The Kite Runner

     Is anybody looking for a book about friendship, heartbreak, and redemption? If so, I'd recommend The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. In the 1970s, young Amir lives in Afghanistan with his father (who is a wealthy businessman) and their servants, Ali and his son Hassan. Amir and Hassan grow up being best friends, doing almost everything together. Their favorite sport is Kite Running, and practice for the annual tournament all year. But life becomes hard as the Russia, and later the Taliban, invade their country. Hassan is sexually abused one afternoon, and though Amir sees it, he does not help. Soon Ali and Hassan leave, and Amir and his father follow five years later as they escape to the USA to flee from the turmoil in Afghanistan. Until Amir receives a phone call several years later from an old friend, he pushes aside his memories as he begins a new life. Soon he starts the adventure of a lifetime as he attempts to pick up the fragmented pieces of his old life and redeem himself for the wrongs he did.
     I found The Kite Runner to be a very well-written, beautiful book. The author writes in a way that readers feel as if they are right there, witnessing everything with their own eyes. In Khaled Hosseini's debut novel, the characters certainly came alive and created a powerful story of friends, hardships, and heartbreaks. The Kite Runner is the type of book that will make you laugh, cry, and want to read it over and over again.

Caution: I don't recommend younger children reading this book, as it contains some mature themes.