Shooting Kabul

Chapter 4 begins with a tense exchange at Customs between Fadi’s father and the customs official, who asks why there are five passports but only four passengers. The official is sympathetic when Habib explains what happened, diffusing any potential conflict. Fadi’s uncle Amin and aunt (khala) Nilufer, his mother’s youngest sister, meet the family at the airport. Fadi meets his 10-year-old cousin Zalmay, who likes playing video games.

Fadi thinks about his family’s return to Afghanistan only five years earlier, when he was around Mariam’s age. He wishes Mariam were with them to see the San Francisco Bay and blames his father for taking them back to Afghanistan in the first place.

Uncle Amin and Khala Nilufer live in Little Kabul in Fremont, California, which Amin states “has the largest population of Afghans in the United States” (526). Fadi meets the rest of the family, and they treat the new guests to a traditional Afghan feast. During the meal, Zafoona reveals that she believes her ill health is to blame for Mariam getting led behind: “If I wasn’t so sick, I could have looked after her” (580). Fadi rejects her explanation because he firmly believes that he is the only one to blame.