Bookworm in the City

No. 4 – A book with a city in the title

The Stationary Shop of Tehran / Marjan Kamali

The title of this book makes no false claims: the most important location of this book, is a stationary shop in Tehran, Iran.

The main character of this story is Roya, a senior citizen living in the US. She’s invited to meet an old friend living in a nearby assisted-living facility, and the invitation has her flashing back to their first meeting. This takes place in 1953, Tehran, when she is a seventeen-year old high school student, focused on graduating with high marks so she can pursue a university study. Her father wants the best for his two daughters, starting each morning with a declaration on the importance of education, and how he wishes them to become famous scientists or authors, like Madame Curie and Helen Keller.

On Tuesdays after class, Roya hangs out at the stationary shop across from her school, because not only do they sell pencils and notebooks, but books and poetry bundles as well. This is where Roya meets Bahman, a boy with charisma-a-plenty, who is passionate about politics. Roya learns that the stationary shop is used as a message portal for those involved in politics: people drop off letters, and leave with messages hidden inside books.

In 1953 politics is as hot, and dangerous, a topic as it is now: the country is on the verge of a change and the two sides of the argument are coming to clashes as they grapple for power.

Roya’s parents have modern views which makes it easy for them to connect with Bahman, who quickly becomes her boyfriend, and not much later, fiancé. Bahman’s parents are less progressive and had lined up an arranged marriage for their son, so they do not like Roya, who interrupted their chance to get ahead in society, and blame her for getting Bahman involved in politics. Bahman, however, was already deeply involved in politics before he even met her, and is the one to take Roya to a political rally. She is horrified when she witnesses him getting attacked by police there, and tries to persuade him to stop his involvement.

The attack only makes it clearer to Bahman that he cannot stop though, and so he even increases his involvement.

This story is one of heartbreak: there is a failed elopement, death, a failed suicide, and emotional blackmail. It’s about missed chances, and lost love.

Happy-go-lucky Roya is not, and it all felt very heavy. Of course, I understand that revolution, generations of secrets, and devastating loss, are very heavy topics. The only characters in the story that have a positive and can-do energy, are Roya’s father and sister. And Roya does not understand them, and assumes they don’t understand her either. Her experiences made Roya who she is, but I have a feeling, she’s one of those people who even in the best of circumstances, would just drag down on your energy, and hold onto the negatives.

That’s not how I roll, so I found her a difficult character to connect with.

The story itself was okay (the cooking scenes were amazing and had me drooling), with an interesting setting in Iran first, and following the lives of immigrants settling in the US later. I was even willing to accept the ending, even though the coincidence of it, was on the verge of too much.