Discussion Question One

1. The novel begins with Amir's memory of peering down an alley, looking for Hassan who is kite running for him. As Amir peers into the alley, he witnesses a tragedy. The novel ends with Amir kite running for Hassan's son, Sohrab, as he begins a new life with Amir in America. Why do you think the author chooses to frame the novel with these scenes? Refer to the following passage: "Afghans like to say: Life goes on, unmindful of beginning, end...crisis or catharsis, moving forward like a slow, dusty caravan of kochis [nomads]." How is this significant to the framing of the novel? - Penguin Group USA Copyright © 2006

Community Program Calendar for May 2006

A volunteer committee surveyed the community and has selected The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini as the one book that the entire community is invited read at the same time (www.khaledhosseini.com). Here’s how it works (also see www.redwoodcity.org/onebook, or call 780-7058):


Please join any of the great events and activities that are scheduled:

Kick-off Celebration - In Conversation with Tamim Ansary
Thursday, May 4
7:30 p.m. - Downtown Library, Community Room
1044 Middlefield Road
The Kite Runner was developed in the writing workshop that Tamim Ansary runs in San Francisco. Tamim Ansary is the author of West of Kabul, East of New York: an Afghan American Story.

“Ansary's memoir hails back to an Afghanistan most people have forgotten, one I personally remember fondly and recreated in my book, an Afghanistan living in peaceful anonymity, a "lost world" of walled villages, extended family networks, a world where instead of television, "we had genealogy." His prose is rich with the sounds and smells of this old world, but it transcends mere nostalgia. Tamim's memories serve as tools for his keen observations about the social and political mores of that time, about ripples in the calm way of life which led in part to the communist coup -- see the chapter titled "Unintended Consequences." – Khaled Hosseini

Kick-off Party – Understanding other Cultures
Thursday, May 4
4:00 p.m. - Fair Oaks Library
2510 Middlefield Road

Barnes and Noble Book Fair
1091 El Camino Real
Sequoia Station - Redwood City
Shop at Barnes and Noble any week-end in May and a percentage of the sale will be donated to the Friends of the Redwood City Public Library.

Come Share a Book Together: Hear The Kite Runner Read Aloud
Every Monday and Wednesday, 10:00 a.m.
April 3 – May 24
Veterans Memorial Senior Center
1455 Madison Avenue
Through the course of these morning readings, hear the entire story of The Kite Runner read aloud by Library volunteers! Feel free to drop in for any or all of these great readings.

The Kite Runner: A Family Celebration of Afghan Food and Music
Thursday, May 11
7:00 pm – Downtown Library
Fireplace Room
1044 Middlefield Road
Enjoy samplers of Afghan food and music, a perfect family activity centered around the Afghan culture of The Kite Runner.

Film Program Night
Thursday, May 11
7:15 p.m. - Schaberg Library
2140 Euclid Avenue
"Kandahar: Journey Into The Heart of Afghanistan” - a 2001 Cannes Film Festival Award-winning feature about an Afghan-born Canadian journalist who returns to her homeland in a desperate attempt to save her sister. In Farsi with English subtitles.

Comparative Tasting and Book Discussion - Coffee and Conversation
Friday, May 19
1:00 p.m. - Peets Coffee and Tea
2600 Broadway
How about tasting a sampling variety of great coffees, and talking with other coffee-and-book lovers about The Kite Runner? It's free and fun.

Bedtime Storytime (ages 3-8) - Understanding Cultural Differences
Monday, May 22
7:15 p.m. - Downtown Library, Children’s Program Room
1044 Middlefield Road

Preschool Storytime (ages 3-5) – People are Different
Tuesday, May 23
10:30a.m. – Downtown Library, Children’s Program Room
1044 Middlefield Road

Panel Discussion: Afghanistan - Literature and Culture
Wednesday, May 31
7:30 p.m.
Downtown Library, Community Room
Panelists will include:
Diane Tober, Ph.D., Medical Anthropologist
University of California, San Francisco, Institute for Health and Aging

Noon Brown Bag Book Discussion
Tuesday, May 9
City Hall, Room 2-B

Noon Brown Bag Book Discussion
Thursday, May 11
Downtown Library
Small Meeting Room, Second Floor

Noon Brown Bag Book Discussion
Thursday, May 25
Downtown LibrarySmall Meeting Room, Second Floor

Save the Date!
Thursday, October 19
Meet the Author: Khaled Hosseini
San Mateo Performing Arts Center

Redwood City's book for May 2006

The Redwood City library, City Council, a citizen advisory committee, and a popular vote have all put a lot of work into choosing a book for the city to read in May 2006.

The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini, will be our community book!

Here on this blog, we would like to invite community members to share their reactions to The Kite Runner.

Watch this space as well as the Redwood City and Redwood City Public Library web pages for information on upcoming events related to the book.

We hope to have the book available for sale in local bookstores and through the library for borrowing, but you can also get it here: The Kite Runner - or en español (unfortunately it's way more expensive) here: Cometas en el cielo.

Here's a brief description of the book from Khaled Hosseini's Wikipedia entry:

The Kite Runner is the story of a young boy, Amir, juggling to establish a closer rapport with his father and coping with memories of a haunting childhood event. The novel is set in Afghanistan, from the fall of the monarchy until the collapse of the Taliban regime, and in the San Francisco Bay Area. The novel was published in 2003.

I can't wait to read it - that's why I voted for it.

- Liz Henry
(Book committee member and blog diva)