The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini (2004, Paperback, Reprint)

A friend recommended The Kite Runner after having purchased it in an airport bookstore. I was delighted to find it on eBay and consider it one of the best book purchases I have made. The writing style of Dr. Hosseini is that of an artist painting detailed landscapes of an unfamiliar (to me) setting and intricate lines on the faces of his characters. The near-poetic prose allows the reader to enter the heart and soul of Amir, the anxious child who became the haunted man. The reader steps into the hills and onto the rooftops of Afghanistan--somewhere I never aspired to be and yet lived joyfully until the plot turns angrily with the Russian invasion. Throughout the intriguing story of relationships lost and restored, there's a sense of dignity and triumph of human spirit. The book has given me more insight into the people and the modern history of Afghanistan, as well as a better understanding of the multitude of Afghanis who have established a community for themselves in the United States. There are some books that one can never erase from memory; this is one for me.