Kite Runner - Chapters 1-9

What is an imbecile and how is it important in the story

A stupid person. Amir tells Hassan it means the opposite to trick him.

What leader does Assef admire?

Adolph Hilter, he gives a book on him to Amir for his birthday

What is laaf?

Afghan tendency to exaggerate

What is Buzhashi?

Afghani past time that involves a horseman snatching a carcas and parading it around while others try to steal it.

What was Hassan's first word?

Amir

Who said, "But no one woke up and in the silence that followed, I understood the nature of my new curse: I was going to get away with it."

Amir

Who said "kites were the one paper-thin slice of intersection between those spheres?

Amir about he and Baba

Who did Hassan serve drinks to at the birthday party?

Assef

What was Amir's first word?

Baba

Who said, "I see you've confused what you're learning in school with actual education." (p. 16)

Baba said this in response to Amir saying he had learned from Mullah Khan that drinking was a sin.

Who said, "You bring me shame. And Hassan...Hassan's not going anywhere, do you understand?

Baba to Amir when Amir suggests they get new servants.

Who said, "I forgive you"?

Baba to Hassan for stealing the watch and money.

Who said "a boy who can't stand up for himself becomes a man who can't stand up for anything." (p.22)

Baba to Rahim Khan when talking about Amir

Why did Amir consider all of his birthday presents "Blood Money"?

Because Baba only threw him a big party because he won the kite fighting contest and that is tied in his mind with his betrayal of Hassan

Why was Amir so surprised Baba forgave Hassan?

Because theft in the worst crime of all to Baba.

What was Hassan good at?

Being a kite runner; he had an inner compass. He was a faster runner and a natural athlete.

Who never missed any of the 5 prayers during a day?

Hassan

Who said, "I like where I live. It's my home."

Hassan to Amir after Amir has promised to get him a television and feels sorry for Hassan and where he lives.

What did Ali look like?

Hazara, paralyzed lower lip, limp from polio

What was Hassan's final sacrifice for Amir?

He admitted to stealing the watch and money even though he didn't so that Amir would not get in trouble.

Why did the Soviets come into Afghanistan?

In December 1979, in the midst of the Cold War, the Soviet 40th Army invaded Afghanistan to prop up the communist government of the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) against a growing insurgency. (Communist coup d'etat happened in April 1978.) The Soviet Union feared the loss of its communist proxy in Afghanistan.

Baba's nickname

Mr. Hurricane; he was a force of nature

What are the memories Amir has while Hassan is being beaten up?

Of being breast-fed by the same woman with Hassan; a palm reader giving money back to Hassan and not giving his future; a dream of being lost in the snow; look of a lamb being slaughtered on holy days

Who said "There is a way to be good again."

Rahim Khan

Who said, "In the end, the world always wins. That's just the way of things.

Rahim Khan

Who said, "I shall hear any story you have to tell"?

Rahim Khan to Amir when he father was not interested in his first story

Who said, "Children are coloring books. You don't get to fill them with your favorite colors."

Rahim Khan to Baba who can't understand Amir

What does Amir's kite look like?

Red with yellow borders.

What happened in December 1979?

Russian tanks rolled into Afghanistan

What are major themes in novel?

Search for redemption, relationships between father and son, persistence of the past

What was Hassan's favorite book?

Shahnamah (10th century epic of ancient Persian heroes); he gives Hassan new copy on 13th birthday

What happened to Amir's mother?

She died in child birth

What happened to Hassan's mother?

She ran off with clan of traveling singers and dancers

What religion are Hazara?

Shi'a Muslim

What happened in school during winter?

Shut down for icy season

What weapon does Hassan use to fight off Assef, Kamal and Wali?

Sling-shot

What religion are Pashtun?

Sunni Muslim

What did Rahim Khan notice in Amir's first story

That it had irony.

Who is Dr. Kumar?

The plastic surgeon from India who operates on Hassan; was a present from Baba on his birthday

What were the rules of kite fighting?

The rules were simple. No rules. Fly your kite. Cut the opponents. (said by Amir)

What was the "tar" on a kite?

The tar was the string (made of string, ground glass and glue)

What is this quote referring to? "It just appeared, this other face, for a fraction of a moment, long enough to leave me with the unsettling feeling that maybe I'd seen it someplace before."

This is Amir referring to Hassan's face. He's seeing his father's face, maybe?

Who are the boys with Assef

Wali and Kamal

When did Baba cry for the first time according to Amir?

When Ali and Hassan were leaving his house to move.

What was Amir's single greatest moment of his 12 years of life?

Winning the kite tournament and having Baba be proud of him.

What birthday present did Hassan give Amir?

a brand new copy of Shahnamah, Hassan's favorite book

What did Rahim Khan give Amir for his birthday?

brown leather notebook

What did Hassan look like

hare-lip and mongoloid features (Hazzara's were Mogul descendants)

What presents did Baba give Amir for his birthday

schwinn stingray and a wristwatch with a blue face and gold hands

What is the thing Baba considers a sin?

theft "There is only one sin, only one. And that is theft. Every other sin is a variation of theft." p. 17