by Marjan Kamali, 2024, Gallery Books

My wife and several women in our community read this book and said it was very good. I decided to give it a try and thought it might be okay, but that it was probably a typical book about some strong females overcoming adversity. It definitely is about that, but it is so much better than I imagined.

The book chronicles the lives of two women growing up and living in Tehran, first during the rule of the Shah and then, later, during the right-wing Islamist regime. One of the women is poor and totally a rebel while the other is more attuned to fitting in and enjoying the perks of being wealthy. Despite their differing outlooks, they become fast friends throughout their lives, even though they experience betrayals.

Why did I like this book so much? First of all, I loved the characters. The author makes them extremely accessible and easy to relate to. Secondly, it was interesting to see their differing experiences and reactions to what was taking place in Iran during this period. Thirdly, there was something that I can’t even explain that almost brought me to tears at the end of the book. Not many books can do that, but this one really did.

I highly recommend this book, even to old, crusty males like me.