Writer, Photographer,

I’m a bit of a late-comer to the whole craze surrounding The Kite Runner, but I sure wasn’t disappointed. I knew going in that this was an intense story but an important one. Let’s start with the book: The details and emotional impact are so genuine that I really thought this was a completely true story. The author did base the setting on his hometown experiences, but the rest of the story is pretty much just artfully constructed. Khaled Hosseini does such an amazing job with the actual writing, too. I was so dazzled by his style that I wrote down a few of the descriptive words he tended to use. Few writers I’ve come across are so talented with words.

I liked the movie as well, but because my favorite thing about the book was the richness of the language I felt the movie lacked some of the magic. Also, they did change the ending a bit for the movie, skipping over a lot of things that developed one of the characters. I felt this was to the detriment of the movie. I was surprised that the movie was actually less harsh than the book in terms of some of the events. Also, the book really spells out the main theme, redemption, in a way the movie just doesn’t. In a way, the story the book brings is far more intentional than the haphazard-seeming story portrayed in the movie. I can’t really go into more detail without spoiling anything for those who haven’t read.

I can’t give this book a sweeping recommendation because some elements are disturbing and the story’s not for everyone. I do think it’s a beautiful and important book, especially if you want to learn more about life in Afghanistan. I can’t believe this is a debut novel, and I definitely picked up his second: A Thousand Splendid Suns. I can’t wait to start it!

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