This is a great book on Iran if you have been keeping pace with what has been happening there, politically since the Islamic revolution, otherwise certain sections might became a bit of a drag. The author has the singular advantage of being a British man married to an Iranian lady and living in Tehran, giving him pretty unprecedented coverage of the insides of a very proud but wounded country. Proud because of their culture and wounded because despite their tall claims they were routinely overlooked when the new world powers were busy collecting prize lands for themselves, places like India, Sri Lanka, Africa etc.
I was a bit disappointed in that the author chose to present an Iran by interviewing people of substance and not choosing to present the life's and impacts of the ordinary people. Because of this route, every time he presented a new character, a quick historical context had to be established which proved pretty tedious to me as I had little background of the ground politics of Iran.
I was a bit disappointed in that the author chose to present an Iran by interviewing people of substance and not choosing to present the life's and impacts of the ordinary people. Because of this route, every time he presented a new character, a quick historical context had to be established which proved pretty tedious to me as I had little background of the ground politics of Iran.
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