2 Read the extract from the novel The Kite Runner and answer the questions that — follow. ‘The Kite Runner Every winter districts in Kabul held « kite-lying tournament. And if you were a boy living in Kabul, the day of the tournament was the highlight of the cold season. I never slept the night belore the tournament. I'd roll from side to side, make shadow animals on the wall, even sit on the balcony in the dark, a blanket wrapped around me. [felt like ‘soldier trying to sleep in the trenches the night before a major battle. And that wasn’t so far off. In Kabul, fighting kites was a ttle lke going to war. As with any war, you had to ready yourself for battle. For a while, Hassan and I used to build our own kites. We saved our weekly allowances in the fall and dropped the money in a little porcelain horse Baba had given me. When the winds of winter began to blow and snow fell in chunks, we went to the bazaar and bought bamboo, glue, string and paper. We spent hours every day shaving bamboo for the center and cross pieces, cutting the thin tissue paper which made for easy dipping and recovery. And then, of course, we had to make our own string, or tar. If the kite was the gun, then tar, the glass-coated cutting line, was the bullet in the chamber. We'd go out in the yard and feed up to five hundred feet of string through a mixture the ind the ground glass and glue. We'd then hang the line bet trees, leave it to dry. The next day, we'd wind the line around a wooden spool. By the time the snow melted rains of spring swept in, eve oy in Kabul had numerous: his fingers fro whole winter of fighting kites. Tremember how my classmates and I used to huddle, compare our battle scars on the first day of school The kite-ighting tournament was an old winter tradition in Afghanistan. It started early in the morning on the day of the contest and didn't end until only the winning k h remember one year the tournament outlasted daylight. People gathered on si: tocheer for their kids. The streets filled with kite fighters, jerking and tugging their lines, squinting sition to cut the opponent's line. Every kite fighter had an assistant - in my case, H he spool and fed the line. The rules were simple: No rules. ly your kite. Cut the opponents. Good I Except that wasn’t all. The real fu an whe the kite runners came in, those kids e windblown kite drifting throug! ame spiraling down in afield, dropping yard. on a tree, oF a rooftop. The des of kite runners swarmed the streets, shoved past each other lke those people from Spal tb ie ones who ran from the bulls. And when aakite runner had his hands on a kite, no on: 1m hi wasn’t a rule. That was custom, For kite runners, the most coveted prize was the last fallen kite of a winter tournament. It was atrophy of honor admire. When the sky cleared of kites and only the final two remained. every kite runner readied himself fr the chance to land this prize. He positioned himself ata spot that he thought would give him something to be displayed on a mantle for gues Tense muscles readied then Fights broke out. And when the last kite was cut, all hell broke loose uncoil. Necks craned. Eyes crinkled Vocabulary hint abu the capa cy of Afghanizan Baba gantater Bazaar =a maret ora group of shops pecilyin the Mile astete P : Complete these sentences using no more than four words or « number. (The ke-ighting tournament finished when there vas remaining. 7 Observers occupied ___— to watch the tournament. “How di the narrator el the night before the Fe ri el ines be tobring ‘Kite-flying tournament? down their kites. © relaned 9 Inthe tournament, each kite fighter works alongside 10 The tournament does not have any “How di they et the materials to make ‘their kites? ee “Answer these questions using no more than three words or a number. 11 What did the kite runners do once a kite had been cut? TR een nin clap handartainel toe eedeied en — 12 Which two words in the text tell you that there are eee ma cer 'b tissue paper had to be dipped. es _ ‘€ string had to be glued together. Which two words in the text tell you that the kite eee cha ein i et 15. Which isthe most important kite to a kite runner? 3 Work with a partner and discuss these questions: € Would you be interested in watching or taking patina kite-ighting tournament? Why/Why not? ‘© Do you know of any customs or sports that are special to your country? Describe them. {© Did you like the way the extract above was written? Would you be interested in reading mor fom this book? Why/Why not? 44 American spelling is sometimes a ite different from Brish spelling, Find the American spelling for these words inthe last two paragraphs ofthe story.