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1) Amir's birthday - (Chapter 8-9)
On Amir's birthday, Baba throws him a grand party. From Baba for his birthday, Amir receives a watch. He then plants the watch, along with money, under Hassan's mattress, and accuses him of stealing. After much debate, Ali and Hassan decide to leave.
"'Life here is impossible for us now Agha sahib. We're leaving.' Ali drew Hassan to him, curled his arm around his son's shoulder." -
Imagery
When Hassan and Ali are leaving the house, the author uses a great deal of imagery to describe summer in Kabul. "In Kabul, it rarely rained in the summer. Blue skies stood tall and far, the sun like a branding iron searing the back of your neck. Creeks where Hassan and I skipped stones all spring turned dry, and rickshaws stirred dust when they sputtered by." -
Imagery
When Baba and Amir are fleeing Afghanistan, they are shuttled from Kabul in a fuel truck. Amir, crazed by the darkness and the fumes, panics. Baba tells him to think of something happy. "Friday afternoon in Paghman. An open field of grass speckled with mulberry trees in blossom. Hassan and I stand ankle-deep in the untamed grass, I am tugging on the line, the spool spinning in Hassan's calloused hands, our eyes turned up to the kite in the sky..." -
Metaphor
A few years after moving to America, Amir describes it as a river, "America was different. America was a river, roaring along, unmindful of the past. I could wade into this river, let my sins drown to the bottom, let the waters carry me someplace far. Someplace with no ghosts, no memories, no sins." -
Metaphor
When Amir meets Soraya, it is love at first sight. "In Afghanistan, yelda is... the longest night of the year.... yelda was the starless night tormented lovers kept vigil, enduring the endless dark, waiting for the sun to rise and bring with it their loved one, After I met Soraya Taheri, every night of the week became a yelda for me." -
2) Amir and Baba flee Afghanistan, move to America - (Chapter 10-11)
Baba and Amir flee wartorn Afghanistan for America. The adjustment is difficult, but they manage. Baba finds a job, Amir graduates from highschool and meets Soraya, a young Afghan girl.
"America was a river, roaring along, unmindful of the past. I could wade into this river, let my sins drown to the bottom, let the waters carry me someplace far. Someplace with no ghosts, no memories, no sins." -
3) Baba is diagnosed with cancer - (Chapter 12)
After a few years in America, Baba's health deteriorates rapidly. After a visit to the doctor, it is discovered that he has cancer, and does not have much longer to live. " 'As you can see, the cancer's metastasized,' he said. 'He'll have to take steroids to reduce the swelling in his brain..' " -
4) Amir decides he wants to marry Soraya - (Chapter 12)
Shortly after Baba is discharged from the hospital, Amir asks one final thing of him. According to Afghan tradition, the father of the groom must ask the father of the bride-to-be for his approval in the marriage. " 'I want you to go khastegari. I want you to ask General Taheri for his daughter's hand.' " -
5) Amir and Soraya are married - (Chapter 13)
After a shortened courting period, due to Baba's ailing health, Amir and Soraya are married.
"Looking at Soraya's smiling face in that mirror, in the momentary privacy ofthe veil, I whispered to her for the first time that I loved her. A blush, red like henna, bloomed on her cheeks." -
6) Baba passes away - (Chapter 13)
Only a month after Amir's wedding, Baba's health is continuing to diminish. One night, after a family get-together, Baba goes to sleep for the last time. "'There is no pain tonight.' ....We closed the door. Baba never woke up" -
7) Soraya reveals her past to Amir - (Chapter 13)
After a wedding of one of Soraya's cousins, Soraya breaks down after people were gosssiping about her. She proceeds to tell Amir her darkest secrets from her past. Amir, however, still remains unable to talk about the skeletons in his closet. "But I think a big part of the reason I didn't care about Soraya's past was that I had one of my own. I knew all about regret." -
8) Amir becomes a published writer - (Chapter 13)
Amir finishes his first novel, a father-son story set in Kabul, and sent requests to agencies around the country. After receiving a request for the completed manuscript, he sends it back. "A month later, Martin called and informed me I was going to be a published novelist." -
9) Soraya is discovered to be infertile - (Chapter 13)
After trying for a long time to have a child, and failing, Amir and Soraya decide to have tests done to see what is wrong. Amir passes all his tests, and Soraya undergoes a plethora of tests. Unfortunately, it is discovered that even though the tests didn't show anything wrong, "It was called 'Unexplained Fertility.'" -
10) Amir receives a call from Rahim Khan - (Chapter 14)
Out of the blue, Amir receives a call from Rahim Khan, imploring him to return to Pakistan. "Come. There is a way to be good again, Rahim Khan had said on the phone just before hanging up. Said it in passing, almost as an afterthought. A way to be good again." -
Thoughts..
This passage contains a great deal of information, and covers a great deal of time. In this passage, Amir, the young, guilty Afghan boy, is transformed into Amir, the wise, successful American writer. Amir's life is a series of ups and downs, including leaving his home, moving to America, marrying Soraya, Baba passing away, and getting a book published. All of these events contribute to a changed Amir, however, this new Amir is still not able to be at ease with the demons of his past.