Sunday, April 4, 2010

The Septembers of Shiraz

The Septembers of Shiraz   By Dalia Sofer     The Amin family waited too long. The story takes place in Iran, early 1980's. After the air was filled with angst and most families able to, arranged to leave, the Amin family chose to stay, chose to hope, that the new regime would work itself out. That the new government would be okay. Violence became imminent. Laws changed overnight and Isaac Amin, his wife Farnaz and daughter Shirin are caught between two worlds. As a wealthy jewish jeweler, Isaac is frowned upon by the government. His westernized lifestyle is condemned and he is arrested on suspicion of being a spy for Israel. The two themes of focus in this story are family and things. When your life is at risk, your family's well being, can you walk away from everything you have, everything you worked for all your life, all the "things" you think make you who you are. But what good are any of these things if you are dead? The values have to be recalculated when everything is taken but you have your loved ones. Lessons to be learned from this captivating and thoughtful story. Excellent writing, a must read.

1 comment:

  1. Great book, could not put it down. I recommend it highly.

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