More about the book
We all have dreams—things we fantasize about doing but often never pursue. This narrative explores Azar Nafisi’s dream and the nightmare that made it a reality. For two years before leaving Iran in 1997, Nafisi gathered seven young women at her home every Thursday to read and discuss forbidden Western literature. These former students came from diverse backgrounds—some conservative and religious, others progressive and secular, with several having spent time in jail. Initially shy and uncomfortable, they gradually opened up about their thoughts, dreams, and disappointments, intertwining their personal stories with the novels they read, such as Pride and Prejudice and Lolita. Nafisi reflects on her early teaching days at the University of Tehran during the revolution, a time marked by protests and upheaval. In this chaotic environment, students took control of the university, leading to the expulsion of faculty and curriculum purges. When a radical Islamist student challenged her decision to teach The Great Gatsby, she allowed him to put the novel on trial, standing as the sole witness for its defense. Nafisi’s account provides a poignant view of the Iran-Iraq war from Tehran and offers a rare glimpse into women’s lives during this revolutionary period. Her writing is passionate and beautifully original, celebrating the power of literature amidst oppression.
Book purchase
Reading Lolita in Tehran, Azar Nafisi
- Language
- Released
- 2004
- product-detail.submit-box.info.binding
- (Paperback),
- Book condition
- Damaged
- Price
- €5.31
Payment methods
We’re missing your review here.
- Language
- English
- Authors
- Azar Nafisi
- Publisher
- Random House Trade Paperbacks
- Released
- 2004
- Format
- Paperback
- ISBN10
- 081297106X
- ISBN13
- 9780812971064
- Series
- Tags
- Non-Fiction, Historical Themes, Religion & Spirituality, True Stories, Biographies, History, Religious Topics, Religion, Autobiographies & Memoirs, Women, Creative Nonfiction, Military History, Military Fiction, Wars, American Literature, Feminism, English Literature, Islam, Social Critique, About Books, Diaries, Studying, Contemporary History, Iran, Reading, Women's Rights, Totalitarian regimes, Reading Instruction, Near and Middle East, Persia, Jane Austen, Totalitarian State, Women in Islam, Iranian Literature, Persian Literature, Forbidden Books
- First published
- 2003
- Original title
- Reading Lolita in Tehran
- Rating
- 3.65 out of 5
- Description
- We all have dreams—things we fantasize about doing but often never pursue. This narrative explores Azar Nafisi’s dream and the nightmare that made it a reality. For two years before leaving Iran in 1997, Nafisi gathered seven young women at her home every Thursday to read and discuss forbidden Western literature. These former students came from diverse backgrounds—some conservative and religious, others progressive and secular, with several having spent time in jail. Initially shy and uncomfortable, they gradually opened up about their thoughts, dreams, and disappointments, intertwining their personal stories with the novels they read, such as Pride and Prejudice and Lolita. Nafisi reflects on her early teaching days at the University of Tehran during the revolution, a time marked by protests and upheaval. In this chaotic environment, students took control of the university, leading to the expulsion of faculty and curriculum purges. When a radical Islamist student challenged her decision to teach The Great Gatsby, she allowed him to put the novel on trial, standing as the sole witness for its defense. Nafisi’s account provides a poignant view of the Iran-Iraq war from Tehran and offers a rare glimpse into women’s lives during this revolutionary period. Her writing is passionate and beautifully original, celebrating the power of literature amidst oppression.