I have started reading the novel "the kite runner" [wikipedia], written by the Afghan American author Khaled Hosseini [wikipedia]. Actually this is the first time ever I read for an Afghan auther, and also in english, The novel until now talks about life in Afghanistan, and it's quite intersting to read about completely new world for me.
if there are suggestions for more novels, please put that in the comments section, and I'll include them in my ToRead list 
Abdelhalim’s Blog
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June 1, 2006 at 7:32 pm
Thank you for the Wikipeda link. I hadn’t seen that.
I got the book as a present and I hadn’t read any Afghan authors before either.
The sorroundings were unfamiliar for me too, but I think the themes and emotions are understood by any human. I would really like to hear, what you think.
I – a grown person – sometimes had tears in my eyes when I read this book. It’s one of the best books I’ve read for years.
If you like novels in a historical setting I can recommend Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follet. It didn’t touch me the same way though.