From one of Iran’s most accomplished and controversial contemporary writers, his first novel to appear in English—a dazzlingly inventive work of fiction: two powerful narratives, seamlessly
entwined, that open a revelatory window into what it’s like to live, to love, and to be an artist in today’s Iran.
The author’s fictional alter ego, who bears his name, has spent years struggling to publish in Iran, reluctantly bending his work to the will of the all-powerful censor at the Ministry of
Culture and Islamic Guidance. But now Shahriar faces his greatest challenge yet: to write a bewitching love story, set in the present, in Iran.
He writes about beautiful Sara and fiercely proud Dara, who, forbidden by the state from being alone together, pass encoded messages in the pages of their favorite books, and meet in secret
amid the bustling streets, Internet cafés, and private gardens of Tehran. But writing of their encounters, their desires, puts Shahriar in as much danger as his Iranian Romeo and Juliet. Can
Sara and Dara’s love survive? Will the Ministry issue Shahriar a publishing permit? The answers are as shocking as they are unexpected.
Laced with humor and irony, at once provocative and deeply moving, Censoring an Iranian Love Story is a triumph of art and spirit.
