Characters
This character once shamed her family by running away with a man outside of marriage.
Who is Soraya?
This item first symbolizes Baba's approval to Amir but later comes to symbolize his guilt.
What is the blue kite?
Hosseini uses vivid imagery to bring Kabul to life — e.g., the smell of kabob, the sound of kites slicing through the air, the snowy winter days.
What is imagery / sensory language?
Finish the Baba quote: "There is only one sin, only one. And that is _______."
What is "theft"?
Kite strings are able to cut down other kites during the tournament because of this element which is added to the string.
What is crushed glass?
This character returns to Kabul and redeems herself by caring for her grandson.
Who is Sanaubar?
This symbol represents the relationship between Amir and Hassan and the changing dynamics of their bond.
What is the pomegranate tree?
Name the literary device: The novel opens with a scene from Amir’s adult life before reverting to a story from his childhood.
What is a flashback?
Amir says this to Sohrab before he runs a kite for him at the end of the book.
Assef gives Amir this item as a birthday gift.
What is Hitler's autobiography?
This character is Hassan's wife / Sohrab's mother.
Who is Farzana?
This item represents the brutality of Assef and his peers.
What are brass knuckles?
Name the literary device: The opening line of the novel hints at an important event to come.
What is foreshadowing?
Rahim Khan says this phrase to Amir over the phone to persuade him to come redeem himself.
"There is a way to be good again."
These two characters are both "kite runners" at some point during the novel.
Who are Hassan and Amir?
This character is receives a scar when he/she is struck by a Taliban soldier at a soccer game.
Who is Rahim Khan?
Throughout the novel, Hassan is symbolically compared to this animal.
What is a lamb?
When Amir discovers that he is more alike Baba than he realized, but it is in a way he is ashamed of, it is an example of this literary device.
What is situational irony?
Finish this Baba quote: “A boy who won’t stand up for himself becomes ____________________________.”
"...a man who can’t stand up to anything."
This is what the nickname the neighborhood children give Ali (Babalu) means.
What is "boogeyman"?
This character serves Amir dinner and hosts him for a night upon his return to Afghanistan.
Who is Wahid?
Amir metaphorically compares America to this when he is seeking to escape his guilt.
What is a river?
Amir references Persian poetry, Western novels, and stories from the Shahnameh, connecting personal events to broader cultural themes.
What is an allusion?
Fill in the blank of this quote (first line of the novel): "________________________________________, on a frigid overcast day in the winter of 1975.”
"I became what I am today at the age of twelve..."
This event causes Baba and Amir to flee Afghanistan.
What is the Soviet invasion?