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Hassan gets his hairlip surgery
When Amir remembers Hassan's medical procedure, he describes, "The surgery went well. We were all a little shocked when they first removed the bandages, but kept our smiles on just as Dr. Kumar had instructed us" (46). For Hassan's birthday, Baba hires a plastic surgeon to remove Hassan's hairlip. Although Hassan is supposedly Baba's servant, Amir's father treats the boy like his own son. Later in the story, it is discovered that Hassan really is Baba's son. -
Amir wins the kite competition
After Amir wins the kite competition, he sees the look of pride in Baba's eyes. At the end of the day, Amir joins his father and describes the moment of happiness. He remembers, "a smile played on my father's lips. He opened his arms. I put the kite down and walked into his thick hairy arms" (79). Amir has lived his life as a disgrace to his father. He wishes to redeem himself by winning the contest. -
Hassan is violated by Assef
When Amir watches Hassan's violation, he faces a conflict. Amir describes, "I had one last chance to make a decision. One final opportunity to decide who I was going to be....In the end, I ran" (77). Amir watches painfully as his friend is viciously beat up. Although he know's that Assef's actions are wrong, he is too frightened to stand up for Hassan. Instead, he runs from the scene. -
Amir's 13th Birthday Party
Although Amir's birthday party is supposed to celebrate his years, he understands that the center of attention will be Baba. He thinks, "It was my birthday, but I knew who the real star of the show was" (94). Baba has always been the life of the party. Even when it comes to his own son's celebration, he will take away the sense of worth and feeling from Amir. -
First Soviet troops parachute intp Kabul
The first Soviet troops are parachuted into Kabul to "assist Babrak Karmal, who had become president in a coup within the Afghan Communist leadership." It is said that the Soviets "engineered the coup as a pretext to replace...the Afghan leader, who had lost their trust" (NYT 2). -
Period: to
Soviet Invasion
The Soviet invasion lasted over nine years, costing Soviets "roughly 15,000 lives and undisclosed billions of rubles, while undermining the cherished image of an invincible Soviet Army" (NYT 2). In February of 1989, the UN moderated peace talks that eventually led the last of Soviet troops to leave the country. -
Amir and Baba come to San Francisco
Despite the opportunities America held for Amir, "it was living in America that gave [Baba] and ulcer" (125). Baba's life in Afghanistan was perfect: he'd worked hard to earn his lavish life. In America, Baba's rich past disappeared, and he was left to start from scratch once again. -
Baba dies
On the day of Baba's death, Amir and Soraya tuck him in. When Soraya tells Baba that she'll be back with his medication, he answers, "'Not tonight....There is no pain tonight" (173). Baba has always turned down various medical treatments, even if it means cutting short his lifespan. On the night of his death, Baba believes that Amir can live without him, and he refuses the medication. He wishes to die a natural death at a time when he is least needed. -
Rahim Khan looks for Hassan
Rahim Khan explains to Amir that he went looking for Hassan because he was lonely. Rahim recalled, "when news of your father's death reached me...for the first time, I felt a terrible loneliness in that house. An unbearable emptiness" (204). When Baba and Amir left Afghanistan for America, Rahim Khan stayed back to care for their house. Because he lived alone, he often felt solitary. Rahim Khan turned to Hassan because he was the only other person Rahim Khan could turn to. -
Amir finishes his first novel
Amir's dreams to become a published writer are beginning to come true. After finishing his first novel, Amir "sent query letters to a dozen agencies and was stunned one August day when I opened our mailbox and found a request from a New York agency for the completed manuscript..." (182). Amir's life in America is only getting better and better. Not only does he have a loving wife, but he also finds may opportunities to bloom as a writer. -
Amir is informed that he will be a published novelist.
A month after being represented by an agent, Amir is called and informed that he will indeed become a published novelist. Amir and his wife are overjoyed, and they "had a celebration dinner with Soraya's parents that night....The general, a sheen of moisture in his eyes, said that he was proud of me" (183). When the news arrives, everyone is so happy for Amir. In the beginning, many were skeptic of Amir's career choice. Now, he has proved that he is capable of becoming a successful writer. -
Sohrab is born
Rahim Khan recaps all the events that have happened in Afghanistan that Amir missed. As he describes Sohrab's birth, he says, "It was Sanaubar who delivered Hassan's son that winter of 1990....She stood beaming under a dull gray sky...clutching that baby like she never wanted to let go. Not this time" (211). Sanaubar realizes that by abandoning Hassan as an infant, she stole his right to a mother. To atone for her sins, she searches for Hassan and cares for his child like she would her own. -
Sanaubar collapses at the gate of Hassan's house
When Sanaubar lays on the couch of Hassan's house injured badly from her wounds, she tells her son, "I have walked long and far to see if you are as beautiful in the flesh as you are in my dreams. And you are. Even more" (210). After years of abandoning Hassan, Sanaubar finally realizes that her act was wrong. Despite going through horrific times, Sanaubar wishes to spend the last moments of her life with her son. -
Pakistani officers begin funding Taliban
The Taliban organiztion was falling apart until it received support from Pakistan as early as 1994. Intelligence officers from Pakistan "began funneling arms, money and supplies to Mullah Omar's men, as well as military advisers to help guide them in battle" (NYT 3). -
Mullah Omar gains nearly 12,000 followers
Mullah Omar, "a Pashtun who had lost an eye fighting the Soviets," gains almost 12,000 followers to the Taliban. He promises to restore "the centrality of Islam to daily life" and "created a genuinely popular movement..." (NYT 2). -
Taliban takes control of Afghanistan
The Taliban takes over Afghanistan with the help of Pakistani intelligence. Following harsh Islamic law, the Taliban started "banning movies and music and forcing women out of schools and into all-enveloping burqa clothing" (NYT 3). -
Buddha statues at Bamiyan are destroyed
Mullah Omar sends men to dynamite the 800-year-old statues of Buddha at Bamiyan. Criticism of this act "had little effect on the regime, which seemed almost to welcome pariah status" (NYT 3). -
Amir receives a phone call from Rahim Khan
When Amir reflects on his conversation with Rahim Khan, he remembers his friend speaking, "Come. There is a way to be good again" (192). Amir's secrets, no matter how much he tries to bury them, always come back to attack him. When Rahim Khan calls to ask Amir to visit him in Afghanistan, Amir accepts because in his heart, he knows that it is the only thing he can do to make up for his past. -
Assef beats Amir to near-death
When Assef prepares to beat Amir, Amir remembers, “The guards left. Assef put down his prayer beads. Reached in the breast pocket of his black vest. What he fished out of that pocket didn’t surprise me one bit: stainless-steel brass knuckles” (287). In order for Amir to save Sohrab, he must get past Assef. However, Assef won’t give up the boy without a bloody fight to the death. Unsuspectingly, when Amir is sure that he will die, he is saved by Sohrab and his slingshot. -
Amir returns to America with Sohrab
As Soraya meets Sohrab for the first time, Amir describes, “Looking at her smiling at Sohrab, her eyes tearing over a little, I had a glimpse of the mother she might have been, had her own womb not betrayed her” (358). Because Soraya never had the chance to have her own child, she is so excited to meet and love her newly adopted child. Even though Sohrab is a Hazara, Soraya looks past his ethnicity and feels truly blessed to be able to love him in a motherly way. -
Al Qaeda attacks World Trade Center in New York
Since Al Qaeda's attack on the US, America "has been militarily involed in Afghanistan..." (NYT 1). When the group refused to give up Osama bin Laden to the US, America "joined forces with rebel groups that had never accepted Taliban rule" (NYT 3). -
The book begins (Amir recalls his entire life to that point)
At the start of the novel, Amir introduces, "I became what I am today at the age of twelve, on a frigid overcast day in the winter of 1975" (1). After Hassan's violation, Amir hasn't been the same since. Not only is he suffering from insomnia, but he is also a victim of intense self-blame. He often feels guilt for not having saved his servant, as each event of Amir's life after the winter of 1975 relates to the guilt he feels. -
Karzai takes office as interim president
Karzai is a descendant of the former exiled king of Afghanistan. He hoped to "secure peace for Afghanistan and win the country much-needed international aid" (NYT 3). -
Hamid Karzai is elected to a five-year term
Hamid Karzai is "a supporter and relative of...the exiled former king of Afghanistan" (NYT 3). He hoped to "secure peace for Afghanistan and win the country much-needed international aid" (NYT 3). -
Obama delivers a speech at West Point
Mr. Obama speaks at West Poinst, announcing his plan to "deploy 30,000 additional troops" to Afghanistan. However, he promises to "start bringing American forces home...in the middle of 2011" (NYT 4).