Reviews tagging 'Grief'

The Lion Women of Tehran by Marjan Kamali

18 reviews

roorooreads's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful inspiring tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

5.0

This book focuses on two girls that are experiencing a change in the Iranian political system. We know from the very start that they haven't spoken in years, in the very first chapter we receive a note from one of the girls to the other saying that they need to talk after they haven't spoken in years. So we start off the book knowing that something is going to happen but we aren't sure what but somehow they are not going to be the best friends that we are seeing at the very beginning as children. So we find out that these two friends are living through a very large shift in Iran. The girls are able to go to school, they are going thinking about college and Ellie, the main perspective that we're seeing in this book, she has unfortunately adapted a lot of her mother's ideals. And she just wants to be popular she wants to be wealthy. And our other main friend, Homa, she wants change, she wants to be a lawyer, and she wants the rights of the people to be seen and we find out she, like her father, is a member of the communist party. It is interesting the direction this story takes ,because at the very beginning they're talking about being lion women and so far Homa has definitely exhibited that behavior and so I'm very interested to see how our friend Ellie will exhibit being a lion. This is very compelling story and I didn't even realize how quickly I was reading it until all the sudden I was over halfway through in a day. So apparently, I've realized I like historical fiction again. 

I'm having trouble putting my thoughts into words as I finish this book. It was very powerful and consuming. Obviously I read it very quickly it only took me about a day and a half. I did slightly tear up at the end. I cannot say enough how courageous both women are in their own way

but especially Homa who continued to fight for what she believed in, from a very young age all the way up until she was an old women,

it's just amazing. These characters did not feel fictional they felt real. I felt like I was reading someone's memoir of a time when they went through something with their friend and somehow came out on the other side. I highly recommend this book, it is very “appropriate” for this time because I know that this is still happening, what has happened in 2022 in Iran and what I'm sure continues to happen there and throughout the world and what so many are afraid of happening here in America but in a different way. We as women stand together because these are not unprecedented times, it has happened before. We need each other, and as Homa says “…the force and fury of our screams have been gathering power for years…. Remember above all to always love. Love madly”

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Gun violence, Infertility, Rape, Torture, Police brutality, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, and Alcohol

kimveach's review

adventurous dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

This book resonated with me.  The story of women losing their rights in Iran in the late 1970s due to conservative religious men seems very timely.  The friendship between two young girls who grow into very different women is lovely.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Death, Infertility, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Vomit, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Outing, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Miscarriage

ringofkeyz's review

emotional reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Violence, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Classism

Moderate: Infertility, Misogyny, Police brutality, Grief, and Alcohol

Minor: Drug use, Infidelity, and Miscarriage

leslie_overbookedsocialworker's review

emotional hopeful informative tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, and Alcohol

Minor: Islamophobia, Religious bigotry, Sexual harassment, War, and Classism

clairebartholomew549's review

emotional hopeful informative inspiring sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This is a really striking story about generational change, what it means to fight for justice in your own way, lifelong friendships, and making peace or making waves. I felt deeply for both Homa and Ellie, and I learned so much about Iran. This book also had vivid descriptions of food that had my mouth watering, and it told a beautiful story of how food connects us and has so many memories and significance. The love story between Homa and Eleah really starts and ends with food, and it was a really meaningful throughline. It also made me very hungry, lol!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, and Classism

ivi_reads_books's review

dark emotional informative sad

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.75

This novel presents 20th-century Iranian history through the perspectives of two girls, and later women, who respond very differently to the political upheavals that shape their country. I found their complex friendship fascinating, and I learned a great deal about Iran’s history along the way. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Confinement, Death, Infertility, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Blood

bree_of_the_woods's review

challenging emotional informative inspiring sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Grief, and Alcohol

Moderate: Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Rape, Violence, and War

Minor: Infidelity

micaelamariem's review

challenging emotional inspiring reflective tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

This was a heartbreaking story set in the backdrop of the Iranian revolution and our two friends, one more politically minded than the other but both want reform in their own ways. The book expertly navigates the themes of coming of age, family, friendship, feminism, and even jealousy with the idea of an “evil eye.” 
The book had me enraptured. It was well written, descriptive, had compelling characters that caused me to care about them despite their flaws, and taught me more about Iranian history that I’m ashamed to say I didn’t know. And the sad thing is, Iran is still facing the same unfair policies today. If I learned anything from the book, is that we must keep fighting for what’s right, no matter the cost. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Violence, Grief, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, War, and Classism

cdkm9's review

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

An amazing novel that was hard to put down. The author brings the reader along a rollercoaster of a journey through both the horrible and lighthearted/joyful moments in Ellie and Homa’s lives.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, Police brutality, Fire/Fire injury, and Classism

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Grief, and War

Minor: Drug abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Rape, Torture, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Pandemic/Epidemic

mamagriff's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative inspiring sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

A powerful historical fiction novel about life, religion & political divisions in Tehran from 1950s through 2022. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape and Violence

Moderate: Grief, Pregnancy, and War

Minor: Child death, Infertility, Infidelity, and Alcohol