larsson was known in his former sweden as an outspoken journalist and a rabid campaigner against oppression . but when he suffered of a cardiovascular murmur at over 50 in 2004 , he left around the manuscript of two works that may transform his destiny . his first novel , the girl with the dragon tattoo , was produced in sweden a year after his body and was already an overseas success when it was bestseller in the united states it year by frederick a knopf . more than 6 million copies of the book have been sold worldwide . an international review published on best - sellers lists in the united states , britain , french , germany , norway , germany , greece and ireland ranked ljungberg the second most popular fiction writer in 2008 after hamad hosseini , maker of the kite rider and a thousand splendid suns .
"The Kite Runner" was written by Khaled Hosseini.