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3.66 AVERAGE
3.66 AVERAGE
I enjoyed this as I had read most of the literary works she discusses throughout this book. I think it would not be an easy read for someone who was not a Nabokov, Austen, or Fitzgerald fan.
Reading Lolita in Tehran promises to show life during and after the 1979 Iranian Revolution. I was hesitant to read this book because many friends have mentioned that they either 1) own the book but have not read it or 2) have started the book but stopped due to disinterest. Reviews of the novel have similar messages. I went into the novel on the fence, and told myself it might be different because I am an English major. In fact, the only parts of the novel I relatively enjoyed were the literary analysis portions.
The other parts of the novel were a negative, jarring account of living life in Iran, and this was excruciatingly difficult to read especially during the Iraq war portions of the book. It felt overwhelming and heavy. Those who want to learn about life in Iran at this time should not look to this memoir as their source of information because it constantly blurs Islam - the religion - with the government's *backwards, tyrannical, and inaccurate* use of Islam to rule. One small example is the incessant use of the veil as a metaphor, that once the women took off their 'veils,' another 'veil' came down. The tropes Nafisi partakes in replicate orientalist views that the West has, viewing places like Iran and people who practice Islam as backwards and uncivilized.
To anyone who has read this book or simply wants to understand truly why this book bothered me so much, I recommend them to read the article "Reading Azar Nafisi in Tehran," of which I have quoted a good conclusive statement below that sums up the problem of Nafisi:
"She is an oriental woman who has been enlightened by western thought and culture, thus she is an authority on the backward and barbaric land that she has left behind." (Seyed Mohammed Marandi, University of Tehran, Iran)
The other parts of the novel were a negative, jarring account of living life in Iran, and this was excruciatingly difficult to read especially during the Iraq war portions of the book. It felt overwhelming and heavy. Those who want to learn about life in Iran at this time should not look to this memoir as their source of information because it constantly blurs Islam - the religion - with the government's *backwards, tyrannical, and inaccurate* use of Islam to rule. One small example is the incessant use of the veil as a metaphor, that once the women took off their 'veils,' another 'veil' came down. The tropes Nafisi partakes in replicate orientalist views that the West has, viewing places like Iran and people who practice Islam as backwards and uncivilized.
To anyone who has read this book or simply wants to understand truly why this book bothered me so much, I recommend them to read the article "Reading Azar Nafisi in Tehran," of which I have quoted a good conclusive statement below that sums up the problem of Nafisi:
"She is an oriental woman who has been enlightened by western thought and culture, thus she is an authority on the backward and barbaric land that she has left behind." (Seyed Mohammed Marandi, University of Tehran, Iran)
DNF @100p
Can't hold my attention. Would appreciate it more if I read all of the classics and cared about the ones I've read.
Can't hold my attention. Would appreciate it more if I read all of the classics and cared about the ones I've read.
This book did not live up to its promise. It purported to be a group of women in Iran forming a book group to be able to escape the restrictions of the regime, if only through fiction. It started off as this, but then veered off and became a wildly self-pitying, self-indulgent claptrap. As the "magician" quite rightly pointed out - the author blamed the Republic of Iran for everything, and it got rather tedious I'm afraid. If it had focussed on the books a bit more, and looked at different ways of viewing them, as it did in the first section with Lolita, this would have been a wonderful book. It just wasn't.
I absolutely loved this. It did take me a long time to finish since it was very dense, but it was JUST my speed--reflections on life through books, philosophical asides, and an extremely atmospheric setting. All around excellent
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
So proud of myself for finishing this and slogging through the beginning. It's a shame that parts of the book are written, at best, with the tone and style a well written graduate school English Lit. paper. Strangely, or perhaps intentionally, the story of the "girls" and the books is less interesting than what's happening around them.
Azar Nafisi taught literature at the University of Tehran in the 70s and 80s, as the Iranian Revolution was happening. This memoir gives special insight into her life and the lives of several female students during these turbulent times.
I don't think I could have read this book at a more poignant time. Yes, I realize Iran and Afghanistan are two very different countries. Yet there are a lot of similarities as well. With the recent move of American troops to pull out of Afghanistan, this book gave me a window into the feelings and mind of the Middle East. I have a very skewed perspective of what has occurred based on what the media presents. It was enlightening to hear from someone who loves Iran, and yet made the decision to leave her beloved country. If you want to know more about what women have faced (and unfortunately continue to face), read this book. The following quote captures some of what women endure in a nutshell, "I wonder if right now, at this moment, I were to turn to the people sitting next to me in this cafe in a country that is not Iran and talk to them about life in Tehran, how they would react. Would they condemn the tortures, the executions and the extreme acts of aggression? I think they would. But what about the acts of transgression on our ordinary lives, like the desire to wear pink socks?" (p. 76). I did think the text was a little dry, so the audio may be a great option (although I've not listened to it, so maybe take it with a grain of salt). Oh, and while reading LOLITA first did slightly enhance my knowledge of the references, I do not think it's actually necessary before reading this book.
CW: abuse, war stories, rape, executions, jail stories
I don't think I could have read this book at a more poignant time. Yes, I realize Iran and Afghanistan are two very different countries. Yet there are a lot of similarities as well. With the recent move of American troops to pull out of Afghanistan, this book gave me a window into the feelings and mind of the Middle East. I have a very skewed perspective of what has occurred based on what the media presents. It was enlightening to hear from someone who loves Iran, and yet made the decision to leave her beloved country. If you want to know more about what women have faced (and unfortunately continue to face), read this book. The following quote captures some of what women endure in a nutshell, "I wonder if right now, at this moment, I were to turn to the people sitting next to me in this cafe in a country that is not Iran and talk to them about life in Tehran, how they would react. Would they condemn the tortures, the executions and the extreme acts of aggression? I think they would. But what about the acts of transgression on our ordinary lives, like the desire to wear pink socks?" (p. 76). I did think the text was a little dry, so the audio may be a great option (although I've not listened to it, so maybe take it with a grain of salt). Oh, and while reading LOLITA first did slightly enhance my knowledge of the references, I do not think it's actually necessary before reading this book.
CW: abuse, war stories, rape, executions, jail stories
I think it is interesting to hear what other cultures think of things that seem like no big thing in our culture. Jane Austen, Nabakov, and Fitzgerald just seem to me to be part of our collective consciousness, but not so much in places like the Asia or the Arabic parts of the world. So to hear what a group of women had to say about the Bennetts, Lolita and of course Jay Gatesby among others was so cool. For some of the women, this is the only positive notions they have of western cultures, I haven't decided if that is a good thing or a bad thing, it would probably depend on which novel they were reading. I highly recommend this book for people who love books, especially the classics, and who also like to hear what other people think of novels.
A simple, yet engaging, narration of a life that, although rough in various ways, consisted of many moments and faces worth cherishing. An insight into a world unknown to many, offers the opportunity to re-consider what we take for granted in the 21st century. Azar Nafisi did a great job in writing a worth-reading memoir, inviting the reader into her life and offering new interpretation to classic works of literature. Highly recommended.
*Extra credit for introducing me to Affogato al Caffé*
*Extra credit for introducing me to Affogato al Caffé*