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Few nations experienced as much political turmoil as Iran did in the twentieth century. Colonialist interests and corrupt government robbed the country of its main natural resource and profit generator, oil, sparking years of unrest and bloody conflict. For a brief history lesson: after the Second World War, Iran was ruled by a disunited constitutional monarchy, at the helm of which was a Shah and a series of prime ministers. A number of leftist uprisings occurred in the following years, causing a great number of civilian casualties, and 1978-79, the Islamic Revolution installed the Ayatollah Khomeini as the head of an Islamic Republic in Iran.
Ali Araghi’s debut novel, The Immortals of Tehran, takes place in this period between World War II and the Islamic Revolution, tracing the history of the conflict and the role that it played in the lives of a family whose destiny is intertwined with the political upheaval in Iran. At the center of this novel is Ahmad Torkash-Vand, an Iranian child who becomes a mute after witnessing his father’s suicide at the age of ten. Ahmad was raised on his family orchard outside the bounds of the city of Tehran, where he is first told of the tragic curse carried by his family—a curse that follows them into Tehran when life on the orchard becomes unstable.
When Ahmad, his mother, and his grandfather relocate to a home in Tehran, the turmoil that evicted them from their home continues, as the family struggles to build a life amongst the constant political agitation. Ahmad turns to poetry as a means of expression, and through his verses he explores romance and liberation. His verses become so powerful as to emit light and melt iron with their heat, rendering them important tools for the revolution. As Ahmad grows into his role as a husband and father, his poems lead him into a political career filled with danger around every turn. All the while, the lives of Ahmad and his family members are transformed as political and personal upheavals tear them asunder. This multigenerational epic explores how the prophesied curse plays out in each character’s life, while simultaneously granting them the free will to make their own errors in judgement.
Araghi’s debut novel feels in many ways reminiscent of Salman Rushdie’s 1981 classic, Midnight’s Children. (Read my review here). Both novels trace the intersections of familial destiny and political upheaval, blurring the lines between the personal and the political. Both novels also employ magical realism and the fantastical idea of preordained destiny as an added dimension in the narrative. Like Rushdie, Araghi explores the function of family in a time of political unrest, and brings a bevy of narrative arcs together in this sweeping multigenerational epic. While Immortals of Tehran is a bit messier and less satisfying than Rushdie’s towering classic, Araghi has penned a strong debut that weaves together themes of family, language, and violence in a unique and powerful narrative.