The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini is a fascinating and moving book. With its nuances of racial discrimination, family secrets and battles with one's own conscience. Amir, the main character, struggles with the relationship between him and his father, as well as his so-called friend Hassan. The book shows us that jealousy, not cowardice as Amir claims, leads Amir to reject the only true friend he has. Although ultimately Amir isn't always controlled by his horrible jealousy of Hassan. In the begging, we see that Hassan always defended and covered for Amir, no matter what problems Hassan knew he would face. As in this passage where Amir suggests that Hassan shoot nuts into the eye of his neighbor's one-eyed German shepherd, "I convinced Hassan to shoot nuts with his slingshot at the neighbor's one-eyed German shepherd. Hassan did not never wanted to, but if I asked, really asked, he would never refuse me. Hassan's father, Ali, used to grab us and get angry. "Yes, father," Hassan would mumble in. looking down. But he never told me that mirror, like shooting nuts at the neighbor's dog, was always my idea with Amir's own father. You see, not only was it because. of Hassan's appearance and where he stood in full view of Amir's peers, but it was the distinct fact that Amir felt like his own father treated their servant exactly the same way he treated his own father and only son This caused Amir to no longer consider Hassan a friend. Amir's jealousy towards his father's affection for Hassan is clearly shown in the opening of. his father's orphanage. Amir says: “I was eight years old then. I remember that the day before the orphanage opened, Baba took me to Lake Ghargha, a few kilometers north or to Kabul. He asked me to go get Hassan too, but I lied and told him Hassan had a choice. I wanted Baba all to myself. And what's more, once at Lake Ghargha, Hassan and I were skimming stones and Hassan skipped his stone eight times. The most I managed to do was there, watching, and he patted Hassan. on the back.