The Kite Runner is very different from Atlas Shrugged in terms of the density of the book, the ease of reading, themes and the dialogue between characters. Rand’s Atlas Shrugged, I felt, was more like propaganda. She emphasized political and economic themes that were hard for me to follow and uninteresting. I can tell within the first 40 pages of The Kite Runner that I am going to enjoy the novel. I found myself reading further than the pages assigned because I was reading out of pleasure, not because it had been assigned.
The Kite Runner opens up with the main character, who reveals himself well into the first chapter. The novel initiates with present-day Amir and then quickly jumps into flashback. Here, Amir’s relationships with the people whom he lives with are introduced. Contrasting Amir’s relationship between his brother-like friend, Hassan, and his father, Baba, it was easy for me to recognize his feelings of misplacement. His father finds it hard to accept him or even think of him as his son because he does not meet the standards of a stereotypical masculine boy. Amir’s deceased mother seems like more of a parent than his father, who constantly pushes him aside and ignores him. I find myself appreciating the friendship between Amir and Hassan because although they come from completely different lifestyles, cultures and backgrounds, they understand each other better than anyone else.
These 40 pages conclude with a violent outbreak in Afghanistan which marks the end of their childhood and the country as a whole. This event is probably what causes Amir’s feelings of nostalgia. I am eager to see how the relationship between the characters will develop, specifically Amir and Hassan's.
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