The soul of Iran
Review
Afshin Molavi provides a brilliant tableau of today’s Iran. — Foreign Affairs
Culturally fluent messengers like Molavi are invaluable, now more than ever. — Chris King, Washington Post Book World
No book compares with Molavi’s to give a feel for contemporary Iran. — Middle East Quarterly
No book compares with [this one] to give a feel for contemporary Iran….Simultaneously engaging and profoundly depressing. — Patrick Clawson, Middle East Quarterly
Provides us with a fascinating glimpse of Iran beyond the headlines. — Sunday Times [London]
Product Description
The truths about Iran; quite different truths from versions put forward by Washington, Tehran, and the media. Iran thundered onto the world stage in 1979 with an Islamic revolution that shook the world. Today that revolution has gone astray, a popular democracy movement boldly challenges authority, and young Iranians are more interested in moving to America than in chanting “Death to America.” Afshin Molavi, born in Iran and fluent in Persian, traveled widely across his homeland, exploring the legacy of the Iranian revolution and probing the soul of Iran, a land with nearly three millennia of often-glorious history. Like a master Persian carpet maker, Molavi weaves together threads of rich historical insight, political analysis, cultural observation, and the daily realities of life in the Islamic republic to produce a colorful, intricate, and mesmerizing narrative. Originally published in hardcover under the title Persian Pilgrimages, this paperback edition is revised, with a new introduction and epilogue.