A harsh world ruled by tribalism, ethnic division and male chauvinism.
A forgotten land the United States had no interest in until the Soviet Union invaded in 1979.
And the setting for the 2008 Fond du Lac Reads book choice, "The Kite Runner" by Afghan-author Khaled Hosseini.
The best-selling novel has captured community readers with its haunting tale of friendship between two young boys growing up in Afghanistan in the late 1960s.
The book's powerful themes of betrayal and redemption, fundamentalism and terrorism, intolerance and acceptance have been discussed in a series of events hosted by the Fond du Lac Public Library.
Last week, the library hosted Ali R. Abootalebi, a political science professor from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, who shared details of Islamic family life and culture and how they impact politics.
Library board member Terri Fleming noted the importance of gaining new perspectives about a land, a people and a culture strange to Fond du Lac residents.
"I think there's a deep well here of poor understanding," she said. "Unfortunately, the connection we have with Afghanistan is through Al-Qaeda and what happened on Sept. 11. After reading the book, I now understand about the tragedy of the revolution, what Kabul had been and what the people of Afghanistan have lost."
The Iranian-born Abootalebi said he wants people to hear the real stories behind the events — as opposed to how the media or government tells those stories.
"I have no stake one way or the other and present facts based on what the scholarly community tells us," he said.
Hosseini's books, "The Kite Runner" and "A Thousand Splendid Suns," have served to give a human face to a population that had been reduced to numbers and statistics, Abootalebi pointed out.
"Obviously, the stories Hosseini has shared have touched the common people. He reminds us of how often we get bogged down with our own lives and lose touch with what is important," he said.
Library patron Joan Bowser said "The Kite Runner" helped her know Afghani people on a personal level.
"I think the author did an excellent job of revealing a personal picture of a culture not my own, and what friendship is like between two boys," Bowser said. "The fact that they are Afghani is less important, I think, than the insight into the nature of their friendship, and the power of guilt and redemption."
Abootalebi describes the current situation in Afghanistan as a political tragedy, with people living in turmoil since 1978.
"It's a country that can never be governed in its current state. There are generations being raised in war and not knowing anything else, being ruled by tribalism, division from ethnic rivalry, male domination and patrimonialism. The whole society is overwhelmed by this," he said.
Weakened by this division, a 90 percent illiteracy rate and high unemployment, the Middle Eastern country is easy prey for the likes of the Taliban, he explained. These circumstances contribute to Americans losing sight of the true nature of the majority of the Islamic world.
"My concern is that people … see this book as a representation of Muslim people," Abootalebi said of the graphic descriptions of violence and torture by extremists in "The Kite Runner."
With 1.4 billion Islamic people living in 57 countries, Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world, Abootalebi said.
"I'm trying to send a message that the Middle East is vastly different. Society in Iran, for example, rejected the Taliban. They want freedom and democracy. About 60 percent of the country is urbanized, with all the hustle and bustle of typical cities," he explained.
Abootalebi said he, like the author of "The Kite Runner," tries to shrink the global world through the sharing of universal family themes.
"The humanizing factor is very powerful," he said.
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