<P> When adapting The Kite Runner for the theatre, Director Eric Rose stated that he was drawn into the narrative by the "themes of betraying your best friend for the love of your father", which he compared to Shakespearean literature . Throughout the story, Amir craves his father's affection; his father, in turn, loves Amir but favors Hassan, going as far as to pay for plastic surgery to repair the latter's cleft lip . </P> <P> In the first two years following its publication, over 70,000 hardback copies of The Kite Runner were sold along with 1,250,000 paperback copies . Though the book sold well in hardback, "Kite Runner's popularity didn't really begin to soar until (2004) when the paperback edition came out, which is when book clubs began picking it up ." It started appearing on best seller lists in September 2004 and became a number one New York Times best seller in March 2005, maintaining its place on the list for two years . By the publication of Khaled Hosseini's third novel in 2013, over seven million copies had been sold in the United States . The book received the South African Boeke Prize in 2004 . It was voted the Reading Group Book of the Year for 2006 and 2007 and headed a list of 60 titles submitted by entrants to the Penguin / Orange Reading Group prize (UK). </P> <P> Critically, the book was well - received, albeit controversial . Erika Milvy from Salon praised it as "beautifully written, startling and heart wrenching". Tony Sims from Wired Magazine wrote that the book "reveals the beauty and agony of a tormented nation as it tells the story of an improbable friendship between two boys from opposite ends of society, and of the troubled but enduring relationship between a father and a son". Amelia Hill of The Guardian opinionated, "The Kite Runner is the shattering first novel by Khaled Hosseini" that "is simultaneously devastating and inspiring ." A similarly favorable review was printed in Publishers Weekly . Marketing director Melissa Mytinger remarked, "It's simply an excellent story . Much of it based in a world we don't know, a world we're barely beginning to know . Well - written, published at the' right time' by an author who is both charming and thoughtful in his personal appearances for the book ." Indian - American actor Aasif Mandvi agreed that the book was "amazing storytelling...It's about human beings . It's about redemption, and redemption is a powerful theme ." First Lady Laura Bush commended the story as "really great". Said Tayeb Jawad, the 19th Afghan ambassador to the United States, publicly endorsed The Kite Runner, saying that the book would help the American public to better understand Afghan society and culture . </P> <P> Edward Hower from The New York Times analyzed the portrayal of Afghanistan before and after the Taliban: </P>

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