Khaled Hosseini's moving portrait of modern Afghanistan, The Kite Runner, has been voted the best book club read of the year for the second year running.

The story about an unlikely friendship between a rich boy and a servant’s son, set in Afghanistan from the fall of the monarchy to the present day, was voted for online by members of the public and entrants of the 2007 Penguin/Orange Broadband Readers' Group prize.

The book, which owes its success to its popularity among book clubs, has sold more than one million copies in the UK and eight million worldwide since its publication in April 2004. It was chosen as the favourite out of 77 other titles nominated.

The top five books were; The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini; We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver, Saturday by Ian McEwan; in joint fourth place Small Island by Andrea Levy and Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky and finally The Time Traveller's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger.

Hosseini said: "I am so very proud that four years after its publication, The Kite Runner continues to resonate with reading groups. So many distinguished novels are written every year, so many books to celebrate, which makes this prize that much more meaningful to me."

The previous winner was The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver, in 2005. This book club classic novel about a strict Baptist who drags his family from the comforts of 1950s America to the Belgian Congo was The Times Books Group choice last month. Readers can still join in the discussion by posting their comments.

The Kite Runner has been made into a film and is scheduled for release this Christmas. Hosseini's latest book, A Thousand Splendid Suns, became an instant bestseller when it was released in May 2007.

- Find out more about our books group and join the discussion about our current choice, The Memory Keepers Daughter by Kim Edwards. A surprise bestseller about twins, one of whom was born with a disability and given away at birth.

Times Recommends

• Sarah Palin and the Palindromes: 7 extraordinary connections
• Physics for Future Presidents: The Podcasts
• 10 Books Not To Read Before You Die