Book 37 -- The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

I am not necessarily a fan of "important books." I barely read biographies... unless they are of some pop culture figure and I not about to read a 600 page book on the life of one person. Before I read this book (The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini) and one of the reasons why I kept putting off reading it was that I was under the impression that this was an important book. I needed to read it to talk in snobby social circles (not you SZG and TD and Tangent Woman). I needed to read it in order to belong. It made me not want to read it and read it at the same time.

On APril 23, 2005, SZG wrote -- "The Kite Runner led me again into a world virtually unknown to me, Afghanistan. This a beautifully written novel that follows the travails of Amir from his childhood in Afghanistan in the mid '70s until he returns during the reign of the Taliban in the '90s. Its a book about his relationships both to his father and to his friend and servant Hassan. I hate to classify this as a coming of age story because it is so much more. A truly incredible first novel from Khaled Hosseini. Read this book. "

I agree with SZG's initial assessment of the book. It is more than a coming of age story.. .it is deeper and it invites you into the center of a tortured and deeply horrific situation in Afghanistan.

However... I wasn't nearly as moved by this book as others seem to be. I found the plot to be laborous and unimaginative... I found the only real moving part to be the descriptions of the cities... and the more I think about it... I begin to agree completely with my wife and I get more and more annoyed at the chapter in the middle of the book that changes the character talking in first person. Blech.

I will recommend the book though... It is a good read and an important book... but if you want a more lasting impression of what is going on over there... may I recommend the movie OSAMA. That was moving.Amazon.com: Books: The Kite Runner