straight out of a mythical tale. Thought Hosseini could have explored this a bit more. Then Baba suddenly changed when they got to America. I appreciate that as Amir got older, his Baba's stature would appear smaller, and then as Baba became ill, but he changed too suddenly for my liking.
I didn't like Amir - it annoyed me that he wouldn't and didn't confide in anyone about the rape.
The tone of the book got on my nerves sometimes. I know it's a sad tale, but it's written in a 'please feel sorry for us and cry buckets' tone. It worked, I was moved, but I felt Hosseini milked it a bit and it was cringy in places.
I often felt I was reading an autobiography too.
The coincidences in the latter part of the book were obvious. I knew someone was going to slit their wrists after Amir gave us a description of the razors in the hotel bathroom. I knew Amir and Hassan were brothers, and when I discovered the Taliban guy with the John Lennon glasses was Assef, I cringed. I quite liked it that Sohrab used his slingshot to attack Assef, but it was SUCH a cliche. And what a coincidence that Soraya had a relation who worked for the INS. One minute it was looking impossible that they'd get Sohrab in the country, the next he was there with no mention of any legalities.
I liked the first part of the book, up until the rape. I enjoyed the descriptions of Afghanistan and their life. I felt it was more than a story; that it was a book I had to read to learn about the troubles. It opened my eyes a little at the injustices they suffered/suffer. But it's not a life/outlook changing book as I expected it to be.
I didn't love it and I'll probably forget about it before long. It was easy to read, a bit cringy/cliched in places. I often didn't like it. I didn't like Amir, he was a coward. I loved Baba, Rahim Khan, Ali, Hassan and little Sohrab. I liked it that Rahim Khan made Amir do something about Hassan's rape at the end of the book and I inwardly cheered when he said in the letter that what Amir did was wrong.
I've babbled enough now. I gave it 3 stars. _________________ Reading: Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow by Peter Hoeg
Reading Challenge 2009: 8
2008: 4
2007: 10
Joined: 22 Jul 2006 Posts: 7637 Birthday: 7th July
Location: Shropshire
Posted: Fri Jan 12, 2007 12:11 pm Post subject:
PS I loved the ending. Thought it was perfect.
Spoiler:
Getting Sohrab from the orphanage & bringing him to safety - it was as if Amir was running after a broken kite in order to bring it home to cherish.
Apart from the cliched bits, I liked the journey Amir undertook to get Sohrab and to atone for his sins. (If only he'd said something about the rape earlier, he could have saved himself a lot of trouble!! And Sphrab's life may have been a better one. I jest, of course. I know that we often keep things to ourselves when we should tell someone about them. It's part of the human condition. We've all got skeletons & we can all be cowardly). I can also understand that Assef joined the Taliban & putting him in that role emphasised how easily evil can triumph in the world.
_________________ Reading: Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow by Peter Hoeg
Reading Challenge 2009: 8
2008: 4
2007: 10
Joined: 14 Apr 2007 Posts: 309 Birthday: 11th April
Location: Cheltenham
Posted: Sat Jun 30, 2007 12:59 pm Post subject:
Am about half way through the Kite Runner now. Am loving it so far, such a wonderful book. Can't wait to get back on here once I've finished it to see what you all made of it _________________ My Swap List
Currently reading: Other people's children - Joanna Trollope
Challenge books read: 5
Joined: 14 Apr 2007 Posts: 309 Birthday: 11th April
Location: Cheltenham
Posted: Sat Jun 30, 2007 4:52 pm Post subject:
Thanks Glynis ... it was yours that inspired me to change mine!
I hope you don't mind, I used your avatar as my new facebook profile pic! _________________ My Swap List
Currently reading: Other people's children - Joanna Trollope
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Joined: 22 Jul 2006 Posts: 7637 Birthday: 7th July
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Posted: Sat Jun 30, 2007 11:43 pm Post subject:
Gosh no, of course I don't I wouldn't know where to find your facebook...come to think of it, what is a facebook? _________________ Reading: Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow by Peter Hoeg
Reading Challenge 2009: 8
2008: 4
2007: 10
Joined: 14 Apr 2007 Posts: 309 Birthday: 11th April
Location: Cheltenham
Posted: Sun Jul 01, 2007 4:05 pm Post subject:
Finished the Kite Runner today. Gave it 5 stars, really loved it for so many reasons. That's all I'm saying as it's nice to read a book and not post a review sometimes - I know you'll all forgive me just this once ; )
What next?!! xxx _________________ My Swap List
Currently reading: Other people's children - Joanna Trollope
Challenge books read: 5
the only thing i didn't like was the amount of coincidences eg. that he would know the guy in charge when he returns to Afganistan, that it's the rapist, that he uses the sling thing to injure him etc.
Wow. That was a real eye-opener.
Spoiler:
While I did find it a bit of a coincidence the fact that the guy in charge was actually the guy that had held a grudge against him for so long, I didn't make any sling-related connection Thanks
Since I am here I might as well share my thoughts on the book :
Spoiler:
On the whole I actually liked the book tremendously. My favorite character was actually Amir's father, even though he was so far for perfect, because he always acted like a real man, even in times of poverty and trouble. Amir also has his faults but at least he knows he's made some bad choices and tries to live with them as best as he can.
The passages about Afghanistan and what is happening there made my flesh crawl. Just imagine living in a place where you could be shot as a dog just for being there. And all this happening in the 2000s. It still makes my flesh crawl.
A passage I very much liked because it seemed to me very realistic was the one where Amir is expecting to hear the news about Sohrab at the hospital, when he doesn't know whether the boy will live or die and where he's ready to make any, just any deal with God if only he let the boy live. The way he keeps praying in his mind, still trying to "convince" God even as the doctor is telling him the news.
Also, another thing I liked about this book is the fact that the author doesn't make it a decidedly happy ending, choosing a more realistic but hopeful one instead. He could have gone the path of "and they lived happily ever after", but we all know that happily ever after seldom actually happens in real life.
You can also see the review I have written soon after reading it here
Joined: 22 Jul 2006 Posts: 7637 Birthday: 7th July
Location: Shropshire
Posted: Wed Sep 05, 2007 2:04 pm Post subject:
You've made me realise how it's often the case I don't realise how much I've enjoyed a book until much later. I thought this book was ok as I was reading it, but now time has passed I still think about it and remember a lot of it.
You can evaluate a book on how well it's written, structured etc, but then you can also evaluate the story - how powerful and memorable it is and the impact it makes on you. I didn't think it blew me away at the time of reading it, but I'm finding I'm enjoying the memory of the story as time passes. I suppose a little like how a good wine matures with age - the same applies to certain books and I think The Kiterunner is one of them.
I can still clearly picture the characters and landscapes. Maybe it made more of an impact on me than I thought _________________ Reading: Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow by Peter Hoeg
Reading Challenge 2009: 8
2008: 4
2007: 10
I agree with Glynis about being annoyed with Amir for not reporting the rape. I really couldn't forgive him for not only pretending it didn't happen but setting up hossan to get rid of him.
Whoever said about wanting parents approval into adulthood, I can't really agree. After a phonecall to my dad had me almost in tears at the weekend I really think it is possible to carry on caring even when you shouldn't.
I liked the way it came full circle with the guard being the rapist, I think it worked in a storyline way even if not a real life way.
I want to read his new one when I get chance.
And just for the record I find myspace much easier to use than facebook!
Posted: Mon Jan 07, 2008 6:17 pm Post subject: A shameful ignorance of Afghanistan
Finished the book yesterday-enjoyed it very much although found the story a little melodramatic- but I think the author has done a wonderful job in bringing the history of Afghanistan into focus- I'm ashamed to say, before I read the book, I had only the recent post 9/11 media depiction of a country in ruins- I had no idea how rich the country was in tradition and customs.
Looking foward to reading 'A Thousand Splendid Suns' _________________ Currently reading; Marianne Dreams
Joined: 22 Jul 2006 Posts: 7637 Birthday: 7th July
Location: Shropshire
Posted: Tue Jan 08, 2008 10:31 am Post subject:
I agree Janie, I hadn't given much thought to its customs and culture, and reading about them in the books is one of the things that stood out and also how beautiful the place was before the troubles. Very sad.
I listened to Khaled Hosseini on the radio recently and he said he misses how in Afghanistan everyone's homes are open houses, family and friends visit at the drop of a hat. He more or less said it's a shame we're not like it in the west.
A Thousand Splendid Suns is excellent too. _________________ Reading: Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow by Peter Hoeg
Reading Challenge 2009: 8
2008: 4
2007: 10
Joined: 21 Jul 2007 Posts: 676 Birthday: 2nd November
Location: Watford, Herts
Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2008 8:58 pm Post subject:
I read this whilst on hols last week. I did enjoy it but it wasn't as good as A Thousand Splendid Suns.
I got very involved with the story, and loved all the scenery descriptions, clothing and traditional customs. Having now read a few books set in Afghanistan in this time period it has just allowed me to continue building on some foundations of knowledge I already had.
I find it amazing how much a country can change over the short course of 30 years or so. The freedom that Afgani's had during the 1970's to the horrific conditions they had to endure under the Taliban.
I liked the scenes in America and found it interesting to see how the Afghans adjusted to life over there.
Spoiler:
The scenes were Amir first meets Soraya were great, but how typical that her father comes down like a sack of bricks until Amir gets Baba to ask for her hand in the cusomary way.
I liked the ending, it does give a note of hope and goodness out of all the dispair and inner anguish that we get throughout the novel. I know the visa aspect is a little rushed, but I don't think that detracted from the overall message.
I gave it 4 stars overall. A great read, not stunning but a keeper nonetheless. _________________ Currently Reading:
I read this book aloud with my husband while on vacation earlier this year. I had forgotten much of the story until I read through these posts and was reminded of how I felt about it. It was a good book to read out loud as they narrative flowed easily, other than some of the unpronounceable afgani words which we to make a decision about and then I would forget when I came to it again.
My husband loved it, really identified with Baba, had much anger toward Amir for his cowardice. I did enjoy it, but was a little disappointed owing to the fact that I had heard many rave reviews from friends and so had very high expectations. I found Amir, of course, to be a very weak character, which left much room for growth, but it was a little farfetched that Hassan could be such an unbelievably stoic boy despite the downtrodden way he was treated. He was admirable, it is true, but to me he needed to have a little more childish weakness to be real.
Baba seemed the most realistic with strengths and weaknesses evident. I really loved Soraya and Amir was lucky to find her.
I have A Thousand Splendid Suns sitting at home, but had put off reading it because I had heard it was not as good...but after reading a few comments about it being better, I think I'll pick it up again.
_________________ Currently reading: Love in the Time of Cholera
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. It is surely an irony that Hassan, whose ignorance Amir pillories, points out that there was no need for the man to kill his wife to weep tears, he could simply have smelled an onion. How important is irony in the book? Were their other instances that particularly struck you?
I jest, of course. I know that we often keep things to ourselves when we should tell someone about them. It's part of the human condition. We've all got skeletons & we can all be cowardly). I can also understand that Assef joined the Taliban & putting him in that role emphasised how easily evil can triumph in the world.
I wouldn't know where to find your facebook...come to think of it, what is a facebook? 