the kite runner

i lived the book the kite runner. it was one of the first english language books i had bought in ages, after years of living in moscow, budapest and paris. i came over to london on the eurostar for my interview for the phd programme i am now in. after the interview i had some time to kill, but not enough to do anything particularly exciting, so i wandered into a book shop, and took advantage of one of the english 3 for 2 deals. one of the books i choose, and the first i read, was the kite runner.
years later, it is still on the 3 for 2 offer, and has held that slot for longer than any book i can think of, with the possible exception of the life of pi. it is one of those books i recomend evey time someone comes in and asks what on earth to buy (although often when i suggest it, they have already read it)
so it was with great expectations that i went off to see the film yesterday evening. the last film adaptation i saw, northern lights/ the golden compass, was pretty bad, so i was a bit worried this would be another disappointing rendidion of a much loved book. but on the whole i liked the film. i LOVED that the film used afghan actors speaking their own language, as i had been dreading some american version with actors speaking in bad accents (like so many "set in russia" films i have endured). i was also happy to note taht many people in england are willing to show up to a film with subtitles. the film had some really gripping parts and the child actors were very good. it also gave a graphic view of how a country can go to hell in a very short period of time. the film/ book begin in the late 70s, where part of the society at least live in a westernised world of rock music, bell bottems, whisy and pool parties. when the main character, amir, returns in 2000, the taliban have created a surreal atmosphere of paranoia and fear. kabul is in ruins, children run part naked on the streets, the trees have all been burnt down, and the houses are alll falling apart. in 20 years the place had become unrecogonisable.
this transition was demonstrated effectively by the film, providing a shocking visual manifestation of collapse.....but i still prefered the book. the film was good, but there is nothing like a satisfying read....