My bird /

When it first appeared (in Persian, 2002), this novel won the Yalda Iranian Literary Prize for best novel of the year. Set in a northern Iranian city, the novel bears out the observation that some artists produce their best work in difficult times. A first-person narrative by a youngish woman living with her husband, two children, and various relatives, it is presented in short chapters of concise, allusive prose. Much as a flash of light leaves an impression on the retina that one continues to see after the light fades, so this work--a mixture of exposition, dialogue, and letters--is held together and moved forward by its demands on the reader's attention and the echoes that the words leave on the mind. Finding her real voice in her letters, the narrator matures in self-confidence and gains the courage to grasp control of her own life, which might easily have slipped from her. Farzaneh Milani provides a perceptive afterword. The excellent translation sets a new standard for translations from Persian, which have heretofore often obscured the texture and grain of the original prose. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readers. W. L. Hanaway emeritus, University of Pennsylvania

A big success when it was originally published in Iran, this slender book will likely disappoint Western readers interested in new perspectives on the lives of contemporary Iranian women. It's narrated by a nameless Iranian wife and mother whose husband, Amir, is obsessed with emigrating to Canada. The narrator, however, is unwilling to do more than stare into their dusty yard. Her refusal to move forward leads him to leave Tehran with the excuse that he can make more money elsewhere. While he's gone, she deals with her two young children, overlooks her husband's infidelity, combs through her sad and confusing childhood memories and determines that her way of coping is to stay in place and accept her situation. Unfortunately, the writing is so thoroughly introspective that the book could have been set in any grimy working-class neighborhood with loud neighbors, marital discord and selfish, demanding relatives. While the translation is lovely, the narrative is unnervingly myopic and mostly notable for its inertia. (Nov.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved