In his debut novel, The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini accomplishes what very few contemporary novelists are able to do. He manages to provide an educational and eye-opening account of a country's political turmoil--in this case, Afghanistan--while also developing characters whose heartbreaking struggles and emotional triumphs resonate with readers long after the last page has been turned over. And he does this on his first try.

The Kite Runner follows the story of Amir, the privileged son of a wealthy businessman in Kabul, and Hassan, the son of Amir's father's servant. As children in the relatively stable Afghanistan of the early 1970s, the boys are inseparable. They spend idyllic days running kites and telling stories of mystical places and powerful warriors until an unspeakable event changes the nature of their relationship forever, and eventually cements their bond in ways neither boy could have ever predicted. Even after Amir and his father flee to America, Amir remains haunted by his cowardly actions and disloyalty. In part, it is these demons and the sometimes impossible quest for forgiveness that bring him back to his war-torn native land after it comes under Taliban rule. ("...I wondered if that was how forgiveness budded, not with the fanfare of epiphany, but with pain gathering its things, packing up, and slipping away unannounced in the middle of the night.")

Some of the plot's turns and twists may be somewhat implausible, but Hosseini has created characters that seem so real that one almost forgets that The Kite Runner is a novel and not a memoir. At a time when Afghanistan has been thrust into the forefront of America's collective consciousness ("people sipping lattes at Starbucks were talking about the battle for Kunduz"), Hosseini offers an honest, sometimes tragic, sometimes funny, but always heartfelt view of a fascinating land. Perhaps the only true flaw in this extraordinary novel is that it ends all too soon. --Gisele Toueg

The timely and critically acclaimed debut novel that's becoming a word-of-mouth phenomenon...

It's an excellent STORY that merges fact and fiction expertly while invoking deep human feeling. I initially heard about this book via a BBC broadcast and bought it off Amazon. It was a great buy - the story itself reminded me of reading John Steinbeck's "The Pearl" when I was a teenager. I later bought the movie as well but was utterly disappointed. Key areas of the book are left out including the bathroom scene (readers will know to what I am referring).

Recommendation: Buy the book - forget the movie.

This is probably one of the most IMPORTANT books I've read in a long time, mainly because of the knowledge it has to offer about Afghanistan and its culture. The story, however, speaks for itself, and I would not want to downplay the writing by focusing on the way it opens the readers eyes as to what is and has been going on in Afghanistan, as it does much more than that. Some will tell you this story is about Afghan culture and the destruction of its beauty, while others will tell you it is a story of friendship or sin and redemption. Really, though, it is a story about contradicting forces: the beauty of a culture and the ruin of its country, the gravity of sin and the meaning of atonement, the sincerity of friendship and the devastation of its loss. The brilliance of this novel is not just Hosseini's ability to bring a culture to life, but his ability to depict the human condition at its best and worse simultaneously, working with opposing and disconnected ideas to finally bring them full circle.

The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini, is like an Afghani version of Forrest Gump. Through the eyes of the main character, Amir, we experience the history of Afghanistan, from the 1960s through the present. In contrast to Forrest, however, who accomplished great things despite a handicap, Amir is born into a privileged, upper-class family and yet he struggles his whole life to accomplish anything of significance.

Amir's struggles stem from numerous sources: guilt over the death of his mother, confusion about his role in a multi-class society, and worry about winning his father's approval are some of the sources. Amir is an outsider, struggling to find his place in a fractured society. It takes him over 40 years to make peace with himself and to honor those who suffered as a result of inactions that had been haunting him for so long.

The changes to Afghani society described in the book are too drastic for me to fully comprehend. I was able, however, to relate to Amir and his search for meaning in life. The author tells a story with so much detail about the tragic events in Afghanistan's history that I often found myself forgetting that this story is fiction. I can easily imagine that stories similar to this one might be true in Afghanistan, or in Uganda, or in Yugoslavia, or in other countries that have suffered similar fates.

I have read the complaint that the story is too predictable. There is some truth to this claim. I do not feel, however, that this diminishes the enjoyment of reading this book. To the contrary, it is the solid plot that provides the framework in which the author can weave more subtle messages about the value of family, the fragility of our society, and the common struggles that all humans face. Should you treat someone differently simply because he was born into a different class? When you see someone begging on the street, do you ignore him because he is beneath you? Would your--should your--opinion of the beggar change if you knew he was once an army General? The author subtly poses many such thought provoking questions beneath the main plot of the book.

The powerful emotions and vivid imagery invoked by the The Kite Runner will stick with you for a long time after you finish reading it. Though fiction, the author tells his story with such detail that feels like it could have been a true story. You will learn about Afghanistan's history, Afghani people, and perhaps even something about yourself.

Best book I've ever read. The characters are so real, you could almost touch them. By turns heart-wrenching and hopeful.

The Kite Runner is one of the most beautiful books that I've read in a long time. Hosseini weaves a masterpiece as told through the narrator, Amir. The story is about two young boys, Amir and Hassan, who grow up in Afghanistan. During their youth, Amir does a great wrong to Hassan and lives with a cloud of shame until the day he is finally able to redeem himself.

One of the most memorable items in the book is the back drop of the story: Kabul, Afghanistan. I always picture the Afghanistan of today: men in turbans and women covered head to toe. But Hosseini provides a picture of Kabul before Russia and the Taliban invade. It is a picture of a modern country with boys in corduroys and vests. The book made me a lot more interested in the crisis that is occuring in Afganistan today. Hosseini also presented a culture full of pride, humility, humor and politeness. All of which, I did not expect.

Overall, this is one of the best books that I've read (and I've read a lot). I didn't quite believe all of the hype, but this book definitely fulfilled my expectations.