I’m again thinking about this book. I’m surprised about Amir, Baba, Soroya , and all other persons occupying this book; their lives still disturb me. Why has this book has touched me so much? What troubles me? A month ago, I first opened this book and in a few days it was over. But the grip of this story remains strong. For me as a former citizen of USSR Afghanistan had not been Terra Incognito until this book. In the former USSR, Afghanistan was part of our lives. We could discuss historical possibilities but the main result is evident – we were, we are and we will be inseparable. The Western World was not really interested in this part of the World until recently, when the Taliban emerged as if from nowhere. Only when the first coffins of international soldiers arrived home, it became a spotlight global interest. It is well known fact that people at the North America usually are not interested in foreign affairs. I think they were shocked when easy and understandable western democratic values have not been accepted by Afghan people, when war against tyranny step by step skidded to civil war. This had aroused many uneasy questions: Who are those people populating Afghanistan? Why don’tthey understand privileges which International Forces have brought them? Khaled Hosseini with his book has arrived just in time to answer these questions. Did he do did this? I believe that Khaled Hosseini wrote this book as a response to the unconscious urge to do something on behalf on his Homeland, on behalf of his people, to explain something very touching and important about Afghanistan to the other people, but simultaneously it was absolutely a sober plan of newborn writer, educated in the USA, targeted on the success in the American market.
This book may be regarded as mini-saga – behind the life of one family we could see Afghanistan. It started many years ago in Afghanistan, where Amir, the main character of this book, and his father Baba lived their lives. It was life of an adored father and a rejected son struggling for his love. Fortunately for Amir his father was rich which gave him the opportunity to enjoy his life in full measure. He even did not have to struggle for friendship of his peers – during all young years he was followed by his Sancha-Pansa – servant’s son Hassan. His time was filled by games, dreams, reading, walking and the main devotion – running kites. But the author reminds us that even for the youth life is a struggle, a constant challenge. To gain Baba’s love Amir should struggled to overcome himself and to win a competition of the kite runners. And he did it! However a peaceful life was abruptly broken to pieces when one morning the USSR army entered Afghanistan to “fulfill their international duties”. Although troubles changed to real horror when soviet occupation was changed by Taliban’s reigning government. If the first tide wave destroyed the usual life, the second one swept out a lot of Afghan from the Homeland and dispersed them all over the world. In a short period, Baba and Amir appeared in the USA and had to start their new life from the very beginning. Amir whom Baba used to view as feeble, clumsy, and not determined boy proved to be a reliable and highly intelligent person ready to struggle for the new life. Their roles changed – he became the main support for his family, but he never tried to humiliate his father. Many troubles came and went but even in peaceful and rich America old “ghosts” haunted him –Afghanistan had called him. It was against his will, but it gave him a chance to pay his old debt to Hassan – he finally saved Hassan’s son Sohrab. But after years this price had grown to the really troubling measure.
I believe that Khaled Hosseini wrote this book first of all as a response to unconscious urge to do something on behalf of Homeland, on behalf of his people, in an attempt to explain something very touching and important to the World about Afghanistan. For anybody who is acquainted with World’s history it should be amazing that a region with such a remarkable history is so poor, so distracted, so far away from the rest of the World. It looks like this part of the World still exists in the medieval centuries. In ancient times knowledge began to spread all over the World. from here as from cradle of civilization. Afghanistan as a cross-section of World’s main roads contemplated a lot - it saw army of Alexander the Great, merchants moved through Afghanistan to the West on Great Silk Way; armadas of tataro-mongol nomads looting the country. In recent history Afghanistan has attracted attention of “big players” - England Empire, USSR, and USA. Their interests are usually purely political without taking into account people of this poor country. But they are so different! We couldn’t ignore them anymore. the World, due to the USA policy, has become involved in the life of this suburb of civilization. If we remove some aspects from this book we’ll be surprised that Afghan people resemble us so much. They share the same values as any other nation – they love their families, they love their children, they love life. They can feel as deeply as any other people. When the readers are reading this book, at least it was absolutely true for me, they can feel some kind of aroma arise from the fields surrounding far outstanding mountains; they feel freshness of the winter wind and smell of the simple and delicious food, you hear undistinguished noises of the eastern bazaar, you can see indigo-blue sky above dirty murky land and plumes of smokes rising to the sky. They even can feel more then that – they can feel the spirit of this ancient land. All differences which we are so tempted to imagine for other nations are trifling matter – the reader cannot distinguish them from many other nationalities in melting pot of North America. They behave as if they have grown up there, they can work, they can study, and they can write books.
But simultaneously the novel was a sober planning targeted on the success on the American market. We shouldn’t forget that Khaled Hosseini grew up in the USA; he was educated there; he shares all values of this world, and he is a writer, looking for a success and a recognition there. So he constructed the book in accordance with recommendations and laws of the American cultural tradition. When he described young years of Amir, it was negligible due to the strong aroma of the East and maybe more touching pictures. The second part of the book had revealed clearly all things hidden before – it is an American writer with afghan roots. He adopted not only literature skills but mentality of the West World. Sometimes, his reasoning about the politics which he had put in Baba’s mouth looks absolutely naïve. On purpose or not he omitted the more tragic question – what is Afghanistan now? Why are people here fighting against international forces? Why don’t they accept western values? What role do drugs play in the life of modern Afghanistan? I didn’t wait for him to answer these questions, but I blame him for the lack of desire to discuss such troublemaking questions. He wrote his book as if on the recommendation of Jack London (Martin Eden). Many times during reading I was surprised that I could predict future up to tiny details. This predictability together with other typical features did not improv total impression from the book. We saw a lot such kind of scenarios before – good American guy consul, who can share feelings and would help in critical situation, Amir – a-la James Bond, easily defeated one of the Taliban leader in bloody battle, and of course a Happy end. For his pictures in the second part of the book he uses only black and white colors. Khaled Hosseini, of course, is a bright and outstanding person. But absolutely clear that the lack of life experience is his big trouble spot. Therefore, characters, who inhabit his book, sometimes look artificial, unnatural. Amir during his childhood is a real boy, but later as if by magic he will became “normal American guy”, Baba-Amir-Hassan triangle is far beyond imagination. Besides Hassan is an absolutely unreal person, far more from Baba’s ideal of a boy, Baba loved him, not Amir. It is understandable that this character allows describing Amir more vividly, but easy ways are not always the best. And on the other side - Assef. If Hassan represents absolute moral quality, Assef represents absolute dark forces of the world. Easy and clear!
When I finished this book unavoidable question had aroused – was it worth reading it? Did the author fulfill his mission? And my answer is “Yes”. People of the western countries received some information about Afghanistan. Some prejudices were never cleared up. Could Khaled Hosseini have done his work better? He could have. But paraphrasing old joke about taper in American saloon which says “Don’t shoot pianist; he plays as he can”, I like to say don’t judge this book too strictly, the author did what he could. The big success of this book could play tricky game on Khaled Hosseini - he can miss his chance to become a real Writer. And Afghanistan will lose a man who could be entrepreneur in difficult and complex discussion which would occur in any case.
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