Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

The Stationery Shop by Marjan Kamali

13 reviews

hmwoodward's review

Go to review page

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad 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? Yes

4.0

This beautifully written and beautifully read book (listened to the audiobook on this one) follows two young people who fell hopelessly in love
and lost each other along the way
in Iran amidst political instability in the 1950s. You primarily follow the story through the eyes of the female main character, Roya, via 3rd person. She's a smart girl who loves books, learning about American culture, and who is on the fringe of politics thanks to her father and her love interest. You get to watch her and her family grow from her teen years through her senior years, seeing how her past follows her, no matter how far away from it she really is. 

I read this one per a bookstagramer recommendation, even though historical fiction is not my jam - especially after how long and sad the last one I read was. But, the book was great and I would definitely recommend it - just keep the content warnings in mind.

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

saychall's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense fast-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


Expand filter menu Content Warnings

kailiyahknight's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional reflective sad 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? It's complicated

5.0


Expand filter menu Content Warnings

mdavis26's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.25


Expand filter menu Content Warnings

arnoles's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful 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

4.75

This was a absolutely beautiful, gorgeous book. The love story was powerful and moving and the theme of societal/family expectations and personal desire was expressed beautifully. The time jump and the occasional switch in character focus was used perfectly. I learned a lot about Iranian history and Persian culture from this book as well. Definitely have tissues ready for the last 50 or so pages.

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

bree_of_the_woods's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring mysterious sad fast-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


Expand filter menu Content Warnings

oddreads_nicolestins's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

This book was a whirlwind! I really enjoyed how Marjan took us from the past to the present throughout. The plot twists were twisting, and I enjoyed the way Marjan set up the plot. I'm not a big romance reader- honestly this is one of two books I've read with romance as a main theme. Without giving away spoilers, the romance between Roya and Bahman was very sweet and definitely portrayed young love at it's finest. The drama between the adults was where the true tea simmered! Aside from the romance elements, I also appreciated the historical/cultural backdrop of the book and learned so much about 1950s Tehran! Highly recommend if you're into historical fiction/romance.

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

alexisgarcia's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional reflective sad 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? Yes

5.0

this absolutely wrecked me. i cried in public reading this. 

it was so enlightening on the tribulations many Iranian people faced during that time. i felt my heart break when the characters faced grief and loss, which is hard for an author to achieve. 

i would recommend this 1000%, please just check trigger warnings!!!

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

chaoticnostalgia's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0


Expand filter menu Content Warnings

agiali's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

*:・゚190/ 108 

I want to sue Marjan Kamali solely for the cause of my emotional distress. 


I did not expect to love this as much as I do. I originally heard of this book years ago but figured it wouldn't be for me as it has a very historical setting. I am so upset at my 16-year-old self for not reading this sooner as I am so incredibly unwell but also so thankful that I got to read this work of art. Not only did this book tick me off but it made me fall in love, want to fight people, and then, as we know, I ✨ cried ✨ <i>The Stationery Shop</i> also shocked me many times with the twists I did not see coming. 

This is such a beautiful book, but please check the content warnings because it is FULL of them. This reminded me mildly of the book <i>Alone With You in the Ether</i> by Olivie Blake, but only because it really asked a lot of questions that would ultimately hurt my heart to answer. 

I love Bahman and I will not shut up about him and Roya :')

Expand filter menu Content Warnings