Campus Read 2009 Bibliography

Campus Read 2009 The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi Bismarck State College Has reading The Complete Persepolis sparked your interest in Iran? To learn more about Iran and its history, culture, politics, and people, here is a sampling of books, eBooks, films, and websites to explore. A selected, annotated bibliography prepared by Marlene Anderson, Director of Library Services Most of these resourcesare available at the BSC Library. Check them out!

SELECTED BOOKS After the Prophet: the Epic Story of the Shia-Sunni Split in Islam/ Lesley Hazleton.

New York: Doubleday, 2009.

In 632, the founder of Islam died without a clearly designated successor, which led to the turmoil that ended in the division of Muslims into Sunni and Shia. Booklist says this book“… thrillingly and intelligently distills one of the most consequential trains of events in all history. An absolute gift for world history studies.” The Age of Orphans: a Novel/ by Lalel Khadivi. New York: Bloomsbury, 2009. The first in a planned trilogy, this novel opens in 1921 when everyone but a young Kurdish boy is killed in an attack by the shah’s army. The soldiers adopt him as the “orphan Kurd” and he becomes “a plebe in the great army of the shah” -- his family history erased. Years later, when his company attacks a Kurdish village, the boy remembers his past and realizes “he is them.” In 2008, author Lalel Khadivi received a Whiting Award, which is given to writers of exceptional talent and promise in their early career. Ajdar / written and illustrated by Marjane Satrapi. Spanish ed. France: Nathan Jeunesse, 2002. A children’s book by the author of Persepolis. Available in French and Spanish editions.

All the Shah’s Men: an American Coup and the Roots of Middle East Terror/ Stephen Kinzer. Sons, 2003.

Hoboken, NJ: Wiley &

Kinzer, a New York Times correspondent, recreates the CIA’s 1953 overthrow of the elected leader of Iran, a coup which brought Mohammad Reza Shah to power. The Shahwas widely viewed as a U.S. puppet and was himself overthrown in the Islamic revolution of 1979. A 2003 Business Week review said, “…entertaining and sometimes shocking...serves as a useful reminder that troublesome regimes do not come out of nowhere." The Ayatollah Begs to Differ: the Paradox of Modern Iran / Hooman Majd. New York: Doubleday, 2008. “The grandson of an eminent ayatollah and the son of an Iranian diplomat, now an American citizen, Hooman Majd is, in a way, both 100 percent Iranian and 100 percent American, combining an insider’s knowledge of how Iran works with a remarkable ability to explain its history and its quirks to Western readers … he paints a portrait of a country that is fiercely proud of its Persian heritage, mystified by its outsider status, and scornful of the idea that the United States can dictate how it should interact with the community of nations.” – Publisher’s description

BSC LIBRARY CALL NUMBER

NOTES

BP 55 .H42 2009

Non-fiction 256 p.

PS 3611 .H315 A73 2009

Fiction 292 p.

Children’s Collection PZ 8 .S264 Adj 2006 DS 318 .K49 2003

Children’s fiction 32 p.; Spanish language edition

DS 318.9 .M35 2009

Non-fiction 256 p.

Non-fiction 258 p.

The Bathhouse/ Farnoosh Moshiri. Seattle, WA: Black Heron Press, 2001. Winner of the Black Heron Press Award for Social Fiction in 2001, The Bathhouseis based on interviews with Iranian women who were imprisoned in the early days of the fundamentalist revolution in Iran. Kirkus Reviews called it “Remarkably intricate and fascinating … A superb debut.” Black Parrot, Green Crow: a Collection of Short Fiction / Houshang Golshiri; edited by Heshmat Moayyad. Washington, D.C.: Mage Publishers, 2003. Brings together 18 short stories and three poems by Houshang Golshiri (1937-2000), one of the most influential 20th century writers of Persian prose. His stories and protests against censorship landed him in trouble (including a ban on his books and imprisonment) with both the Pahlavi regime and the Islamic Republic. Caspian Rain: a Novel/ Gina B. Nahai. San Francisco: MacAdam Cage, 2007. “Like drops of acid, Gina Nahai’s words burn the pages of this moving novel about the fate of women in pre-revolutionary Iran … Beneath the novel’s calm and captivating prose is a powerful testament to Iranian women’s fight against oppression.” – from Ms. Magazine Censoring an Iranian Love Story: a Novel/ Shahriar Mandanipour. New York: Knopf, 2009. “Imagine trying to write about romance in a society in which it’s a crime for a woman to walk down the street with a man who isn’t a relative, and in which government censors scrutinize every line. Shahriar Mandanipour, the struggling Iranian author portrayed with mischievous wit and serious intent in this elaborately chambered double-novel by the real-life Shahriar Mandanipour––a prominent, censored Iranian writer––labors anxiously over the love story of Sara and Dara under the sharp eyes of Mr. Petrovich, a censor of disturbingly omniscient powers …” -- Donna Seaman, Booklist Chicken with Plums/ Marjane Satrapi. New York: Knopf/Doubleday, 2009. From Publishers Weekly: “The question of what makes a life worth living has rarely been posed with as much poignancy and ambition as it is in Satrapi's dazzling new effort … Here she presents us with the story of her great-uncle Nasser Ali Khan, one of Iran's most revered musicians, who takes to bed after realizing that he'll never be able to find an instrument to replace his beloved, broken tar.” The Complete Persepolis / Marjane Satrapi. 1sted.

New York: Pantheon Books, 2007.

This one-volume work contains Persepolis (2003) and Persepolis 2 (2004). Using a graphic novel format, The Complete Persepolis is Marjane Satrapi’s story of her childhood and coming of age in Tehran during the Islamic Revolution, her high school years in Vienna, her homecoming, and her self-imposed exile from her beloved homeland. Confronting Iran: the Failure of American Foreign Policy and the Next Great Crisis in the Middle East/ Ali M. Ansari. New York: Basic Books, c2006. From Google Books: “… this book will be essential reading for anyone seeking to understand this explosive region.” Creation: a Novel/ Gore Vidal. 1sted.

New York: Random House, 1981.

Step back in time with Gore Vidal’s Creation, a novel that revisits the fifth century B.C. through the eyes of Cyrus Spitama, who spent most of his life as Persian ambassador for the great king Darius. Mary Renault of The New York Review of Books called it “Brilliantly realized … Fertile, vivid, and ingenious … [A] surging river of a book.” Daneshvar’s Playhouse: a Collection of Stories / Simin Daneshvar. Washington, D.C.: Mage Publishers, 2008. “These stories not only portray, with incomparable perception, humor, and compassion, women from the various strata of

PS 3563 .O88443 B38 2003

Fiction 182 p.

PK 6561 .G775 A6 2003

Fiction 244 p.

PS 3552 .A6713 C37 2007

Fiction 298 p.

PK 6561 .M236 C46 2009

Fiction 295 p.

ML 419 .K495 S313 2006

Non-fiction 96 p.

PN 6747 .S245 P4713 2007

Memoir 341 p.

E 183.8 .I55 A598 2006 PS 3543 .I26 C7 1981

Non-fiction 280 p.

PK 6561 .D263 A25

Fiction 184 p.

Fiction 510 p.

Iranian society, but they also capture the essence of a rich traditional culture undergoing change.” – Mage Publishers

1989

Democracy in Iran: History and the Quest for Liberty/ Ali Gheissari, Vali Nasr. Press, 2006.

DS 316.6 .G47 2006

Non-fiction 214 p.

PN 6747 .S245 E42 2005

Non-fiction 144 p.

DS 35.74 .U6 C65 2009

Non-fiction 282 p.

HQ 1735.2 .R44 1989

Non-fiction 218 p.

DS 276 .F67 2005

Non-fiction 272 p.

On order

Non-fiction 248 p.

DS 274.2 .I72 K48 1988

Non-fiction 236 p.

E 183.8 .I55 B68 2006

Non-fiction 680 p.

Oxford; New York:Oxford University

Looks at the political history of Iran in the modern era and analyzes the prospects of democracy developing and flourishing in a Muslim state. Embroideries/ Marjane Satrapi. New York: Knopf, 2006. “… explores the lives of Iranian women young and old. The book begins with Satrapi arriving for afternoon tea at her grandmother's house. There, her mother, aunt, and their group of friends tell stories about their lives as women, and, more specifically, the men they've lived with and through.” -- Publishers Weekly Engaging the Muslim World/ Juan Cole. 1sted.

New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2009.

From Google Books: “With clarity and concision, Juan Cole disentangles the key foreign policy issues that America is grappling with today -- from our dependence on Middle East petroleum to the promotion of Islamophobia by the American right -- and delivers his informed advice on the best way forward.” Female Warriors of Allah: Women and the Islamic Revolution/ Minou Reeves. 1sted. New York: Dutton, 1989. “Raised in Iran and employed by the government of the Shah, Reeves watched the development of the Iranian revolution and its displacement of westernized society. She seeks to examine the particular position of women in the reassertion of fundamentalist Islam, both in religious terms and in light of the political terrorism that became part of it.” -- Library Journal Forgotten Empire: the World of Ancient Persia / edited by John Curtis and Nigel Tallis;with contributions by Beatrice Andre-Salvini . . . [et al.] Berkeley: University of California Press, c2005. Created in association with the British Museum for an exhibition on the Achaeminids, this beautifully illustrated book traces the rise and fall of one of the ancient world's largest and richest empires. Garden of the Brave in War: Recollections of Iran/ Terrence O’Donnell. Washington, D.C.: Mage Publishers, 2003. From inside cover: “For ten years in the 1960s and 1970s, Terence O’Donnell, an American, lived in on a farm near Shiraz in Iran, raising pomegranates, quinces, grapes, chickens, and bees. He made many Iranian friends and shares his memories of that time in this “masterpiece of national portraiture.” “A work of shimmering beauty and sensitivity, Garden of the Brave in War will deepen every reader’s understanding of the often elusive country that lies behind the headlines.” The Gulf War: the Origins and Implications of the Iran-Iraq Conflict / Majid Khadduri. New York: Oxford University Press, 1988. "Unlike other works on the Gulf War, this highly informative book discusses unresolved disputes between Iraq and Kuwait in their historical contexts, focusing on Iraq's economic and strategic requirements as well as its views and grievances before the invasion of Kuwait. In doing so the authors manage to express views from the other side and maintain rigorous objectivity."— Halim Barakat, Research Professor, Georgetown University Guests of the Ayatollah: the First Battle in America's War with Militant Islam/ Mark Bowden. New York: Atlantic Monthly Press, c2006. Chroniclesthe Iran hostage crisis, America's first battle with militant Islam. On November 4, 1979, a group of radical Islamist students, inspired by the Ayatollah Khomeini, stormed the U.S. embassy in Tehran and took 52 Americans hostage, keepingnearly all of them hostage for 444 days. Bowden tells the story through the eyes of the hostages, the soldiers in a special forces unit sent to free them, their captors, and the diplomats and Carter administration officials working to end the crisis.

Heavy Metal Islam: Rock, Resistance, and the Struggle for the Soul of Islam/ Mark LeVine. 1sted. Three Rivers Press, 2008.

New York:

“We play heavy metal because our lives are heavy metal.”— Reda Zine, a founder of the Moroccan heavy-metal scene. This book looks at the growing influence of rock, hip-hop, and heavy metal music in the Middle East. The Heritage of Persia/ Richard Nelson Frye. Cleveland: World Pub. Co., [1963]. “A solid, readable history of a place and its people …” [Note: 1963 publication date; much has happened since then]. A History of Modern Iran/ Ervand Abrahamian. Cambridge, UK; New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008. Traces the history of Iran in the 20th century. "Abrahamian ... does an impressive job of recounting the story of the White Revolution, this last shah's botched attempt at modernization via a series of broad-ranging economic and social reforms in 1963 ... Reading Abrahamian, one gains an acute sense of the potent cocktail of factors that finally led to the regime's collapse." -- The Nation A History of the Modern Middle East/ William L. Cleveland. 3rded. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 2004. A comprehensive look at the history of the Middle East during the last two centuries. Honeymoon in Tehran: Two Years of Love and Danger in Iran/ Azadeh Moaveni. New York: Random House, 2009. “In 2005, Azadeh Moaveni, longtime Middle East correspondent for Time magazine, returns to Iran to cover the rise of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. As she documents the firebrand leader's troublesome entry onto the world stage … the unexpected happens: Azadeh falls in love with a young Iranian man and decides to get married and start a family in Tehran. Suddenly, she finds herself navigating an altogether different side of Iranian life.” – Publisher’s description "[A]n excellent choice for readers interested in going beyond the headlines to gain an in-depth understanding of twenty-first-century Iran." – Booklist House of Sand and Fog/ Andre Dubus III. New York: Vintage Contemporaries, 2000. This is a great book … you cannot read it (or watch the film version starring Jennifer Connelly and Ben Kingsley) without forming strong opinions about right and wrong in this story about an Iranian immigrant and a young woman who both want the same California house. Brilliantly written, House of Sand and Fog was a National Book Award Finalist in 1999. In the Walled Gardens: a Novel/ Anahita Firouz. Boston: Little, Brown, 2002. “Firouz's debut novel is set in Iran in 1977, just a couple of years prior to the revolution in 1979. Told from two points of view -- that of Mahastee, a wealthy young woman, and Reza, the son of an overseer -- the story revolves around the world of privilege and the revolutionary underground.” -- Booklist Inside Iran: Women’s Lives/ Jane Mary Howard. Washington, D.C.: Mage Publishers, 2002. Former BBC correspondent Jane Howard lived in Iran from 1996 to 2000 and raised her two young children there. Her book takes us into the lives of ordinary Iranian women and “shows us vividly what life is like in Iran today ... and will probably surprise many Western readers. . . . Moving and colorful.” -- New York Times Book Review Iran Awakening: a Memoir of Revolution and Hope/ Shirin Ebadi and Azadeh Moaveni. New York: Random House, 2006. [Note: 2007 reprint subtitle is “One Woman’s Journey to Reclaim Her Life and Country.] A memoir from Shirin Ebadi, winner of the 2003 Nobel Peace Prize and an advocate for the oppressed. "Ebadi offers a very personal account of her life and her fight for human rights in Iran." – Booklist

ML 3918 .P67 L48 2008

Non-fiction 296 p.

DS 275 .F7

Non-fiction 301 p.

DS 316.3 .A27 2008

Non-fiction 228 p.

Also available as an eBook DS 62.4 .C53 2004 E 184 .I5 M624 2009

Non-fiction 588 p. Non-fiction 352 p.

PS 3554 .U265 H68 2000

Fiction 365 p.

PS 3606 .I76 I5 2003

Fiction 338 p.

HQ 1735.2 .H68 2002

Non-fiction 256 p.

DS 318.84 .E22 I72 2007

Non-fiction 256 p.

Iran-Iraq War/ Gary E. McCuen.

Hudson, WI: Gary E. McCuen Publications, 1987.

Written when the Iran-Iraq war was in its sixth year, this book provides an overview of the war and its origins, Iranian and Iraqi perspectives on the conflict, profiles of the two countries, and a review of U.S. policy options. Iranian Culture: a Persianist View/ Michael C. Hillmann. Lanham, Md.: University Press of America, 1990. The author lived and worked in Iran for seven years. This book is his “attempt to define that culture for myself and to reconcile different personal perspectives on Iran.” -- Preface The Iranian Mojahedin/ Ervand Abrahamian. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1989. “A first-rate study that not only goes far in explaining the key events of the last decade but also implicitly substantiates the classic Crane Brinton analysis.” -- Bernard Weiss, History: Review of New Books Journey from the Land of No: a Girlhood Caught in Revolutionary Iran/ Roya Hakakian. New York: Crown, 2005. Like Marjane Satrapi, author of The Complete Persepolis, Roya Hakakian, was a young girl (age 12) when the Islamic revolution swept through her country in 1979. Journey from the Land of No is Hakakian’s memoir of her early childhood in pre-revolutionary times and the changes that came with being dominated by religious fanaticism. King of the Benighted / Manuchehr Irani; translated by Abbas Milani.

Washington, D.C.: Mage Publishers, 1990.

“First published pseudonymously and mailed out of Iran page by page, King of the Benighted is a firsthand account of the hard realities of life under the Islamic Republic.” – Google Books The Kurds: a People in Search of Their Homeland/ Kevin McKiernan. 1sted.

New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2006.

This book tells the story of the Kurds, the largest ethnic group in the world without a state of its own. A promise to give the Kurdish people a homeland after World War I was never kept. Most of the 25 million Kurds live in Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Syria. Genocide and repression of Kurdish language and culture has been the norm. Lipstick Jihad: a Memoir of Growing Up Iranian in America and American in Iran/ Azadeh Moaveni. New York: PublicAffairs, 2005. The author starts by describing her teen years …”living with a mother who distained everything American and expected her child to conform to Iranian female standards.” After college, she worked in Cairo and was there in 1999 when the student revolution erupted in Tehran. Through her family contacts, she was able to travel easily and was the only American journalist allowed in Tehran at the time. “Her rose-colored picture of Iran, encouraged for years by her relatives in exile, soon turned another shade altogether. The Iran she expected existed only in the memories of an earlier generation.” – from KLIATT Missing Soluch / Mahmoud Dowlatabadi. Hoboken, NJ: Melville House Pub., 2007. “Perhaps the most important work in modern Iranian literature, this starkly beautiful novel examines the trials of an impoverished woman and her children living in a remote village in Iran, after the unexplained disappearance of her husband, Soluch.” – Publisher’s description

DS 318.85 .M38 1987x

Non-fiction 136 p.

DS 266 .H55 1990

Non-fiction 221 p.

DS 318.825 .A27 1989

Non-fiction 307 p.

E 184 .I5 H35 2004

Non-fiction 256 p.

PK 6561 .I64 S513 1995 DS 59 .K86 M427 2006

Fiction 120 p.

E 184 .I5 M63 2006

Non-fiction 260 p.

PK 6561 .D39 J313 2007

Fiction 507 p.

Non-fiction 390 p.

Monsters Are Afraid of the Moon/ [written and illustrated by] Marjane Satrapi; translated by Jill Davis. Bloomsbury USA, 2006.

New York:

A children’s book from the author of The Complete Persepolis. “Strongly drawn, vividly colored figures with large, expressive eyes light up this simple tale of a child who discovers that her solution to a personal problem has wider consequences.” – from Kirkus Reviews My Prison, My Home: One Woman’s Story of Captivity in Iran/ Haleh Esfandiari.

New York: HarperCollins, 2009.

"A masterful memoir...an intimate tale of bravery in the face of ignorance set against the larger tragedy of U.S.-Iran relations. Esfandiari's story -- timely, suspenseful and artfully told -- will fascinate experts and general readers alike." -Madeleine K. Albright, U.S. Secretary of State, 1997-2001 My Uncle Napoleon: a Comic Novel / Iraj Pezeshkad;translated by Dick Davis. New York: Modern Library, 2006, c1996. “An uproarious and endearing Iranian novel, first published in Iran over twenty years ago, which became the basis for a highly popular television series. The story tells of an unruly extended family, living within and around a walled enclave in Tehran in the early 1940s …” – from Kirkus Reviews New Food of Life: Ancient Persian and Modern Iranian Cooking and Ceremonies / Najmieh Batmanglij. 3rded. Washington, D.C.: Mage Publishers, 2009, c1992. More than a collection of Iranian recipes, this is a wonderful way to learn about Persian customs, culture, and art. USA Today called it“A beautiful introduction to Persian cuisine & culture.” Paved with Good Intentions: the American Experience and Iran/ Barry Rubin. 1980.

New York:Oxford University Press,

Focuses on U.S.-Iranian relations from World War II until the Islamic Revolution in 1979. Rubin shows how the U.S. policies and the Shah’s reforms both went awry. A People without a Country: the Kurds and Kurdistan / edited by Gerard Chailand. 1stAmerican ed. New York: Olive Branch Press, 1993. Details the history of the Kurds. The Library Journal review said, “While there is definite sympathy for the Kurds in this comprehensive and objective book, there is criticism as well -- this is no propaganda tract. This important book is recommended …” The Persian Empire/ Lindsay Allen. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2005. "… traces the rise of the monarchy, its interactions with nascent Europe, and examines Persian imperial legacies to provide a framework for understanding the land we now know as Iran." -- Middle East Journal Persian Myths/ Vesta Sarkhosh Curtis. 1stUniversity of Texas Press ed.

Austin: University of Texas Press, 1993.

Myths are traditional tales and storiesof ancient origin. They are important because “they reflect the attitudes of the society to which they first belonged—attitudes towards the confrontation of good and evil, the actions of the gods, and the exploits of heroes and fabulous creatures. Myths play a crucial part in Persian culture and our understanding of them is increased when we consider them within the context of Iranian history.” – from Introduction

Children’s Collection PZ 8 .S264 Mon 2006 DS 318.84 .I84 2009

Children’s fiction 32 p.

PK 6561 .P54 D313 2006

Fiction 528 p.

TX 725.17 .B373 1992

Non-fiction 440 p.

E 183.8 .I55 R83

Non-fiction 426 p.

DS 51 .K7 K86313 1993

Non-fiction 259 p.

DS 281 .A58 2005

Non-fiction 208 p.

BL 2270 .C87 1993

Non-fiction 80 p.

Non-fiction 230 p.

The Persian Night: Iran under the Khomeinist Revolution/ Amir Taheri.

New York: Encounter Books, 2009.

Author Amir Taheri, once the editor of Iran's most influential paper, now lives in exile but remains in touch with insiders. “In the old days of the Cold War, brave spirits used to write books that came to grips with the ideological monstrosity of the Soviet Union. They too had no choice but to publish in the West. In the end, they were vindicated. Honor now goes to The Persian Night for exposing the ideological monstrosity of Iran.” -- David Pryce-Jones, National Review Persian Painting / text by Basil Gray. [Switzerland]: Bookking International, 1995. This beautifully illustrated book was first published in 1961 and is considered a standard in the field. Author Basil Gray was an Islamicist and head of the Oriental Department, British Museum, from 1945 to 1969. The Persians / Gene R. Garthwaite. Malden, MA: Blackwell Pub., 2004. The Persians"… is not a dry historical narrative but an excellent, rigorous, yet generally accessible overview of Persians in history based on the latest scholarship on Iranian society and History. Essential." – Choice A Choice Outstanding Academic Title of the Year Pieces of the Game: the Human Drama of Americans Held Hostage in Iran/ Charles W. Scott. Atlanta, GA: Peachtree Publishers, 1984. On November 4, 1979, a group of Islamist students and militants took over the U.S. Embassy in Tehran and held 66 American citizens and diplomats hostage. Some were released a short time later, but 52 remained hostage until January 20, 1981. Charles W. Scott was one of those hostages. In this book, he offers an account of his 444 days in captivity and his relationship with his jailor, a young militant Islamic fundamentalist. Pomegranate Soup: a Novel/ Marsha Mehran. New York: Random House, 2005. If you liked Chocolat by Joanne Harris or Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel, you will enjoy this book. Google Books called Pomegranate Soup “… an infectious novel of magical realism. This richly detailed story, highlighted with delicious recipes, is a delectable journey into the heart of Persian cooking and Irish living.” Price of Honor: Muslim Women Lift the Veil of Silence on the Islamic World/ Jan Goodwin. Rev. ed. New York: Plume, 2003. “In this astonishing book, the product of four years of living in the Islamic world, journalist Goodwin examines the movement that is aggressively spreading a fundamentalist version of Islam throughout much of the world. Her interviews with Muslim women in ten countries both fascinate and disturb …” – Library Journal Prisoner of Tehran: a Memoir/ Marina Nemat. New York: Free Press, 2007. “Nemat tells of her harrowing experience as a young Iranian girl at the start of the Islamic revolution. In January 1982, the 16-year-old student activist was arrested, jailed in Tehran's infamous Evin prison, tortured and sentenced to death. Ali, one of her interrogators, intervened moments before her execution … to reduce her sentence to life in prison. The price: she would convert to Islam (she was Christian) and marry him … Nemat's engaging memoir is rich with complex characters — loved ones lost on both sides of this bloody conflict … Nemat offers her arresting, heartbreaking story of forgiveness, hope and enduring love — a voice for the untold scores silenced by Iran's revolution.” – Publishers Weekly

DS 318.825 .T34 2009

Non-fiction 413 p.

ND 980 .G72 1995

Non-fiction 189 p.

DS 272 .G27 2004

Non-fiction 311 p.

E 183.8 .I55 S36 1984

Non-fiction 407 p.

PR 6113 .E37 P66 2006

Fiction 222 p.

HQ 1170 .G66 2003

Non-fiction 351 p.

DS 318.84 .N46 A3 2007

Non-fiction 306 p.

Reading Lolita in Tehran: a Memoir in Books/ Azar Nafisi. 1sted.

New York: Random House, 2003.

”An inspired blend of memoir and literary criticism, Reading Lolita in Tehran is a moving testament to the power of art and its ability to change and improve people's lives. In 1995, after resigning from her job as a professor at a university in Tehran due to repressive policies, Azar Nafisi invited seven of her best female students to attend a weekly study of great Western literature in her home … The great works encouraged them to strike out against authoritarianism and repression in their own ways, both large and small …like Lolita [they] tried to escape and to create [their] own little pockets of freedom." – Amazon.com Rooftops of Tehran: a Novel/ Mahbod Seraji. New York: New American Library, 2009. "Rooftops of Tehran is a richly rendered first novel about courage, sacrifice, and the bonds of friendship and love … Mahbod Seraji opens the door to the fascinating world of Iran and provides a revealing glimpse into the life and customs of a country on the verge of a revolution. A captivating read." —Gail Tsukiyama, author of The Street of a Thousand Blossoms and The Samurai's Garden Rosewater and Soda Bread: a Novel/ Marsha Mehran.

New York: Random House Trade Paperbacks, 2008.

The story of Marjan, Bahar, and Layla continues in this sequel to Pomegranate Soup. The Orlando Sentinel called it, “A mouthwatering tale with flavors of Chocolat and Under the Tuscan Sun . . . sinfully sweet and satisfying.” The Saffron Kitchen / Yasmin Crowther.

New York: Viking, 2007.

Virginia Woolf said, “Each has his past shut in him like the leaves of a book known to him by heart and his friends can only read the title.” Such is the life of Maryam Mazur, an Iranian woman whose past inIran is shut in her. Savushun: a Novel about Modern Iran / Simin Daneshvar.

Washington, D.C.: Mage Publishers, 1990.

“Savushun chronicles the life of a Persian family during the Allied occupation of Iran during World War II. It is set in Shiraz, a town which evokes images of Persepolis and pre-Islamic monuments, the great poets, the shrines, Sufis, and nomadic tribes within a historical web of the interests, privilege and influence of foreign powers; corruption, incompetence and arrogance of persons in authority; the paternalistic landowner-peasant relationship; tribalism; and the fear of famine.” -Publisher’s description The Septembers of Shiraz / Dalia Sofer. New York: Ecco/Harper Collins, 2007. In this debut novel set after the Iranian revolution in 1979, a Jewish rare gem dealer is arrested and accused of being a spy. He and his family must reconcile with the collapse of everything they have known. Seven Shades of Memory: Stories of Old Iran/ Terrence O’Donnell.

Washington, D.C.: Mage Publishers, 2006.

Author Terence O'Donnell lived in Iran from 1957-71 and operated a farm from 1963-70. Seven Shades of Memoryis his first collection of short stories. The stories share the theme of cultural collision, either as East meets West, or as members of different cultures within Iran tentatively interact. – from Google Books Silk Road Cooking: a Vegetarian Journey / Najmieh Batmanglij. 2nded. Washington, D.C.: Mage Publishers, 2008, c2004. The Washington Post called Silk Road Cooking“A jewel of a book – rich in photography as well as recipes.” Filled with recipes and glorious descriptions of the food traditions and cultures of the countries along the Silk Road, it was named one of the ten best vegetarian cookbooks of the year by The New York Times.

PE 64 .N34 A3 2003

Non-fiction 347 p.

PS 3619 .E7356 R66 2009

Fiction 368 p.

PR 6113 .E37 R67 2008 PR 6103 .R69 S24 2006 PK 6561 .D263 S213 2001

Fiction 272 p.

PS 3619 .O3797 S37 2007 PS 3565 .D627 S48 2006

Fiction 340 p.

TX 837 .B3385 2009

Non-fiction 336 p.

Fiction 257 p.

Fiction 320 p.

Fiction 144 p.

Soft Weapons: Autobiography in Transit/ Gillian Whitlock.

Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2006.

“… a beautifully attentive reading of the `intimate work of self-invention' in the life writings of authors at risk in the war on terror … politically engaged literary history of the most productive kind." – John Frow, University of Melbourne Sons and Other Flammable Objects/ Porochista Khakpour.

New York: Grove Press, 2007.

An intriguing title, don’t you think? “In this first novel, an Iranian-born young man does all he can to escape his heritage, upbringing and parents, especially his homesick, tyrannical father — and fails, with results sometimes comic and sometimes poignant.” – from Kirkus Reviews Stories from Iran: a Chicago Anthology, 1921-1991 / edited by Heshmat Moayyad. 1sted. Publishers, 1992.

Washington, D.C.: Mage

“… this anthology is not only a timely introduction to an unfamiliar literature but offers as well illuminating insights into a society where the postmodern and pre-Renaissance still uneasily coexist.” – from Kirkus Reviews Strange Times, My Dear: the PEN Anthology of Contemporary Iranian Literature/ edited by Nahid Mozaffair; poetry editor, Ahmad Karimi Hakkak. 1sted. New York: Arcade Pub., 2005. "They smell your breath lest you have said 'I love you.' For many reasons, world audiences have had little opportunity to examine the work of Iranian poets, novelists, essayists and playwrights since the 1979 revolution … It seems remarkable that these writers have escaped the wrath of the authorities, given their candor. A diverse sampling of contemporary Iranian letters, and a welcome tool for anyone seeking to understand a complex culture that has long been explained away as The Enemy.” – Kirkus Reviews Symphony of the Dead/ Abbas Maroufi. Wiltshire, England: Aflame Books, 2007. A contemporary version of the Cain and Abel story set in the aftermath of World War II. The story begins as Urhan Urkhani sets out to find his brother in a snowstorm. Over the course of the search, the entire history of the family is revealed in four symphony-like movements. “Told through the rotating viewpoints of the family patriarch and each of his children, the family's misfortunes become the mirror of a paternalistic and oppressive society that pits brother against brother, encourages a father to denounce a son and burn his poems, forces a daughter to remain in an unhappy marriage, and abandons the last child to a mysterious hidden existence.” – Publisher’s description Tales of Two Cities: a Persian Memoir/ Abbas Milani. Washington, D.C.: Mage Publishers, 2006. “… Abbas Milani richly chronicles his education, politicization, return to Iran, disillusionment and eventual exile. Interwoven with the brisk narrative is a loving account of the traditional Iran of the author's childhood; a searing memoir of a lost generation of Iranians torn apart by revolution and exile, a graphic portrait of the author's time in the shah's jail and of his cellmates, and the mullahs who would soon emerge as the new leaders of the Islamic Republic …” – from Google Books Things I’ve Been Silent About: Memories /Azar Nafisi. New York: Random House, 2008. “Azar Nafisi, author of the beloved international bestseller Reading Lolita in Tehran, now gives us a stunning personal story of growing up in Iran, memories of her life lived in thrall to a powerful and complex mother, against the background of a country’s political revolution … Things I’ve Been Silent About is, finally, a deeply personal reflection on women’s choices, and on how Azar Nafisi found the inspiration for a different kind of life. This unforgettable portrait of a woman, a family, and a troubled homeland is a stunning book that readers will embrace, a new triumph from an author who is a modern master of the memoir.” – from Google Books

CT 1866 .W47 2007

Non-fiction 216 p.

PS 3611 .H32 S65 2007

Fiction 389 p.

PK 6449 .E7 S86 1992

Fiction 520 p.

PK 6449 .E1 S77 2005eb

Literary anthology 468 p.

PK 6561 .M29 S3613x 2007

Fiction 272 p.

DS 318.84 .M55 2006

Non-fiction 264 p.

PE 64 .N34 A3 2008b

Non-fiction 336 p.

Touba and the Meaning of Night/ Shahrnush Parsipur. 2006.

New York: Feminist Press at the City University of New York,

“A major literary event, the publication of Touba and the Meaning of Night introduces English-speaking readers to the masterpiece of a great contemporary Persian writer, renowned in her native Iran and much of Western Europe. This remarkable epic novel, begun during one of the author's several imprisonments, was published in Iran in 1989 to great critical acclaim and instant bestseller status -- untilShahrnush Parsipur was again arrested a year later, and all her works banned by the Islamic Republic. In the character of Touba, Parsipur explores the changing fortunes of Iranian women through 80 years of turbulent history.” – from Google Books Twin Pillars to Desert Storm: America’s Flawed Vision in the Middle East from Nixon to Bush/ Howard Teicher and Gayle Radley Teicher. 1sted. New York: William Morrow, 1993. “This book combines historical narrative and personal recollections to describe the development of U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East … Howard Teicher, who served as director for the Middle East and senior director for Political Military Affairs on President Reagan's National Security Council, has coauthored this highly readable book with his lawyer wife. They discuss how Nixon's "twin pillars" policy of reliance on Iran and Saudi Arabia ultimately failed after the downfall of the Shah of Iran. The authors also offer a critical analysis of Reagan-Bush attempts to revitalize this policy by bolstering Saddam Hussein's Iraq as a hedge against Islamic Iran. The uniqueness of this book lies in Howard Teicher's personal recollections on how foreign policy decisions were made. His insider's account is valuable for both scholars and informed readers.” – Library Journal A World Between: Poems, Short Stories, and Essays by Iranian-Americans/ edited by Persis M. Karim and Mohammed Mehdi Khorrami. 1stpbk. ed. New York: George Braziller, 1999. “… anthology of writings by Iranian immigrants and first generation Iranian-Americans. Wide-ranging and deeply personal, these pieces explore the Iranian community's continuing struggle to understand what it means to be Iranian in America.” – from Google Books

PK 6561 .P247 T8413 2008

Fiction 367 p.

DS 63.2 .U5 T45 1993

Non-fiction 418 p.

PS 508 .I69 W67 1999

Literary anthology 286 p.

SELECTED EBOOKS (ELECTRONIC BOOKS) – AVAILABLE AT BSC LIBRARY; ACCESS VIA ODIN CATALOG NETLIBRARY LINK ON DATABASES PAGE (WWW.BISMARCKSTATE.EDU/LIBRARY/DATABASES.ASP)

OR VIA

Between Warrior Brother and Veiled Sister: Islamic Fundamentalism and the Politics of Patriarchy in Iran/ Minoo Moallem. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2005. "Between Warrior Brother and Veiled Sisteris an original and venturesome piece of work. It is daring in its willingness to test just how far the definition of 'fundamentalism' might be extended in contemporary Iran. It sketches lucidly the gendered crises of identity that have emerged there in the wake of colonization/Europeanization and decolonization." -Parama Roy, Associate Professor of English at UC Riverside Creating an Islamic State: Khomeini and the Making of a New Iran/ Vanessa Martin. 1sted. London; New York: I.B. Tauris; New York: Distributed by Palgrave Macmillan, 2003. An analysis of the ideological roots of an Islamic state as conceived by Khomeini. "Creating an Islamic State ... should be read by all students of comparative and modern history in general." -- Gene R. Garthwaite, Professor of History, Dartmouth College Culture and Customs of Iran/ Elton L. Daniel and Ali Akbar Mahdi. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2006. “This survey of Iran (aimed at students and general readers) covers the contemporary life of the country within a historical context …” – from Reference & Research Book News Defying the Iranian Revolution: from a Minister to the Shah to the Leader of Resistance /Manouchehr Ganji. Westport, CT: Praeger, 2002. “The author has published extensively about the reality of life under the dictatorship of the mullahs. This work is his opus magnus on the history of the Iranian revolution, and the gross autocracy that sprang up in its aftermath, paved with lies and unfulfilled promises.” –- Middle East Journal The Dynamics of the Iranian Revolution: the Pahlavi’s Triumph and Tragedy/ Jahangir Amuzegar. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1991. “Going back to the turn of the century, this book offers a cogent analysis and an objective assessment of the origins and dimensions of the 1979 Iranian Revolution … This critical examination leaves the reader with a deeper understanding of Iran's modern history and an appreciation for the interplay of forces currently at work within the Islamic Republic …” -- from SUNY Press The History of Iran/ Elton L. Daniel. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2001. Daniels’ analysis of the forces that have shaped the contemporary history of Iran ... is the most objective yet written in English ... this book should be considered indispensable; it is concise, readable, and up-to-date.” -- Choice A History of Modern Iran/ Ervand Abrahamian. Cambridge, UK; New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008. "There are great riches to be found in this brief account of Iran's turbulent modern history. It provides a valuable and dramatic account of a century of Iranian turmoil, violence, and intrigue. The story also includes a cast of strong-willed and colorful individuals." -- Middle East Journal Immortal: a Military History of Iran and Its Armed Forces/ Steven R. Ward. Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press, 2009. “Ward, a senior intelligence analyst for the CIA, reminds us that although Iran's armed forces have not fared well in the past two centuries, they have demonstrated qualities that bear some consideration. Recent history seems to suggest an active role by a Shia-dominated military that is still struggling to assert its presence in the region. Those studying Iran and

BSC LIBRARY CALL NUMBER

NOTES

HQ 1735.2 .M62 2005eb

Non-fiction 269 p. eBook

DS 318.84 .K48 M37 2003eb

Non-fiction 248 p. eBook

DS 266 .D265 2006eb

Non-fiction 231 p. eBook

DS 318.825 .G357 2002eb

Non-fiction 263 p. eBook

DS 316.32 .A48 1991eb

Non-fiction 355 p. eBook

DS 272 .D36 2000eb

Non-fiction 299 p. eBook

DS 316.3 .A27 2008eb

Non-fiction 228 p. eBook

On order

Non-fiction 380 p.

its military will want this.” – Library Journal Iran: from Religious Dispute to Revolution/ Michael M. J. Fischer.

Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, [2003].

"This book, the best I have read in a long time, provides us with a key to understanding not only the recent revolution but Iranian society.” -- Peter Chelkowski, Asia Iran in the 21st Century: Politics, Economics, and Conflict / edited by Homa Katouzian and Hossein Shahidi. New York: Routledge, 2008.

London;

“This is a rich and important collection. The scholarship is original and of the highest quality, and the book is a must for anyone seeking to understand Iran’s place in the modern world.” -- Stephanie Cronin, University of Northampton, UK The Iran-Iraq War: the Politics of Aggression / edited by Farhang Rajaee. Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 1993. “Before the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in August 1990, international experts … assessed the nature of Iraqi aggression against Iran in an international conference in Tehran. Under the pretext of territorial claims, Iraq launched an invasion in 1980 to contain an expanding revolution in Iran, one that in turn became a conventional war with international dimensions as it extended to the oil-rich Persian Gulf. For scholars and general readers who seek to unravel some of the complexities in the Middle East, this collection analyses the causes and consequences of the Iran-Iraq war not only from the standpoint of the belligerent parties, but also from the perspective of Islamic and international law.” – Publisher’s description Iran Oil: the New Middle East Challenge to America/ Roger Howard. London; New York: I.B. Tauris; New York: Distributed by Palgrave Macmillan, 2007. “… outlines a strategy for dealing with Iran that should be closely read and considered in the corridors of power in Washington D.C." - Ian Jackson, Contemporary Review Iranian Intellectuals in the 20th Century / Ali Gheissari. 1sted. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1998. "Gheissari's work is significant in that it marks a recent trend in Iranian studies to examine the concept of self in conjunction with society and state ... This book is a distinguished piece of scholarship, well and clearly written, scientifically documented, and theoretically fair and exhaustive." -- Darius Rejali, author of Torture and Modernity: State, Self and Society in Modern Iran Iranian Perspectives on the Iran-Iraq War / edited by Farhang Rajaee. Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 1997. “… examines the difficult conclusion of the Iran-Iraq War and assesses the impact of the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait … looks at the effects that the war has had on Iran and Iraq, and the effect of UN Resolution 598 in 1988.” – Publisher’s description The Iranian Revolution/ Brendan January. Minneapolis, MN: Twenty-first Century Books, 2008. “This concise but informative history chronicles how the Iranian Revolution of 1979 transformed Iran from a monarchy to a Fundamentalist Islamic republic … Accessibly written and attractively designed, the text is complemented throughout with photographs, maps, and sidebars.” – from Booklist My Sister, Guard Your Veil; My Brother, Guard Your Eyes: Uncensored Iranian Voices / Lila Azam Zanganeh, editor. Boston, MA: Beacon Press, 2006. “This timely little book offers a thoughtful, wide-ranging and captivating introduction to a dynamic country most Americans still regrettably associate with romantic-exotic or religious-fanatical stereotypes. Centering on questions of identity and subjectivity in and outside Iran's Islamic Republic, showcases 15 prominent indigenous and ex-pat voices … reveals the human stories behind the veil of the headlines.” Features original art by Marjane Satrapi, author of The Complete Persepolis – from Publishers Weekly

BP 192.7 .I68 F57 2003eb HN 670.2 .A8 K39 2008eb

Non-fiction 314 p. eBook

DS 318.85 .I692 1993eb

Non-fiction 245 p. eBook

E 183.8 .I55 H69 2007eb

Non-fiction 182 p. eBook

DS 266 .G44 1998eb

Non-fiction 247 p. eBook

DS 318.85 .I725 1997eb

Non-fiction 368 p. eBook

DS 318.8 .J345 2008eb

Non-fiction 160 p. eBook

DS 266 .M92 2006eb

Non-fiction 132 p. eBook

Non-fiction 300 p. eBook

Parliamentary Politics in Revolutionary Iran: the Institutionalization of Factional Politics / Bahman Baktiari. Gainesville: University Press of Florida, c1996. “A study of the Iranian parliament, analyzing the rivalry between competing factions and the political battles that have set the tone for many key policy developments in Iran.” – Publisher’s description Pious Passion: the Emergence of Modern Fundamentalism in the United States and Iran/ Martin Riesebrodt. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1993. This unconventional study provides an extraordinary look at religious fundamentalism. Comparing two seemingly disparate movements -- in the early 20th century United States and 1960s and 1970s Iran -- Riesebrodtexamines why these movements arose and developed. "A remarkable and most useful book . . . an indispensable source for scholars working in a wide range of disciplines who may be concerned with religion as a factor in a globalized culture and world system." -Journal of Religion Religious Radicalism and Politics in the Middle East / edited by Emmanuel Sivan and MenachemFriedman. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 1990. A collection of essays about the waves of religious extremism that have developed in the Middle East since the 1970s. Resistance to the Shah: Landowners and the Ulama in Iran.

Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 2000.

“An examination of land policy in Iran under the two Pahlavi shahs from 1925 to 1979. It explores the social and economic consequences of their policies, and their impact on the popular uprisings of 1962-3, which many scholars regard as the beginning of the Islamic Revolution.” – Publisher’s description Saffron Sky: a Life between Iran and America / Gelareh Asayesh. Boston: Beacon Press, 1999. “This lyrical memoir revisits still-important questions about immigration, race, and cultural assimilation. Aseyesh, a journalist at the Miami Herald, emigrated from Iran to the United States as a young girl; now married and a parent, she finds herself mourning the loss of her old self and angry at Americans' anti-Iranian racism. Moving back and forth between past and present, she chronicles her life as a series of trips to and from Iran as a child who spoke no English, on the eve of the 1992 Gulf War as a green card-holding adult, and as the parent of a young biracial American citizen, and in doing so, tells the story of both her family's and Iran's tumultuous recent history. This beautifully written narrative provides a rare, humanizing glimpse into the politics, culture, and geography of a place about which most Americans know shamefully little.” -- from Library Journal

JQ 1787.7 .B35 1996eb

Non-fiction 282 p. eBook

BT 82.2 .R5413 1993eb

Non-fiction 262 p. eBook

BP 63 .A4 M537 1990eb HD 1333 .I7 .M35 2000eb

Non-fiction 244 p. eBook

E 184 .I5 A8 1999eb

Non-fiction 222 p. eBook

Non-fiction 415 p. eBook

SELECTED MEDIA – DVDS & VIDEOS The Iranian film industry has a long and rich history. Visit http://www.iranianmovies.com/to find 3000+ DVDs, music CDs, and more. Afsaid = Offside / directed by Jafar Panahi. Culver City, CA: Sony Pictures, 2007, c2006. Iran is playing Bahrain to determine who will go on to compete for soccer’s World Cup. Officially, soccer is for men only. Although females are not allowed inside the stadium, it doesn’t stop them from trying to get in. In Persian with English subtitles. Bacheha-ye Aseman = Children of Heaven / Miramax Films; written and directed by Majid Majidi. [Los Angeles, CA]: Miramax Home Entertainment; Burbank, CA: Distributed by Buena Vista Home Entertainment, [1999]. A delightful film about a boy who accidentally loses his sister's shoes and must share his own sneakers with her while keeping the loss a secret from their parents. The boy enters a foot race, hoping to place third so he can claim the third place prize -- a new pair of sneakers. In Persian with English subtitles. Bad ma ra khahad bord =The Wind Will Carry Us / directed by Abbas Kiarostami. New York: New Yorker Video, 2002. “A tale of a man from Teheran who travels … to a remote village of Kurdistan with a film crew. He tells the locals he is there to do a survey, but as the story progresses, we see that he is there for a completely different purpose: to record a specific event that may or may not occur.” – Film.com. Winner of the 'CinemAwenire' Award, the FIPRESCI Prize, and the Grand Special Jury Prize at the 1999 Venice Film Festival. Also nominated for the Golden Lion at the 1999 Venice Film Festival. In Persian with English subtitles. Baran / written and directed by Majid Majidi. Burbank, CA: Miramax, 2002, c2001. Afghan refugees provide cheap labor at a construction site in Tehran. When one of the Afghan laborers is injured, he dresses his daughter as a man and sends her in his place. Too weak to do some of the work, the "boy" is given an easier job, which displaces another worker. What happens when the secret is discovered? In Dari and Persian with English subtitles. Beed-e Majnoon = The Willow Tree / a film by Majid Majidi. New York: New Yorker Video, 2005. A blind college professor undergoes experimental surgery and is thrilled to have his sight restored. When he returns to Iran, he struggles to reconcile reality with the images created in his mind’s eye for years. In Farsi with English subtitles. Border Café = Transit Cafe (Café Transit) / written and directed by Kambozia Partovi. New York: First Run Features, 2007, c2005. An Iranian widow and mother with an independent streak flouts tradition by re-opening her late husband's Europe/Asia border café. She also rejects an obligatory marriage proposal from her brother-in-law. In Turkish and Russian with English subtitles. The Cult of the Suicide Bomber / Many Rivers Films; produced and directed by David Batty, Kevin Toolis. New York: Disinformation Co., 2006. “Former CIA agent and terrorism expert Robert Baer tracks the history of suicidebombers from their origin in the Iran-Iraq war to their growing predominance in the post-9/11 world.” – ODIN catalog description. Dayereh = The Circle / directed by Jafar Panahi. [Iran]: Jafar Panahi Productions, 2000. “Her only crime was being a woman.” This film paints a portrait of the status of women in fundamentalist Iran. In Persian with English subtitles. Winner of numerous awards, including the FIPRESCI Prize for Best Feature at the 2000 Venice Film

BSC LIBRARY CALL NUMBER

NOTES

Media PN 1997.2 .A385 2007

DVD 92 min.

Media PN 1997 .B33 1999

DVD 88 min.

BSC Library does not own

DVD 118 min.

Media PN 1997.2 .B37 2002

DVD 94 min.

On Order

DVD 96 min.

Media PN 1997.2 .T736 2007

DVD 105 min.

Media HV 6431 .C858 2006

DVD 96 min.

BSC Library does not own

DVD 91 min.

Festival. House of Sand and Fog / directed by VadimPerelman.

Universal City, CA: Dreamworks Video, 2004, c2003.

An Iranian-immigrant living in California (Ben Kingsley) works at menial jobs to support his family even though he was once a high-ranking official in his native country. A bureaucratic snafu leads him to buy a house through a tax auction, but the original owner (Jennifer Connelly) isn’t ready to give up the claim. Although neither party has broken the law, a difficult moral dilemma is the result. This film will command your attention. In the words of Richard Schickel of Time, “As reversible misunderstandings grow into irreversible tragedy, it slowly dawns on you that this is a superior, heartbreaking film.” The Iraq War and Its Consequences in the Middle East/ Dan Senor. Dallas, TX: The LeCroy Center for Educational Telecommunications, 2006. Part of the 2006 NCHC/Phi Theta Kappa Honors Satellite Seminar Series. Explores the impact of the Iraq war on the larger political and social environment of the Middle East. Specifically discusses the role of Iran and how the fortunes of the American involvement in Iraq will impact on the larger questions of political leadership in the Islamic world. Kasi Az Gorbehaye Irani Khabar Nadareh = No One Knows about Persian Cats (AKA Nobody Knows about Persian Cats) / screenplay by Bahman Ghobadi, Hossein Mortezaeiyan, and Roxana Saberi; directed by Bahman Ghobadi. [France: Mars Films, Anticipated release December 23, 2009.] The screenplay for this film was co-written by North Dakota’s Roxana Saberi. It is a docu-fiction portrait of the underground music scene in contemporary Iran and the risk of censorship and jail faced by Iranian musicians. Screened at the Cannes Film Festival in April 2009, it won a special jury prize in the festival's Un Certain Regard competition. A U.S. distribution deal has not been secured at this writing, although Mars Films in France plans to release it there on December 23, 2009. The film’s title refers to an Iranian law that bans dogs and cats from being outdoors. In Persian with English subtitles. Leila / a film by Dariush Mehrjui. New York: First Run Features, 2000, c1998. A film about a dissolving marriage in contemporary Iran. The problem? The wife’s inability to conceive and her mother-inlaw’s insistence that her son take a second wife who will be able to bear a child. In Persian with English subtitles. A Moment of Innocence / written, directed, and edited by Mohsen Makhmalbaf.

New York: New Yorker Video, 2005.

“History and truth are often a matter of perspective as can be seen in this deceptively simple and wry Iranian-French comedy that begins as an aging police officer enters the Tehran home of real-life filmmaker Mohsen Makhmalbaf. The cop has come to call in an old debt and have Makhmalbaf put him in a film as the director promised many years ago. Inspired by the visit, Makhmalbaf decides to make a film about the events that led to his promise to the cop …” – Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide. In Farsi with English subtitles. Mystic Iran: the Unseen World / narrated by Shohreh Aghdashloo; directed by Aryana Farshad. Chicago: Questar, 2008. In this documentary, Persian-born Aryana Farshadvisited remote areas of Iran and filmed religious and traditional events over a period of nine months in 2001. Some of these traditions have never before been captured on film, such as women's chambers in the great mosque, fire rituals in the temple caves of Zarathustra, and sacred dancers in the mountains of Kurdistan. Nema-ye Nazdik = Close-up / directed by Abbas Kiarostami. Chicago: Distributed by Facets, 2002, c1990. A quasi-documentary based on the real-life case of Hossein Sabzian, who impersonated noted director Mohsen Makhmalbaf in order insinuate himself into a family he met by chance. In Persian with English subtitles.

Media PN 1997.2 .H662 2004

DVD 126 min.

Media DS 79.76 .I73 2006

DVD 60 min.

BSC Library does not own; will order when/if it becomes available

Not yet available; 106 min.

Media PN 1997 .L45 1997 BSC Library does not own

DVD 129 min.

Media BL 2270 .M97 2008

DVD 85 min.

Media PN 1997 .N45 2001

DVD 90 min.

DVD 75 min.

Pedar = The Father / a film by Majid Majidi.

Port Chester, NY: Distributed by Panorama Entertainment, 2006.

Mehrollahis a 14-year-old boy forced to find a job to support his family after his father dies. He travels to the southern parts of Iran, looking for work. Upon his return to his hometown, he notices certain changes in his family. This film was honored with nine wins and two nominations at various film festivals. In Persian with English subtitles. Persepolis / 2.4.7 Films; a film by Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud. Culver City, CA: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, [2008], c2007. The film adaptation of Persepolis, the coming of age story of a girl growing up in Iran after the Shah is ousted. The film was nominated for an Oscar for Best Animated Feature Film in 2008. In French, Persian, English, and German with English subtitles. Rang-e khoda = The Color of Paradise / directed by Majid Majidi. Culver City, CA: Sony Pictures, 2000, c1999. Eight-year-old Mohammed is the blind son of a widower father. He comes to realize that his father is ashamed of him and considers him a hindrance to his own plans to marry into a prosperous family. In Persian with English subtitles. Sokout = The Silence / written, directed, and edited by Mohsen Makhmalbaf. [Iran]: MakhmalbafProductions, 1998. Korshid, a blind boy, tunes musical instruments to earn a living. When he takes the bus to and from the workshop, his mother advises him to put his fingers in his ears so attractive sounds will not attract him and make him lose his way. But the temptation is strong. In Farsi with English subtitles. Winner of Golden Prize of the Italian Parliament and the Human, Art, and Nature Award at the Venice Film Festival (1997). Talaye sorkh = Crimson Gold / written by Abbas Kiarostami; directed by Jafar Panahi. New York: Wellspring, 2004, c2003. “When Hussein finds a receipt for a necklace in a stolen purse, he's flabbergasted by the large sum of money. He knows that his miniscule salary will never be enough to afford such luxury. What's more, he's sick of the hypocrisy of a social system that makes people like him (on the lower rungs) feel like an outcast. But all that is about to change -- at least for one night.”—from Netflix. In Persian with English subtitles. Ta'm e guilass = Taste of Cherry / a film by Abbas Kiarostami. Toronto, Ontario: Criterion, 1999, c1997. Co-winner of the Palme d'Or at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival, tells “…the story of the last day in the life of Mister Badii. He is going to Teheran, where he wants to find somebody to bury him, after he has killed himself. It is an easy job, just shovel some earth on him, and besides, it is well paid.” -- fromIMDB.com. In Persian with English subtitles.

Media PN 1997 .F38 2009

DVD 96 min.

Media PN 1997.2 .P47 2008

DVD 95 min.

Media PN 1995.5 .C45 C656 2000 BSC Library does not own

DVD 90 min.

BSC Library does not own

DVD 97 min.

Media PN 1997 .T34 1999

DVD 95 min.

DVD 74 min.

SELECTED WEBSITES

URL

The Iran Chamber Society was founded as a non-partisan and non-profit organization to promote Iranian culture and history. This site is a source of online information on Iranian/Persian history, art, and culture. IAAB: Iranian Alliances Across Borders

http://iranianalliances.org/?gclid=COObgoLdkZwCFSgYagodERx8eA

IAAB is a non-partisan, non-profit volunteer organization whose mission is to address issues of the Iranian diaspora community while raising awareness of the Iranian community, promoting leadership, and connecting Iranians across borders. Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries & Mines

http://en.iccim.ir/index.php

Seeks to contribute to developing Iran’s economic system by promoting the private sector position; creating an appropriate environment of entrepreneurship and removing business obstacles; promoting Iranian world position; increasing economic thought of the society; offering consultative opinions and cooperating in economic decision-making process of Iran’s bodies; organizing the information reference and offering consultation in different sections of national and international economy; and conducting and organizing to establish Iran’s economic activists. Iran Heritage Foundation

http://www.iranheritage.org/

A non-political, UK-registered charity, with the mission to promote and preserve the history, languages, and cultures of Iran and the Persians. Iranian Studies Group at MIT

http://www.isgmit.org/

ISG promotes a unique analytical approach to long-term issues that are important to Iranians worldwide, from an independent Iranian perspective, and within a democratic spirit. ISG aims to create a dynamic network of academics, community leaders, and interested individuals working on an analytical understanding of contemporary Iranian issues, regardless of their social, political, or religious beliefs. Iranian.com – Nothing Is Sacred

http://www.iranian.com/main/node

Iranian.com is a community site for the Iranian diaspora -- the Iranian expatriates who care about their identity, culture, music, history, politics, literature, and each other, as well as friends and family living in Iran. Islamic Republic of Iran – Ministry of Economic Affairs and Finance

http://mefa.ir/english-fa.html

Official website of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Finance, which regulates economic and financial policies of Iran, coordinating organizational affairs, implementing tax policies, and adjusting and implementing economic cooperation and joint investment with foreign countries. Islamic Republic of Iran – Ministry of Foreign Affairs

http://www.mfa.gov.ir/cms/cms/Tehran/en/index.html

Art & Culture of Iran

Official website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs

http://www.iranchamber.com/index/art_culture.php

Islamic Republic of Iran - Presidency

http://www.president.ir/en/

Official website of the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Islamosphere

http://www.islamosphere.com/

Islamosphere is a network of bloggers who are Muslims or who are Islam-friendly bloggers. Islamosphere allows these Islami-bloggers to network, read others’ blogs, and showcase their own blogging efforts. Pars Times: Greater Iran and Beyond

http://www.parstimes.com/index.html

A non-profit, non-partisan, and totally independent website mainly for researchers, scholars and investors. The site aims to provide comprehensive information about Iran and the Middle East. Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations

http://www.un.int/iran/

PersianIran.com

http://www.persianiran.com/#

A site with links to information about Iranian history, tourism, news, music, photos, and other special interests. PersianWeb

http://www.persianweb.net/

Portal to and directory of the best of Persian and Iranian Internet resources. World Legal Information Institute – Iran

http://www.worldlii.org/catalog/2754.html

WLII provides free, independent and non-profit access to worldwide law. This site includes links to useful sites about Iran, its government, politics, culture, and history. World Statesmen - Iran

http://www.worldstatesmen.org/Iran.htm

World Statesmen.org is an online encyclopedia of the leaders of nations and territories. Its goal is to provide researchers with detailed lists of leaders, chronologies, flags, national anthems, and maps to give an in-depth portrait of polities past and present. This part of the site is devoted to Iran.