The Kite Runner

by Khaled Hosseini

Wow. Just... wow. This is one of the most incredible books I've ever read, right up there with A Child Called It and The Lovely Bones. It'd a fictional narrative by an Afghan boy, about his life growing up in Afghanistan before the revolution and Russian invasion, his moving to America, and his return to his country later in his life, in an effort to fulfill himself.
This is such a powerful story. Amir's father is a rich, well-liked Sunni man, and Amir spends his childhood trying to impress him. His best friend, Hassan, is a Shi'a Muslim, and the son of his father's servant. Neither of the boys have mothers: Amir's died in childbirth and Hassan's eloped soon after his birth. The reader can see Hassan's recognition of his place in society, although Amir doesn't always notice. He cleans up after them, does things for him, lies to cover up his mistakes-- it's almost heartbreaking how much Amir takes him for granted. However, things change between them when Amir watches Hassan get raped by a peer and doesn't do anything to stop him. He distances himself from Hassan, avoids him at all costs, in fact, until he finally blames Hassan for stealing a birthday gift (he didn't) and Hassan and his father leave.
Soon after that, the Russians invade Afghanistan, and Amir's father decides they have to leave the country. They emigrate to Pakistan illegally, and soon move to San Fransisco.

...I don't want to ruin the ending if anyone else wants to read it, which you should. It's so sad, but I couldn't put it down. It's just so realistic--this story could have happened to anyone, but it's written so well, with all these connections that keep coming back to haunt you. I seriously can not get over this book! I'm probably going to reread it in the next couple of weeks, to try and pick up on some more of the details that make it so interesting.
It's so good...
~Marcella