Summary 1
Who is Farid?
Farid is Amir's hired driver in Afghanistan.
Who is Wahid?
Wahid is Farid's brother. They stop at Wahid's house to spend the night during their long drive.
Amir tells Wahid he is a published writer. What does Wahid suggest Amir write about?
He thinks Amir should write about Afghanistan and the Taliban.
“And how was I going to reconcile this new image of Baba with the one that had been imprinted on my mind for so long, that of him in his old brown suit, hobbling up the Taheris' driveway to ask for Soraya’s hand?” (226) Define “reconcile”.
Reconcile: find harmony, settle a dispute, or restore friendly relations
Why does Farid give Amir a lemon?
Amir is feeling car sick on the windy Khyber pass drive. This is where he felt car sick earlier in the novel, as well.
In Amir’s dream, who shoots Hassan?
In his dream, Amir is the one who shoots Hassan. He feels he is responsible for his death.
What artificial item does Amir have to wear while traveling through Afghanistan?
He must wear an artificial beard as the Taliban does not allow grown men to be clean-shaven.
“I was afraid I’d deliberate, ruminate, agonize, rationalize, and talk myself into not going” (231). Define “ruminate”.
Ruminate: think deeply about something
What does Amir think Wahid’s children are looking at?
He thinks they are looking at and admiring his watch.
What does Farid assume is the reason Amir has come back to Afghanistan?
Faird assumes Amir has come back to sell his father's land and make a profit. The truth humbles and softens Farid a bit towards Amir.
Rahim Khan had warned Amir that he should not expect a warm welcome in Afghanistan from those who had stayed behind to do what?
Rahim Khan warns Amir that those who stayed behind to fight the wars would not give Amir a warm welcome as they would view him as abandoning them and their country.
“It was good to see trees again after the arduous drive through the Khyber Pass” (233). Define “arduous”.
Arduous: difficult and tiring
What are Wahid’s children actually looking at?
They are looking at his food. They are hungry. As a guest, he's been given food first, but there is not enough food for everyone.
What does Amir do when he leaves Wahid’s house that he “had done twenty-six years earlier” (242)?
He hides money underneath a mattress, except this time it is to help Wahid and his family, whereas before it was to frame Hassan.
“Rahim Khan had summoned me here to atone not just for my sins but for Baba’s too” (226). Define “atone”.
Atone: make amends
“Two Pakistani militia approached our dilapidated Land Cruiser, took a cursory glance inside, and waved us on” (230). Define “cursory”.
Cursory: hasty and, therefore, not thorough or detailed
How long has it been since Baba has died?
It has been 15 years since Baba has died.
What does Farid mean when he tells Amir he’s “always been a tourist [in Afghanistan, he] just didn’t know it” (232)?
Farid thinks that, because of Amir's wealth and position in society as a Pashtun, he has not known the real struggles of Afghani people.
“‘He used to have seven children’, Rahim Khan said with a rueful look, but he’d lost his two youngest girls in a land mine blast” (230). Define “rueful”.
Rueful: full of regret
"The kinship I felt suddenly for this land...it surprised me" (240). Define "kinship".
Kinship: blood relationship