Censoring An Iranian Love Story
Shahriar Mandanipour
Little Brown
It's no easy feat writing a love story at the best of times. It is doubly hard if you are an Iranian writer hoping to have your book published in the Islamic Republic. The Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance take a serious view towards protecting the Iranian people from illicit phrases that may lead their thoughts and imaginations astray. This is the challenge the narrator of the book faces as he weaves the relationship between two young lovers Dara and Sara.
Woven in between the love story and the daily frustrations of the narrator, are subplots that draw the reader into the poetry and stories deeply rooted in the Persion mythology. At times these subplots work, at times they become confusing. This could be the fault of the translation - this book was originally written in Farsi- or it could be because some things lose their original meaning once translated.
Censoring An Iranian Love Story is at times darkly comic, at times disturbing and at times a frustrating read. It's a satirical sketch of the hypocracy the authorities perpetrate to maintain a public image of protecting the Iranians who may otherwise fall prey to impure thoughts. I found the ending disappointingly unsatisfactory but otherwise Censoring an Iranian Love Story, is an interesting meditation of modern life in Iran.
About Me
- Banafsheh Serov
- Australia
- I am passionate about the written language. I love writing, reading, reviewing, selling and promoting books. I am an independent bookseller with over 20 years of experience in the book trade. Together with my partners, I actively aim to improve our bookstore's range and services to better reflect the needs of our community and clientele. In 2008, my memoir 'Under A Starless Sky' was published by Hachette, Australia. Since then, I had a short story 'Jasmine Petals' published in 'Stories of Belonging' (Finch) and in 2013, released my first full-length novel, The Russian Tapestry, also by Hachette. I am currently writing my second novel. I strive daily to improve my skills and stretch the limits of my craft. My love of books has naturally lead to reviewing. You can follow me on Twitter @B_Serov, Facebook www.facebook.com/BanafshehSerov and Goodreads www.goodreads.com/author/show/1429016.Banafsheh_Serov
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
The Year Of The FLood- Margaret Atwood
The Year Of The Flood
Margaret Atwood
Bizarre, nonsensical and totally bohemian. But it works! With The Year Of The Flood just like Oryx And Crake, Atwood has done away with conventional story telling and has decided to instead take the reader on a roller coaster ride into a futuristic world where the ruling power exert their supremacy with questionable ethics.
The book begins at the end, after the Waterless Floods have been unleashed and the human race has become extinct. Amongst those who have survived are Toby, an ex-counter sales clerk at SecretBurger and Ren a trapeze dancer at Scales and Tails. At one stage both Toby and Ren were members of The God's Gardeners, a religious group devoted to respecting the commands of the living world. Headed by Adam One, the God's Gardeners are tolerated by the CorpSeCorps (the ruling elite driven by increasing profit share at all cost) because they are not considered a threat. Adam One has long predicted the floods and under his saintly songs and holy teachings, the Gardeners are prepared for its tidal wave. Now barricaded in the Anoo Yoo Spa and locked in the solitary confinement room in Scales and Tails, Toby & Ren reminisce of their days with the Gardeners and contemplate how they are going to survive.
Oryx and Crake was the first Atwood book I had read and it completely blew me away. It still remains as one of my all time favourite books. When I heard there is a sequel, I could not wait to get my hands on it. Maybe I had too high an expectation of this book, and hence was a little disappointed when it did not hit the same high notes as Oryx and Crake. But that should not have really surprised me. Atwood does not seem the type of writer who would mearly imitate the same idea throughout several books. Atwood's imagination, her clever use of words, and the intelligent way she pens her stories continue to keep me in awe of her.
The Year Of The Flood is fun and at times disturbing. It is an eerie reminder of the delicate nature of our ecosystem and how close we are to destroying it.
Margaret Atwood
Bizarre, nonsensical and totally bohemian. But it works! With The Year Of The Flood just like Oryx And Crake, Atwood has done away with conventional story telling and has decided to instead take the reader on a roller coaster ride into a futuristic world where the ruling power exert their supremacy with questionable ethics.
The book begins at the end, after the Waterless Floods have been unleashed and the human race has become extinct. Amongst those who have survived are Toby, an ex-counter sales clerk at SecretBurger and Ren a trapeze dancer at Scales and Tails. At one stage both Toby and Ren were members of The God's Gardeners, a religious group devoted to respecting the commands of the living world. Headed by Adam One, the God's Gardeners are tolerated by the CorpSeCorps (the ruling elite driven by increasing profit share at all cost) because they are not considered a threat. Adam One has long predicted the floods and under his saintly songs and holy teachings, the Gardeners are prepared for its tidal wave. Now barricaded in the Anoo Yoo Spa and locked in the solitary confinement room in Scales and Tails, Toby & Ren reminisce of their days with the Gardeners and contemplate how they are going to survive.
Oryx and Crake was the first Atwood book I had read and it completely blew me away. It still remains as one of my all time favourite books. When I heard there is a sequel, I could not wait to get my hands on it. Maybe I had too high an expectation of this book, and hence was a little disappointed when it did not hit the same high notes as Oryx and Crake. But that should not have really surprised me. Atwood does not seem the type of writer who would mearly imitate the same idea throughout several books. Atwood's imagination, her clever use of words, and the intelligent way she pens her stories continue to keep me in awe of her.
The Year Of The Flood is fun and at times disturbing. It is an eerie reminder of the delicate nature of our ecosystem and how close we are to destroying it.
Then - Morris Gleitzman
Then
Morris Gleitzman
Penguin
Once and its sequel, Then are harrowing and beautifully told stories of ten year old Felix; a Jewish boy caught in the midst of the Holocaust. Similar to The Boy in the Stripped Pyjamas and equally as good, Once and Then are told through the eyes of Felix, illustrating with child like purity the senselessness of war.
Once opens with Felix in a catholic orphanage where his parents had placed him in 1939. Two years later he escapes the orphanage to find the world outside changed dramatically. He suddenly found himself alone and on the run. He met Zelda, whose parents - Nazi sympathisers - were murdered by the polish resistance and the two become unlikely companions.
In Then, we are reunited with Felix and Zelda when they jump off a train destined for a death camp and find themselves in a village occupied by the Nazis. In the climax of the book, Felix's own values are challenged. He has to choose as to whether he allows his pain to turn into hatred towards the Nazi aggressors or stay true to himself.
I read these books when my son brought them home as part of his English text. I am glad there are books illustrating the horrors of the past wrtten for young readers, so the future generation may hopefully not repeat them in the future.
Morris Gleitzman
Penguin
Once and its sequel, Then are harrowing and beautifully told stories of ten year old Felix; a Jewish boy caught in the midst of the Holocaust. Similar to The Boy in the Stripped Pyjamas and equally as good, Once and Then are told through the eyes of Felix, illustrating with child like purity the senselessness of war.
Once opens with Felix in a catholic orphanage where his parents had placed him in 1939. Two years later he escapes the orphanage to find the world outside changed dramatically. He suddenly found himself alone and on the run. He met Zelda, whose parents - Nazi sympathisers - were murdered by the polish resistance and the two become unlikely companions.
In Then, we are reunited with Felix and Zelda when they jump off a train destined for a death camp and find themselves in a village occupied by the Nazis. In the climax of the book, Felix's own values are challenged. He has to choose as to whether he allows his pain to turn into hatred towards the Nazi aggressors or stay true to himself.
I read these books when my son brought them home as part of his English text. I am glad there are books illustrating the horrors of the past wrtten for young readers, so the future generation may hopefully not repeat them in the future.
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