Stupendous Man

The art of book writing has long since ceased, since the time it has become a lucrative entry to Hollywood. Almost all new writers and their works solely feel like as if they were a stepping 1st draft screenplay for a Hollywood movie. It is a sad state this then, that when you have writers writing not for a book, but for a movie, the essence of reading a book is lost (and I might as well wait for the movie itself!). However in spite of its screenplayish nature and rather filmy moments suitable for a movie, Khalid Hosseni’s first work “The Kite Runner” sustains considerable interest throughout and doesn’t let go till the end. That in itself is no mean feat.

The Book
The Kite Runner from a book per se begins brilliantly, but once one of the principal characters relegates into the background, the book considerably deteriorates into a screenplay. Not that it doesn’t hold interest, but predictable situations and predictable dialogues begin to hurt what could have been an excellent debut novel.

The Kite Runner chronicles the life of Amir who narrates the story of his life since his childhood from 1975, when Afghanistan was about to be run over by Soviets. The historical premise for the novel is indeed very interesting, and various times reflect the conflict and turmoil within Amir himself. The story is also about his friend Hassan, who is also his servant. The initial years of Amir and Hassan are built up beautifully – the story telling is ecstatic and it builds the drama superbly till the author decided to turn the book into a movie and thereby making it a predictable fare.

Somewhere midway, you just know what is going to happen next, and that is where the book begins to falter. Though it ends on a subtle and a very nice note, its impossible to ignore that Hosseni was already planning a Hollywood entry with this book (and for those initiated, there is a movie coming out directed by Sam-EvilDead-Mendes next year).

What I liked
- Simple story telling
- No complicated plot turns and events
- Tugs your heart at places, especially in initial chapters and towards the end

What I spiked
- Could have been so much better if the author and not reverted to screenplay tactics
- The character of Amir is really irritating, and malformed at many places in the book.

Overall
Overall the book is just like my review – somewhere down the line things hurry up and before you think what could have been much better review, it ends. Ha! Seriously, the book is a “feel-good” book, perfect for in-flight reading. Don’t expect too much and you won’t be disappointed.

BTW, if you are wondering about the title of this review, I luved this line from the book, and is used at appropriate places, almost forms a tagline of the book.