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Title: Daughter of Persia: A Woman's Journey From Her Father's Harem Through the Islamic Revolution
ISBN: 0385468660
Author:
Sattareh Farman Farmaian
Dona Munker
Publicate Date: 1993-04-01
Publish: 1993-04-01
List Price: $14.95
Average Customer Rating: 4.5
Format: Paperback
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Amazon Lowest New Price: $5.94
Amazon Lowest Used Price: $0.01
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| Customer Review: |
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1: The Tender Revelation of a Remarkable Life
Monument to a charming woman's tenacity and common sense, this exceptionally enjoyable book also reveals a way of life, the customs and the transformations taking place in one of the world's most interesting and least known countries. Iran's fascinating modern history, from the Qajar period up to the Islamic revolution of 1979, is revealed here, in a most readable presentation.
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2: In love with Persia
Milo Wolff, Manhatan Beach, CA. Sattareh Farmaian, member of Persia's upper-upper class was buffeted around the world by the religious turbulence of the Middle East, and the international greed for oil to feed growing indusrialization. Admiration of her capable father caused her to spear-head establishment a graduate college of social services to serve the village needs of Persia (Iran). As the reader follows her adventures and hair-raising escapes you will feel that you are there with her ('Satty"); in the hold of a ship to Bombay, disembarking in the strange port of Los angeles, and enrolling as a student at USC. You will understand her disappointment that the Statue of Liberty is not in the port of LA but 3000 miles away in NYC. And her amazement watching college co-eds use their bodies as bait for males. Even if you have not read the poetry of Omar Khyam, you will end up in a love affair with the culture of Persia. You will not put this book down.
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3: Riveting, balanced, and a great way to learn about Iran and Iranians.
This memoir by Sattareh Farman Farmaian, a truly amazing woman, is not only a hard-to-put-down account of prerevolutionary Iran but is unusual in offering Westerners a personal way to learn about Iranians, their modern history, and why the Islamic Revolution took place -- including where the West went wrong.
On a personal level, this dramatic book is about how the author broke away from her traditional harem upbringing and became a pioneering social worker, but it's also a surprisingly even-handed account of the rocky course of the Pahlevi dynasty, from its beginning in 1921 to its end in 1979. As you might expect frorm a member of the royals who preceded the Pahlevis, the author is proud of her family -- especially her father, a prince of the former dynasty who cared deeply about the welfare of the individual poor -- and she doesn't have much use for the last Shah's father, who got his start as her dad's gunnery sergeant and later executed her oldest half-brother. Farman approves of the last Shah's efforts to modernize Iran, but she's critical of him because he cared far more about getting and keeping absolute power than he did about the plight of the poor, illiterate Iranians she hersellf fought to help for twenty years. In fact, Farman's real point is that the Pahlevis' indifference to the welfare and feelings of ordinary citizens was the ultimate cause of the Islamic Revolution. Given the current state of affairs in Iraq, Afganistan, Saudi Arabia, and other Muslim countries around the world, that just might be a message we should be listening to today.
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4: disappointed
This is a story of a remarkable person who lived a remarkable life and had great accomplishments. I salute her.
However, I found the book a little disappointing in the fact that the author spent so much time trying to make out the Qajar dynasty/extended family were all good and cultured (and by inference they could do nothing wrong), while the Pahlavi family were nothing but the opposite (and could do nothing right). The truth is often somewhere in the middle of these two extremes.
The author's personal biases and bitterness often ignored facts and detracted from the book.
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5: Highly Recommend
I truly enjoyed "Daughter of Persia"! This book is a biography that reads like a novel! It is beautifully written, fascinating, and informative. I definitely recommend it for everyone. In fact, it really SHOULD be read by Americans to better understand Iran and the Persian culture.
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