Honeymoon in Purdah: An Iranian Journey

Honeymoon in Purdah: An Iranian Journey
by Alison Wearing

Honeymoon in Purdah: An Iranian Journey
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Book Summary Information

Author: Alison Wearing
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2001-12-07
ISBN: 0312263449
Number of pages: 336
Publisher: Picador

Book Reviews of Honeymoon in Purdah: An Iranian Journey

Book Review: If u are iranian u have to read it
Summary: 5 Stars

This book is really simple, funny and educational for whom like to know about Iranian culture and their way of life. I suggest all Canadian/Iranian (( the writer is Canadian, who travels to Iran )) to read this book and bet you gonna have moments of tear and laughter w surprising ending.
Also, if you are planning to have an exotic trip to Iran, read this book, bet you gonna buy your flight ticket the day after;>

Summary of Honeymoon in Purdah: An Iranian Journey

With a love of travel, Alison Wearing invites us to journey with her to Iran--a country that few Westerners have a chance to see. Traveling with a male friend, in the guise of a couple on their honeymoon, Wearing set out on her own at every available opportunity. She went looking for what lay beneath the media's representation of Iran and found a country made up of welcoming, curious, warmhearted, ambitious men and women. With humor and compassion, Wearing gives Iranians the chance to wander beyond headlines and stereotypes, and in doing so, reveals the poetry of their lives--those whose lives extend beyond Western news stories of kidnapping, terrorism, veiled women, and Islamic fundamentalism.

Twenty years after the Iranian revolution, most westerners still imagine Iran to be a warren of anti-American rhetoric, terrorism, and fanatical repression, especially of women. Not surprisingly, only an unusual woman would choose to travel there, and Alison Wearing is certainly that. "I refused to believe that such a place of unalloyed evil truly existed," she writes. "I like to look for saints where there are said to be demons." Since it is the only country the world traveler could not imagine going to alone, she takes her fussy, gay roommate Ian, along with a fake wedding certificate and a story that they're on their honeymoon. Then she dons a black cloak, scarf, and chador (the full body covering required by Shiite Islam) for a five-month journey from the Caspian Sea (breaking into the Shah's ramshackle summer palace) to the holy city of Qom (and Khomeini's shrine) to a hidden Zoroastrian prayer site (where she faints from heat stroke). From the moment she steps into the country, she's surrounded by Iranians touched by her eagerness to learn about their country. There is the housewife who challenges her to a game of Ping-Pong in her long robe and scarf, offering food to her guests in between killer serves, and the Anglican minister who is "wholly enthralled by the art of living." There is the couple who spirit her away to a mountain oasis when she complains of the heat (leaving a message for Ian, "Mister Canada, we take your wife. We make her cold"), and the mother who tries to marry off her doctor son, joking that Wearing can't leave "not without my doctor" (a reference to the American film Not Without My Daughter).

Wearing has a gift for connecting with others and the humility to let them tell their own stories. She also sees the hilarity in the most absurd situations. As it turns out, so do the Iranians, which makes for some wonderful laughs. Wearing is also a poet, and she unveils the Iranians with innocence and grace--their hospitality, their quick acceptance and easy intimacy, and the real life of women beneath the veil. And while there are strict defenders of the revolution, most are philosophical: "Friends, please forgive us, but our country is not perfect.... it will make us very happy if you enjoy. Keep your hearts in our people, my friends. We are strangers, but we try to be kind." This is a gem of a debut. --Lesley Reed

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