Set just as the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in the 1970s, “The Kite Runner” tells the beautifully tragic story of Amir as he grows through personal and political turmoil. I was impressed that this was author Khaled Hosseini’s first book. His storytelling was engaging, with writing that flowed so skillfully it felt almost poetic at times.
With a story that warmed your heart then relentlessly shattered it, there was probably a constant stream of tears running down my face for the last 100 pages of the book. Here are a few quotes that stuck with me long after the last page (warning: spoilers ahead).
- “I understood the nature of my new curse: I was going to get away with it.”
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War consumed Hassan, cancer consumed Baba; but guilt consumed Amir. He was blessed by his circumstances but cursed by his own actions, perhaps making his the greatest tragedy of them all.
- “Not a word passes between us, not because we have nothing to say, but because we don’t have to say anything—that is how it is between people who are each other’s first memories.”
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There’s something irreplaceable about the friends you grew up with. When you’ve shared your whole life with each other, few words are needed to express your feelings. That his childhood was so deeply connected to Hassan’s makes Amir’s betrayal all the more heartbreaking.
- “There are a lot of children in Afghanistan, but little childhood.”
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In a deja-vu moment, this quote has, unfortunately, become relevant again with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. With this war and the refugee crisis it has created, this quote perfectly captures the tragedy of war: it raises a child with no childhood. It made me think of how the most helpless victims lose their innocence to needless violence.
- “That’s how children deal with terror, they fall asleep.”
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This is another one that just ripped me apart. So many Afghan children saw their life as doomed after everything they had been put through. Sohrab’s helplessness broke my heart, knowing that his only release from pain was to fall into the nothingness of sleep.
- “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.”
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Forgive and forget. That’s never been easy for me. I’ve never really understood how or why people choose to forgive so easily, without closure. This quote and its context in the story helped me see how forgiveness isn’t really about the actions of the other person, but rather an internal decision to let go of the negative emotions you hold.
- “For you, A thousand times over.”
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This line comes back to haunt Amir over and over but is most powerful when said by Amir to Sohrab during a kite-fighting tournament. The parallelism is a testament to how Amir has progressed as a character on his quest for redemption. His story is proof that even after our worst decisions, righting our wrongs can end up being what defines us.