Rating: 
Summary: Amazing
Review: I have developed the passion to go for any book that has an unusual but interesting setting. Reading Lolita in Tehran proved to be one of such books. I wasn't disappointed when I read it to the last page. Dwelling in an atmosphere of tyranny which breeds fear, the book talks of dissent in a new political system that is against openness in arts, culture, history and dissent. In the Iran of her times, even western literature was considered anti-revolutionary by the authorities, yet people stayed determined to pay any price to be connected to the rest of the world. War and peace still left the society yearning for freedom, a craving to be free that led to the author's decision to eventually leave Iran with her family to the United States of America.
Also recommended: DISCIPLES OF FORTUNE, THE KITE RUNNER, THE USURPER AND OTHER STORIES
Rating:
Summary: A compelling and sympathetic book
Review: The book is unique in that it is a memoir and a commentary on literary works. It is about the writer's life in Tehran, during the eighties and the nineties and interspersed in her memoir are her comments on western literature and authors such as Nabokov, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Henry James and Jane Austen. I believe the writer was trying to let the reader see a link between fiction and reality. The first few pages led me to believe that the book was going to be about the members of the secret book discussion group which met at the writer's house for two years. The theme of the writer's English literature classes was the relation between fiction and reality. I was fascinated by the writer's experiences: teaching western literature during a time when anything western was labeled indecent and decadent, surviving the eight year war between Iraq and Iran and deciding to migrate to United States. The book opened my eyes about the strength and courage of Middle Eastern women and in particular, Iranian women. Nafisi painted a picture of religion being used as an instrument of power that intruded in the personal lives of Iranians after the departure of the Shah. There was an example of some young ladies being reprimanded for eating apples too seductively. She painted a clear picture of chaos in education at the university level where leftists and Islamists frequently clashed on campus reflecting the drama and chaos in the Iranian society where the leftists, Islamists and Monarchists battled each other. Ultimately, this is a well-written and wonderful book. Not only is it about survival of the human spirit, it's a book that celebrate many passions, reading among them. Pick up a copy! Another very different, but highly enjoyable recent Amazon purchase I enjoyed was The Losers Club: Complete Restored Edition by Richard Perez.
Rating: 
Summary: A Bestseller? You must be kidding.
Review: What a letdown this book is after reading "Kite Runner." If I wanted a literature class I would sign up at the University.
Rating:
Summary: Skip this one
Review: I selected this book as my pick for my book clubs November read. Only one person of twelve could even stay interested enough to complete the book. The author is just really boring and hard to follow.
Rating:
Summary: History, Literature, and Current Events. What a combo!
Review: Fabulous book. I would love to meet the author, meet her students, and I'm off to read the (few) books that she taught that I haven't read yet. Fascinating and compelling.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't read this book -- read "Lolita" instead
Review: Although Nafisi claims to be a Nabokov scholar, she seems to have learned nothing from him. Like Nabokov, Nafisi was born into a privileged life which was turned upside down when her native country undergoes revolution. Nabokov tells us in his autobiography "Speak Memory" that his losses made it possible for him to have a richer, more meaningful life. Nafisi cannot stop whining about her losses, even though they are far less severe than Nabokov's. She is overwhelmed by self-pity and bitterness. She expresses contempt toward her less "sophisticated" countrymen and their vulnerablity to the appeal of the Ayatollah, but she fails to see the failures of her own economic and social class. I'd choose Nabokov over reading about Nabokov anyday.
Rating:
Summary: Our Bookclub was not enthusiastic
Review: All 8 bookclub members found the book concept and content fascinating, but written in a too academic, disjointed way that made all have a hard time reading the book. What all of us hoped for was more character development, and less a literature presentation with some personal comments and stories interspersed. The format wasn't inviting, and it was a chore for most to read.
Rating:
Summary: Very Dissapointing
Review: After all the rave reviews, I thought this would be an enjoyable read. In fact, for the first 70 pages or so, it was, a little. I liked the comparison of Humbert Humbert in Lolita and the ayatolla in Iran. Each attempted to make over their object -the child Lolita and the country Iran- to match their image of them. Each, to a greater or lesser degree, destroyed the object.
The author tends to be pretty self-absorbed. Is it really possible that she is the hero in all her relationships? Toward the later part of the book, she acknowledges that she has a tendency to pontificate. Well, by then, this is not news.
The experience of reading this book was very difficult. In fact, it became simply a chore to go from page to page. Finally, 60 or so pages from the end, I gave up. I decided that I deserve better than this.
I'm glad that some people enjoyed it. Isn't it grand that we can disagree, and in public?
Rating:
Summary: A riveting story
Review: I have the passion to go for any book that has an unusual but interesting setting. Reading Lolita in Tehran proved to be one of such books. I wasn't disappointed when I read it to the last page. Dwelling in an atmosphere of tyranny which breeds fear, the book talks of dissent in a new political system that is against openness in arts, culture, history and dissent. In the Iran of her times, even western literature was considered anti-revolutionary by the authorities, yet people stayed determined to pay any price to be connected to the rest of the world. War and peace still left the society yearning for freedom, a craving to be free that led to the author's decision to eventually leave Iran with her family to the United States of America.
Also recommended: DISCIPLES OF FORTUNE
| 
