n  NOT A BOOK REVIEWn

n   “I caught one final blurry glimpse of Hassan slumped in the backseat before Baba turned left at the street corner where we’d played marbles so many times.
I stepped back and all I saw was rain through windowpanes that looked like melting silver.”n

It’s hard to talk about a book this favorite without fearing to sound biased. That’s practically the reason I can’t talk about the Harry Potter novels, for I can’t talk about the crystal-clear flaws that clearly without ending up to justify all of them. I read this one quite some time after A Thousand Splendid Suns, which had changed my opinion about Khaled Hosseini entirely, for I was quite apprehensive of a work that highly rated. And frankly enough, I believed he couldn’t get better than that one, however I was proved entirely wrong.

It’s quite unnecessary to relate any of the plot in here, for I’ve known people who boast that they haven’t read a single book in their life know the story. Probably a courtesy to the somehow lesser-known movie… Anyway I had decided to give it a shot after the most unstudious boy from my 11th grade told me that I must, must read this book.

What would be the best way to describe this one? Perhaps a ‘slice of life’ will be the most appropriate, which I last encountered in Ishiguro’s novel, though honestly this one is much closer to me. For it has profuse elements from all that life has to offer, much more than Hosseini’s other novels, which tend to speak on a specific subject microscopically. This one is based on an identical subject too, but the tone of the narrator, i.e. Aamir changes quite frequently and consistently. There’s a subtle tone of humor induced more than often throughout the tale, which also makes it stand apart from the other three Hosseini has written. And it’s one of the few times I personally had felt the unrefined vulnerable and somehow poignant effect of using a first-person narrative. Which doesn’t deal much with interior monologues either, but does its best to state everything the way it is, or was. And the character sketch is the most applaudable part, for I know that it takes something seriously out of the line to create a much less than perfect protagonist, like Aamir. Especially today, when mostly people want their protagonists to be ‘cute’ (I have never known anything quite as ridiculous before I joined Goodreads, sadly).

n   “That was the night I became an insomniac.”n

But let’s stop for a while from the ‘big’ words, and savor the book for the sheer brilliance that it resonates to the heart of a general reader as I. To tell the truth I still feel goosebumps when I read the finishing paragraphs, and I have read the entire novel more than a dozen times. And that’s something. For me, at least.

n   “Only a smile. A tiny thing. A leaf in the woods, shaking in the wake of a startled bird’s flight.”n

On the downside, I don’t think I can read any more of Hosseini without comparing it to the standard of this novel. And I think it best to end my unsolicited rambling now

“For you, a thousand times over”   

Please check TW before starting this book. This is one of the darkest, most effective, heart wrenching stories.

اگر ادبیات را به مثابه یک رسانه در نظر بگیریم، «بادباک باز» احتمالا یک تریبون پرطمطراق برای سیاه نمایی و اشاعه‌ی تفکرات غلط در مورد موضوعات حول افغانستان است. با اینکه از بادبادک باز به عنوان رمانی ضدجنگ و در باب بیان زشتی های آن یاد میشود اما در واقع با اثری طرف هستیم که قصد دارد توجیهی برای جنگ باشد. به بیان دقیق تر سعی میکند جنگ آمریکا در منطقه و به ویژه افغانستان را حرکتی آزادی بخش و نجات دهنده برای مردمی توصیف کند که از ظلم و ستم هم کیشان و هم میهنان خویش به تنگ آماده اند. با اینکه خالد حسینی بسیار کوشیده است همانند یک نویسنده‌ی بی طرف بنویسد و با تکنیک هایی از جمله گزافه گویی و بیان موضوعات حاشیه ای، اشارات مستقیمش را در لفافه قرار دهد اما باز هم نمیتوان او را همچون یک فرد بی طرف در نظر گرفت. او دقیقا همان سرمایه گذاری پرهزینه‌ی آمریکایی ست که اکنون به بار نشسته است.
در خلال داستان با اینکه از روزهای خوش افغانستان(یعنی حکومت پادشاهی) شروع میکنیم اما در میانه به دوران حکومت طالبان بر اکثر نواحی کشور میرسیم. جایی که جز کشت و کشتار و ظلم چیزی از طالبان نمیبینیم. چون داستان از دید اول شخص روایت می‌شود تمامی توصیفات با لحنی جانبدارانه ارائه می گردد. مثلا اعضای طالبان را مدام در حال شرارت و آزارهای روحی و جنسی کودکان و بزرگسالان می بینیم. خشونت افسارگسیخته‌ی نیروهای طالبان به حدی است که یادمان می‌رود تمامی آنها تا چند سال قبل، همشهری های راوی داستان بوده اند.
از دیگر انگیزه‌های مشکوک حسینی می‌توان به توصیفاتش از کابل جنگ زده اشاره کرد. با توجه به اینکه قدرت قلم حسینی را میتوان در تصویرسازی های بی نقصش دید، از این استعداد برای ارائه‌ی تصویری پساآخرالزمانی از کابل استفاده می کند. چیزی که عقلا بسیار دور از واقعیت است و به نظر می رسد که زمینه را برای ورود آمریکا (به عنوان ناجی مردم افغانستان) مهیا می کند. در قسمتی از داستان و درست یک سال قبل از حمله آمریکا به افغانستان، شخصیت اصلی، از بهبود اوضاع افغانستان کاملا ناامید می شود و میگوید: «شاید دیگر امیدی به افغانستان نیست.» اما درست پس ورود آمریکا به جنگ، به آینده خوشبین می شود و از مسیر اصلاحات در آن کشور اظهار خشنودی می کند

در باب ادبیات:
خالد حسینی تصویر پرداز خوبی ست اما مشکلات زیادی در داستان گویی دارد. یک سوم ابتدایی کتاب بسیار پرکشش و جذاب آغاز میشود. اتمسفر خلق شده توسط نویسنده بی نقص و گاهی ناب و اصیل است اما توان متعادل نگه داشتن این اتمسفر را تا انتها ندارد. از قسمت میانی به بعد، داستان در سراشیبی سقوط قرار میگیرد و کاملا ارزش هایش را از دست می دهد و حالت تقلیدی به خود می گیرد. مثلا قسمت های زندگی در آمریکا بسیار شبیه نسخه‌ی آماتور نوشته های جومپا لاهیری و اثر معروفش «هم نام» است. انتهای داستان هم بسیار آبکی و غیرقابل قبول است. عنصر غافل گیری در بادبادک باز کارگر نیوفتاده است و عموم اتفاقات به ظاهر معمایی داستان، در همان ابتدا لو میرود.
جالب اینجاست که در میان آن بلبشو، شخصیت اصلی به یاد خدا و مفهوم عبودیت میوفتد. چیزی شبیه سریال های مقوایی صدا و سیمای خودمان. سر بر سجده گذاشتن در بیمارستان و راز و نیاز زیر نور سبز و ادامه ماجرا ...

I must admit that although I had heard plenty of people mention The Kite Runner, I hadn’t actually paid much attention to what was said about it other than, “It was wonderful!”

So, a few days ago and several years after the book came out, I heard a couple of people discussing the “wonderful” book I decided to read it.

The first day, I read about a third of the novel (Hassan is raped, Amir feels bad, well sort of, he feels bad that Hassan is raped yes, but even worse because Hassan’s rape makes him feel bad and, of course, this means he needs to act badly and do bad things, and make more bad stuff happen to Hassan who is not bad at all.) And, I will admit that this portion of the book had me reading as quickly as I could. I flipped from one page to the next, skimmed over the plethora of annoyances, oops, I mean I skimmed over the Farsi vocab sprinkled evenly throughout to, of course, add authenticity and give it that multicultural feel that is sure to make every publisher drool over a manuscript, and I was even forgiving of the somewhat poor writing. Yes, on day one, I liked The Kite Runner. I was into The Kite Runner. And when I decided to continue my read the next day – I had high hopes!

The second day, I read to the point where Amir gets a phone call from a man he has not seen in years, abandons his “perfect life” in America (well, almost perfect, there is the infertility and the gap that his wife’s uterus is forming between them, but their sex life is still good – sometimes… WHAT!? Never mind…) so, anyway, Amir hops on a plane to Afghanistan which is being ruled by the Taliban, yet he enters without issue, and follows the yellow brick road and lands at OZ where it turns out that the man behind the glasses is not John Lennon at all – he is Assef – his childhood nemesis, pedophile, and just plain evil guy (and you know he is evil cause he likes Hitler – although he has never heard of ethic cleansing). So, Amir walks right into the Taliban compound and asks to see the wizard, I mean their leader, and is allowed to do so (actually it was more difficult for Dorothy to get in to see the wizard, she should have taken Amir with her) and when he gets in, we find out that Hassan’s son is made to dress like a monkey - GET IT A MONKEY – ya know like the monkey that Amir and Hassan would go see (too bad it wasn’t a flying monkey) – and provide entertainment for the Taliban, and provide sexual services for Assef – the same guy who had sex with Hassan and, now the obviously simple minded reader that Hosseini wrote for, says, “that is so weird the way that all happened, wow, I can't believe the way this is all coming together, this is sooooooo fascinating!” Oh, and for the thinking reader with any literary competence who MAY think that this is too much of a coincidence, don’t be so critical; this issue was already addressed when Amir ran into a beggar who happened to have taught with (and remembered doing so) Amir’s mother. We, the readers, are clearly TOLD that coincidence is VERY common in Afghanistan. Therefore, if the rest of the story seems too contrived, don’t worry, it is realistic for Afghanistan. So, don’t question it, cause he is the expert on Afghanistan and you (the reader) are not, therefore, just accept that this completely ridiculous, unrealistic, obviously contrived series of events, are very realistic in Afghanistan!

My third day of reading, I completed the book and instead of placing my hand over my heart, smiling, and thinking about how wonderful the book was, how beautiful the story was, and how it all came so nicely together in the end (apparently the reaction of the masses), I was mad. I was mad because there are so many people out there who think a book this ridiculous and obvious is brilliant. I was mad because this is precisely what is wrong with some multicultural literature and what gives multicultural literature a bad name. There are many pieces out there that are (actually) beautifully written, provide valuable insight into other cultures, and entertain the reader (i.e. Reading Lolita in Tehran), however, it does nothing for multicultural literature to publish pieces that are poorly written and filled with cliché. I can forgive (to a certain extent) poorer writing when the story is written as a true account and when the purpose of the novel is to re-tell actual events. However, when an author decides he is going to write a piece of fiction, his style, diction, and plotline come into question. The final portion of the novel continues throwing out one cliché after another, and throws out one ridiculous coincidence after another. Just the fact that a good portion of the middle of the book was dedicated to pounding it into the readers head that Amir and Soraya could not have children and did not want to adopt, well, that is unless the bloodline is known, is enough to clue the reader in that they will adopt Sohrab waaaay before Amir even knows that he will adopt Sohrab. What a coincidence that Hassan just happened to be his half brother, happened to have a son, and the son happened to have been taken by Assef. And it was even more convenient that, even from the grave, once again, Hassan could save Amir. He could provide him with a son and the opportunity to finally fight the big bully who STILL carried his brass knuckles. And more convenient yet, the fact that Sohrab always carried that slingshot (And in case we forgot that he always carried it, Amir remembered for us, as if Hosseini wants to say: see readers how clever I am, I set it up that Sohrab always had the slingshot, and now later in the story, it comes back out. See how clever I am readers, everything in my story has a purpose and is connected). However, what Hosseini needed to do is explain how a kid who has been taken from an orphanage, made to dress and entertain like a monkey, lives with the Taliban, and is a sex slave for the Big Bad Assef, still managed to keep his slingshot – the very weapon used against Assef in the past, and the very weapon that Assef has an issue with! Just how dumb must a reader be to believe that the freakin Taliban NEVER NOTICED!? So, okay, Sohrab saves Amir, they escape and the Taliban does nothing, and then another freaking coincidence – Amir will end up with a scar. And in case the reader does not deduce that Amir will have a scar from his busted lip, the doctor points it out and confirms it. Yes, reader, a scar like Hassan’s – get it? It’s connected – get it?

Truth be told, there are so many unbelievable incidents and ridiculous coincidences presented to us in this book that it would take pages to go through them all because they were present from beginning to end: The young Russian soldier who doesn’t shoot Baba and the older Russian soldier who apologizes for him and talks about the young soldiers – YEAH RIGHT! The fact that Amir is an author who is published right away and cranks out novel after novel with great success – YEAH RIGHT! Baba dies of lung cancer and then Rahim Khan seems to have to same issue – does Hosseini think all people who die of natural causes die of lung issues? Raymond Andrews who has a bad attitude because his kid committed suicide, and then the receptionist actually tells Amir that this happened – the way this came out seemed completely fake and contrived because – IT WOULDN’T HAPPEN! Then, of course, Sohrab tries to kill himself, so now we know why Andrews kid had to commit suicide – we needed one more obvious instance of foreshadowing. It is also a little odd how often Amir throws out how he knows about medicine because he is a writer – WHAT? I didn’t know I needed to seek out an author when I was sick. And so on and so on…

But one final point that I would like to make is that as soon as Amir picked up a kite it seemed that, much like Jesus, his hands began to bleed; therefore, I am left to wonder: why didn’t Amir know about the invent of gloves? Perhaps that is the biggest tragedy of it all.

By the way, I am still giving the novel two stars because there is an interesting story in there, and the glimpse into Afghanistan is valuable. It is just that the author did such a poor job of presenting the story that it actually detracts from the positive aspects of the book and makes the validity of his glimpse into Afghanistan quite questionable. Therefore, my two stars are for the possibilities that could have been if it had been written by a talented author.

این دوازده روز من با این کتاب زندگی کردم , اشک ریختم , خندیدم , به فکر فرو رفتم و یاد این جمله افتادم که زمان معلم خوبیه و هرچیزی رو که در وقت خودش از روزگار یاد نگیری برای تو با جدیت هرچه تمام تر تکرارش میکنه و سخت ازت دوباره امتحان میگیره تا درس زندگیت رو یاد بگیری و از بر بشی , بادبادک باز همین رو برای من یادآوری کرد , داستان امیری که به وقتش از حمایت یک عزیز (حسن) شونه خالی کرد و سالها بعد همون ها رو به پسر اون عزیز(سهراب) پس داد و در آخر رو به سهراب پسر حسن گفت "جانم هزار بار فدایت" و میشد یک دل سیر برای این جمله اشک ریخت برای تمام وقت هایی که مثل امیر توی زندگی مون حرف هامون رو خوردیم و قدم هامون رو برنداشتیم و کار از کار گذشت و نادم و سر خورده منتظر امتحان بعدی زمونه نشستیم , عاشق این کتاب شدم عاشق قلم خالد حسینی عاشق اینکه نمیدونم از ذهنش بوده یا تماما از زندگی واقعی کسی مثل امیر برداشت شده , هرچه که بود به قدری میشد با نوشته اش هم حسی کرد و لمسش کرد که حد نداشت , دلم برای آدم ها سوخت , آدم هایی که به جای دسته بندی های درست با قوم هاشون دسته بندی میشن و سرنوشت هاشون رو به این قومیت ها میبازن و از این دنیای عجیب با دل شکسته پر میکشن و میرن و باقی ماندگان این قوم ها هم در سوگ از دست دادگانشون میشینن و به این فکر میکنن آیا خدایی هست ؟ و بادبادک باز خدا رو در بیمارستان دیده بود , در سختی ها , در نذرها و در سر نبریدن گوسفندها و در لبخند کج سهراب پسر حسن لب شکری که چقدر حس شیرین و قشنگی رو در اخر برای منِ مخاطب به هدیه گذاشته ...

Khaled Hosseini writes books that you can read in one afternoon and leave the book forever, but once you turn that final page, the story WILL NEVER leave your mind.

أجلت قراءة الرواية لمدة أكثر من عام، رغم إصرار الصديقة هديل غسان التي أحبت الكتاب ورشحته لنا مراراً
سمعت كثيراً عن خالد حسيني وعن رواياته الموجعة للقلب وكأنني بتأجيل قراءة هذا الكتاب أجلت الحزن وانقباض الصدر الذي أشعرني به.
مع كل صفحة كان قلبي يتمزق ما بين رغبتي في معرفة ما سيحدث ورغبتي في إنهاء هذا الألم. أقرأ الرواية مع صديق لي، ويتهمني بقسوة القلب للسرعة التي أنهيت بها هذه الرواية.
قد تكون الأحداث متوقعة عن بلدٍ يغرق في الفقر وفي الحروب، أحداث رأيناها في عدة دول. تعذيب، قصف، قتل، تجارة أعضاء واعتداء جنسي. مستغلو الحروب لتحقيق مكاسب أخرى. لكن لخالد حسيني ما يميزه في السرد.
ما أثار انتباهي أكثر من غيره، الندم، الندم الذي يأكل بطلنا أمير ووالده، أمير الذي لم يكن بطلاً بالكامل، أو معنى البطل الذي تصوره لنا الأفلام والرسوم المتحركة. الشجاع، الطيب، الذي يهّب لمساعدة الآخرين والتضحية من أجلهم. هنا يرينا خالد حسيني أن البطل قد يكون وغداً أحياناً وجباناً ومدّعياً.

لأجلك ألف مرة ومرة !

“And that’s the thing about people who mean everything they say. They think everyone else does too.”

An unlikely friendship between two young boys told against the devastating backdrop of the history of Afghanistan over the last thirty years.

Oh, boy. This one really put me through the wringer. If I wasn’t wanting to batter Amir to death with said book because of his selfish childhood actions, I was sobbing crying on my knees shouting “Why, God? WHY?!” I feel like Hosseini was trying to personally destroy me with my feels.

Luckily, I read to feel my feels. Whether that’s excitement, or rage, or tension, or fear, or that moment when you actually feel a pain in your chest and you sincerely hope that your Red Bull addiction hasn’t come back to haunt you and that it’s just an emotional pain deep in your heart. So, yes, Hosseini, you may have broken me, but I loved every minute of it

The characterisation is just another level here. Within merely 30 pages I just knew that Hassan was a young boy who must be protected at all costs because he has the most pure heart and soul, and I may or may not be welling up again just thinking about him... As for Amir... we got off to a rocky start *see earlier book battering* but you were only a child and I see that in hindsight.

I was worried I wouldn’t enjoy this as I am quite ignorant when it comes to politics in Afghanistan (or any politics, tbh) and I wasn’t sure if the book leaned heavily on this. Thankfully it did not, and any time politics did play a role, the narrator (Amir) explained it in a very accessible and easily digestible manner. Which I really do appreciate!

This book is powerful and moving, and I have no doubt it will stay with me forever. My #jobis30before30 challenge has been worth it for this book alone - now a forever favourite.

One of the nicest things about this challenge is that it allows me to recommend books to my mum (she ain’t about that horror life). I shall force this one upon her so that she too can read this beautiful story about friendship, family and redemption - AND FEEL ALL THE DAMN FEELS!

All the stars!

i was assigned this for summer reading before my junior year of high school, a terrible turn of events that culminated in me bawling my eyes out at the community pool in front of a bunch of six year olds and their moms.

this book is so f*cking sad it's unbelievable. at the time i equated "this book makes me concerned i will drown in a pool of my own tears, which is especially pertinent considering i am currently at a non-tear-based pool and am also crying" with "this book is good."

i do not do that now, and in fact have gone so far in the other direction that when a book is overly sad in a deliberate, try-hard way, i think it's cheap pandering and i'm inclined to hate it.

but at the time, i loved this, or thought i did, so lowering the rating is probably unfair.

but if i reread it, i'd probably two star it out of spite.

i won't reread it though. hate feeling emotions.

this is part of a project i'm doing where on top of all my other daily updates - short story a day, review a day, new current read a day, book finished every day - i make you deal with a review of a book i read a long time ago. if you've been needing my permission to divest me from your online life, go ahead.

n  pre-readn

so scared but also so excited for this one

Outrightly Stunning !!

I just tried to re - read this book, it feels so different amidst the Afghanistan crisis!

A blend of classic, drama, historical fiction, thrill, empathy, with conspicuous themes of guilt and redemption : this book is Khalid Hosseini's tour de force ( the so called masterpiece). The finest fiction book that I've read as of date because one would rarely find a work of fiction that seems so realistic right from its inception to its culmination. The book depicts the fact that time is a greedy thing and can steal all the details for itself; and yet, when the truth is revealed, it can change the course of a whole lifetime. Awe-inspiring is the appropriate word for this book.

I have a penchant for a line from this book: History isn't easy to overcome. Neither is religion.

عانيت كثيرا من ضيق فى التنفس أثناء قراءتى لهذه الرواية , و خصوصا الجزء الأول, الأمر الذى كان له أثر على معدل قراءتى لها حتى اكتشفت أن ما اعترانى لم تكن حالة مرضية و إنما من فرط حبس أنفاسي خلال القراءة لهفة و شوقا إلى متابعة الأحداث *
*حدث بالفعل

ملاحظاتى العامة عن الرواية كانت فى تفوق جزئها الأول كثيرا عن أجزاء خروج البطل من دياره , و التى تحولت الأحداث فيها أحيانا إلى أحداثا عادية مكملة فقط للحكاية , و أحداثا أخرى توقعتها و أشعرتنى كأننى أشاهد "فيلما هنديا" مبالغا بعض الشئ.
:)

هى رواية عن الوعود و التى يجب أن تعنيها حين إطلاقها , عن التمايز العرقى و الطبقى و حتى التمايز الأخلاقى.

أكدت لى الرواية أمرا لطالما به اقتنعت ; يختصره التعبير الانجليزى القائل
"Never take anybody for granted"
بمعنى أنه عندما يتعلق الأمر بالبشر , فلا مسلمات , فأصحاب الأنساب و الأصول العريقة ليسوا بالضرورة شرفاء , و المنتمون إلى أعراق أقل تاريخا ليسوا بالضرورة خائنين أو محل احتقار , فكل منا هو فعله و عمله وكلمته التى تحرره أو تبقيه سجين الحنث بالوعد.

بحديثه عن الأوطان و البلاد التى لا تهم سيرتها أحد , وضع خالد حسينى أفغانستان على الخريطة.