Jasmine and Stars: Reading More Than Lolita in Tehran (Islamic Civilization and Muslim Networks)

After finishing this book I felt that I had had an education and brief introduction into modern Persian literature which is actually quite vast; which is something the "new orientalists" who write books like "Reading Lolita in Tehran" are happy to deny the existence of in order to pander to the self serving preconceptions held by the West about the paucity of great writing and novels in an Islamic country.I was so intrigued by learning from Fatemeh Keshavarz's book about contemporary authors like Moniru Ravanipur, Shahryar Mandanipur, Simin Daneshvar and Shahnush Parsipour that I started to research modern Persian authors and at last count I have found over 46 considered great by their countrymen and many internationally.I have come to the conclusion that the only thing missing from contemporary Iranian literature is enough translations into English and other European languages to educate the Western world that Iran is in a literary renaissance rather than a Dark Age. Yes many Iranian writers have served time in jail under the Qajars, under the Pahlavis and under the IRI for writing things critical of the regimes but nothing can stop the writers and the film makers who like water encountering an obstruction flow under it, around it, over it, through it or when split up into a thousand rivulets regroup where ever they find the deepest hole.As we concluded in my interview with film maker, Parvin Ansary a few years ago, great literary and artistic periods of creativity do not come from times of prosperity and comfort but rather fluorish in times of chaos and suffering like Italian cinema after World War II when Italy was broken before it became too affluent to be driven to creativity, like the earlier Italian Renaissance which people from today's perspective forget was a time of struggle, intrigue, internecine wars and chaos...it is from a struggle for identity, a unique identity both on an individual basis and as a society and nation that great works of art are born...it is not from micmicry of the West.Iran has made contributions to world literature from the second millenium BC, all the way to the present day and continues to do so. We have Ferdowsi,Al Ghazali, Nizami, Attar, Rumi, Khayyam and many others from the past but we also have Forough Farrokhzad,Akhavan Sales,M.A. Jamalzadeh, Sadeg Hedayat, Bozorg Alavi, Beh' Azin, Sadeg Chubak, Ebrahim Golestan, Iradj Pezeshkhzad, Jalal Mir-Sadegi, Gholan Horayu Nazari, Esma'il Fasih, Gholam Hosayn Sa'edi, Nader Ebrahimi, Bahram Sadegi, Hushang Golshiri, Fereydun Tonokaboni, Goli Taruggi, Mahsid Amir-Shahi, Mahmud Dowlatabadi, Nasim Khaksar, Amin Faqiri, Hushang Ashurzadeh, Farahnaz Abassi,Taghi Modarresi, Ali-Mohammad Afghani, Abbas Marufi, Hormoz Shahdadi, Reza Baraheni,Ghazaleh Alizadeh,Fereshteh Saari,Farideh Farjam...the list goes on and on and contemporary Persian literature is huge and still growing right now as we speak... to see photos of these writers, whom I emphasize are both genders, go to:[...]The amazing thing to me is that a person like the author of Reading Lolita In Tehran, could be satisfied ignoring her own country's stellar literary inundation of talent taking advantage of the relative ignorance of the West about Persian writing, to suggest that the novel doesn't exit in the IRI, what Keshavarz refers to as a continuation of the Bakhtinian perception that the written form of a novel is of Western origin, to focus on a few Western authors like Fitzgerald, James, Austen and Nabakov,not even contemporary anymore, and by inference and omission, present her own countrymen as if they are void of writers on issues of birth, death, puberty, virginity, adolescence, women's rights, marriage, divorce, love, crime, rape,anger, sorrow, jealousy,guilt, ambition, greed, spirituality and the whole array of human experience and emotion...but rather would have us believing they only write religious doctrines...and argue over how many angels can sit on the head of a pin...or whether men can have sex with chickens as long as they don't eat them for a week after...at one of her lectures which I attended she suggested that trying to reason with the IRI was like playing chess with a monkey who at a certain point grabs your queen and swallows it. How very convenient to over simplify, dehumanize and demonize an entire nation of 70 million people 70 % of whom are under age 30. You have to question the motives of any of these "new orientalist" writers who pick the worst moment in time or a particular slice of society and freeze the shot for eternity to represent that people. Any people can be skewed in this manner. If we froze the "Reign of Terror" after the French Revolution and presented it as the epitome of France...what would people think of France? If we dwell on the prison population per capita and crime rates and statistics in the USA, we would come to the conclusion that there is no freedom, that there is anarchy and people live in constant fear of being victims of random crime. This is propaganda not literature.I am forever grateful to Fatemeh Keshavarz for lifting a veil from my eyes with her book. I am now on a rampage to read every modern Persian writer I can find in translation especially the ones still living.Brian H. AppletonakaRasool Aryadust[...]

This is one of the most beautiful book I have read.As I have not read Lolita in Tehran, I don't have any comment on the author's criticism of that book.In 164 pages, author Fatemeh Keshavarz has brought so much of her personal and collective Iranian experience and wisdom together. One can get to know a bit of Iranian culture by watching some of the Persian movies available at local libraries, I would highly recommend: Children of Heaven, A Separation, Deserted Station, Taste of Cherry etc.Jasmine and Stars brings together the wisdom of great poets and wise men like Rumi, Hafez, Firdousi, Attar, Nizami, Sadi etc. and women like Parsipur, Farrokhzad and of course personal experiences of the author.Dr. Keshavarz asks a simple question as a premise for this book, where are the candles? She answers that question by showing us the full depth and breadth of not only Iranian culture but also of human need to connect and understand each other. She emphasizes this point through out the book. I will terribly remiss in this review, if I don't quote one the most beautiful sentences in the book, "As I grew older, my poets picked up where my uncle had left off. They taught me that humanity is that rare country in which angelic beauty mingles with monstrous flaws in every one of us".The author cautions us against absolutism, "Essentialization of any belief system is fundamentally naive. It views the religion as a tailored dress that one puts on rather than a living practice that is covered by personal choices and social conditions".In the end her advice is as she quotes poet Farrokhzad, "if you come to see me, my charming friend! Bring me a lamp and window.The beautiful book gives a lamp to see "others" in better light and opens a window for others to see us.This book will bring delight to your heart. I highly recommend this book.

I thoroughly enjoyed Jasmine and Stars. A while ago I tried to read Reading Lolita in Tehran but started skimming after the first 20 pages and have yet to get past about page 50. I was not clear on my problem with this bestseller. Keshavarz explication of the New Orientalist answered that question for me. I am not interested in whitewashing oppression and fundamentalism, but I find Jasmine and Stars puts such issues in their proper perspective.I am an Anglo who is very interested in learning more about Muslim culture. My wife and I experienced a wonderful 10 day intensive trip to Turkey this past spring that focused on interaction in the homes of Turkish people in a half dozen cities. That trip, along with general experiences before and since have led me to more deeply explore the richness of the cultures where Islam predominates. Jasmine and Stars does a very credible job of presenting the cultural legacy of Iran.

Ever since 9/11 I have been reading as many books as possible about Islam. I came to read Jasmine and Stars after first reading - Reading Lolita in Tehran. "Jasmine" is well-written and certainly conveys a lot of information about Iran's literary and cultural history. It is extremely critical of Reading Lolita in Tehran because, she contends, that RLIT does not tell both sides of the Iranian story. My main goal in all this reading has been to gain some insight into how Muslims view the West, by reading Muslim authors. This book, while interesting, didn't really satisfy that urge. Still well worth the read, though.Steve

Well written! A must read for those who want to learn about Iran.