Kite Runner by J. D. Sallinger - 1245 Words

The main character of the Kite Runner is an Afghan boy named Amir and his family, including his servants, Hassan and Ali. At the start of the book, Amir and Hassan are about 12 years old and live in a new, wealthier part of Afghanistan because Amir’s father (Baba) is a big business man in Afghanistan, so he is wealthier. Amir is a Pashtun, which means he is a Sunni Muslim, while Hassan is a Hazara, which means he is a Shia Muslim. This means that the two would’ve been enemies most likely if they had not grown up together from the day they were born (not the same day, of course). Amir repeatedly says that Hassan is his brother because they were both nursed and breast fed by the same women, and that creates a special bond between two boys, even though Amir and Hassan are not biologically related in any way. Amir and Hassan grew up together the way that Baba and Ali (Amir’s father and Hassan’s father respectively) had a generation before them-they were brothe rs no matter the religion or history of violence between the two different groups of Muslims. Amir is literate and can read and write because he is Pashtun, while Ali and Hassan cannot because they are Hazara, so during the summer, spring, and fall months, Amir goes to school and Hassan stays home to do laundry, clean, and do other various chores. During the winter, it is kite flying season. Amir and Hassan used to build their own kites for the kite flying contests, but after they figured out that they weren’t really