For a selection on Iran, I chose to read Mahbod Seraji's Rooftops of Tehran. I quickly found that I was unable to put down this captivating and romantic tale of an adolescent boy growing up in Iran during the shah's regime in the 1970's. Although the language of the book has been quoted as being simplistic, I found it to be beautifully romantic and appropriate for the seventeen year-old protagonist/ narrator.
While becoming one of my favorite contemporary novels of all time, this book taught me a great deal about Iranian life and culture. I could picture the houses and the rooftops upon which Pasha and his friends would sit and dream. The relationships that develop throughout the novel are relevant to any adolescent in modern-day America, making this an excellent novel to teach at the secondary level.
Although the characters in the novel share a great many similarities to the modern American student, the differences are what play a key role in making this novel teachable. Pasha, Zari, and their friends not only have to deal with hormones, new love, and strict parents, but they are under a regime that dictates what kind of books can be read and what opinions can be expressed in a school essay. The punishment for breaking these rules is not to get the car keys revoked but imprisonment and possible death. For me, this book did an excellent job balancing the similarities of the characters that make them sympathetic to the modern young reader as well as highlighting the differences that teach about Persian life, specifically in the 1970's.
One of the stark contrasts I found very interesting was the dichotomy between America as a place hated and held in contempt versus a land of amazing educational opportunities. It is clear in the novel that America is responsible for the shah's oppressive regime. It is also made clear that America is only valued as a place of educational freedom, but it makes me wonder as to why an American education, based on American values, can be preferred in a place where there is so many anti-American feelings due to distrust. This is a topic I hope to do some research on, in case there has been a shift in the past 40 years.
On a side note, check out Mahbod Seraji's website for great suggestions on additional reading and interesting links.
