Boy Overboard

Watching satellite TV, Jamal is impressed with the global phenomenon of soccer and the World Cup, which attracts over a billion impassioned viewers. How does this global spectacle influence his personal ambitions, his sense of ethnic identity, and his hopes for Afghanistan? Does his belief in soccer as a unifying force evolve as the novel progresses?

Jamal feels that his sister, Bibi, inherited the family’s “good” genes—those of their mother’s warrior ancestors—while he was born a “baker” like his father’s forebears. What causes him to change his mind about this neat division of genetic traits? In what ways does he show himself to be a warrior, not just physically but in his resilience and problem-solving skills?

Jamal’s optimism often misleads him, giving him a false impression of what is going on around him. Cite three examples of him misinterpreting events, situations, or others’ actions. How does this persistent misunderstanding reflect his innocence, and in what ways does his perception mature as the story unfolds?