One Book

Resources for The Kite Runner

To aid your understanding of the events-people-places in the book, we have provided some helpful resources:

MUST SEE! The Kite Runner: A Background Resource for Readers (PDF file)

Dr. Porter’s Discussion Guide (MS Word doc)

Glossary of Foreign Terms used in The Kite Runner

UT Arlington Afghanistan Subject Guide (MS Word doc)

Flags of Afghanistan from Wikipedia

University of Nebraska Omaha – Center for Afghanistan Studies

BBC News: Afghanistan

Cal Poly Reading Guide

Penguin Reading Group Discussion Questions

About Afghanistan

National Geographic: Afghanistan

Library of Congress: Afghanistan

Afghanistan: The Facts

Duke University Library – From Art and Atlases to Reconstruction and Women: Library Links to information about Afghanistan

Duke University Library – Lilly Library Collections: Films and Videos about Afghanistan

Geography IQ – Middle East

The Art of Gudiparan bazi – Kite-Flying in Afghanistan

Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty: New and Features on Afghanistan

Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty: Newsline – Southwestern Asia and Middle East

Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty: Afghanistan Reports

Global Voices: Blogging about Afghanistan

Annotated Directory of Online Resources on Afghanistan

Additional Readings and Resources:

Coll, Steve (2004). Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and Bin Laden, from Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001. Penguin Group, Inc.

Elliot, Jason (1999). The Unexpected Light: Travels in Afghanistan. Picador USA.

Khadra, Yasmina (2004). The Swallows of Kabul. Nan A. Talese

Benard, Cheryl and Schlaffer, Eric (2002). Veiled Courage: Inside the Afghan Women’s Resistance. Broadway Books.

Seierstad, Asne (2003). The Bookseller of Kabul. Little, Brown and Co.

One Book, One Region Eastern Connecticut – Related Reading List

Ferdowsi, A. (English translation by Dick Davis, 2006). Shahnameh:
Persian Book of Kings. Penguin, USA.