Hosseini was born in Kabul, Afghanistan. As a child, he moved with his family to Iran, Paris, and eventually settled in San Jose, California. Hosseini attended Santa Clara University and graduated with a degree in Biology. He then attended UC San Diego's medical school. He practiced medicine while writing his first novel, The Kite Runner, and continued for a year even after The Kite Runner had been released.
This May, Hosseini released his latest novel, And the Mountains Echoed. The story follows a family across continents and generations. The story begins with a father telling his children a fairy tale about a boy being stolen by a "div" or ogre. However, the next day, the father gives away one of his children to a wealthy man who lives in Kabul. That decision sets off events in that family for over fifty years where Hosseini dives into what it means to be a family, tough decisions, and loyalty.