Kite Runner + Some Afghanistan History

  • Baba born

    "In 1933, the year Baba was born..."(24) Baba is the father of the narrator, thus making his pre-fatherhood existence of utmost importance to the story. No father->no narrator->no book.
  • Hassan/Amir Born

    During his reflection of his childhood, Amir says, "It was there, in that little shack, that Hassan was born in the winter of 1964, just one year after my mother dies giving birth to me.""(6) Hassan is one of the most important characters in KR, influencing the narrator. And of course the narrator is important.
  • Ophanege Baba Created Opened

    Month and Date not given. "I was eight by then."(13) This even shows Baba's indomitable personality. This shapes some of the future events in the book.
  • Amir Descovers his talent for Storytelling

    "..and suddenly I strayed from the written story. I pretended I was reading from the book...'That was the best story you've read me in a long time,' he[Hassan] said..."(30) This moment inspires Amir to become a writer later in life, which is how he receives his income. Because of his writer lifestyle, he needn't go out to work, but neither is his life always secure.
  • Daoud Khan Takes over

    "As it turned out, they hadn't shot much of anything that night of July 17, 1973...Daoud had ended the king's forty-year reign with a bloodless coup."(36) A new government often means new rules. New rules means a new way of living, or an adaptation of the current way of living.
  • Hassan's Harelip Fixed

    "The surgery went well...The swelling subsided, and the wound healed with time." Here, we see a problem, the harelip, being apparently fixed, with other problems hidden beneath. This correlates with later in the book, when Amir saves Sohrab from Assef, but not from what he witnessed.
  • Amir Askes About Getting New Servants

    "'Baba, have you ever thought about getting new servants?'"(89) This simple question reopens the rift between Amir and Baba. The difference of character results in different responses to events, something important late in the book.
  • Hassan and Ali Leave

    "'We are leaving...We can't live here anymore,' Ali said"(106) The two of them leave because they wish to protect Amir one last time, and because Hassan and Ali know that Amir did nothing to save Hassan from his rape. Because of this, Amir gains a new layer of guilt, which is to be relieved near the end of the book.
  • Mujahadeen Created

    Exact Date not given
  • Taraki Killed by Amin Supporters

  • Amir and Baba Flee Afghanistan

    "sitting with out suitcases between out legs, cramped with these stranger is the tarpaulin-covered cab of an old Russian truck." The fact that Baba has to leave shows us that something big is happening. Because they leave, Amir and Baba make a life for themselves in America, and it is only much later when Amir makes his way back to Afghanistan.
  • Baba and Amir are Living in America

    "Baba loved the idea of America. It was living in America that gave him an ulcer."(125) As shown by this, Baba will start to rely on Amir to make sure that he doesn't collapse on himself or into drugs. That will in turn change the fabric of their relationship from what it was back in Afghanistan.(Month and Date not given)
  • Baba Throws First Fit

    "'He wants to see my license,' Baba bellowed in Farsi. 'Almost two years we've bought his damn fruits and put money in his pocket and the son of a dog wants to see my license'"(127) Baba feels like someone who is used to being obeyed and not questioned, and thus uses anger to cover confusion. From this we can understand that Baba needs Amir to help restrain him and 'convert' him to American life.
  • Baba buys Volkswagen Bus

    "..the summer of 1984...Baba sold his Buick and bought a dilapidated '71 Volkswagen bus..."(136-7) This bus becomes the source of much of their livelihood, bringing them to garage sales, holding the items they bought, thus allowing them to sell great quantities of items at a flea market. With this additional income, Amir and Baba can afford to buy more things, and better things, and so that Amir can go to school and become a writer.
  • Amir Finishes First Novel

    "In the summer of 1988,...I finished my first novel, a father-son story set in Kabul..."(182) From this point, Amir's life changes. He has a more steady source of income, and thus no longer has to go to the flea market.
  • al-Qaida created

    Date not given
  • Amir Hears From Rahim Khan

    "One day last summer, my friend Rahim Khan called from Pakistan. He asked me to come see him."(1) At this point, Amir hasn't seen Rahim for many years. Amir knows that now he must atone, or at least try, for the sins committed many many years ago. Now, more than previously, Hassan will come to haunt him.
  • Amir and Sohrab Arrive in America

    "We arrived home about seven months ago, on a warm day in August 2001."(357) Sohrab changes how Amir and Soraya live their day to day life, much like a new child would. From this point on, the book focuses on the day to day life in their household, with new surprises no longer showing. This much changes the story's style, and how it reads.
  • International Aid workers Tried for spreading Christianity

  • Masood assassinated by "journalists"

  • 9/11 Happens

  • US and Britian start Airstrikes of Afghanistan

  • Northern Allience enters Kabul

  • Taliban Leaders Surrender last Territory

  • Hamid Karzai Elected as President