Marjan Kamali – författare

A BBC RADIO 2 BOOK CLUB PICK'As heart-wrenching as it is achingly beautiful' Sadeqa Johnson, author of The House of Eve'Heartbreaking and life affirming' Adrienne Brodeur, author of Little Monsters'Courage, friendship, loyalty, hardship, love – this novel has everything' Mary Beth Keane, Ask Again, YesFrom the author of The Stationery Shop of Tehran, a heartfelt, epic new novel of friendship, betrayal and redemption set against three transformative decades in Tehran, Iran.In 1950s Tehran, seven-year-old Ellie lives in grand comfort until the untimely death of her father, forcing Ellie and her mother to move to a tiny home downtown. Lonely and bearing the brunt of her mother’s endless grievances, Ellie dreams of a friend to alleviate her isolation.Luckily, on the first day of school, she meets Homa, a kind, passionate girl with a brave and irrepressible spirit. Together, the two girls play games, learn to cook in the stone kitchen of Homa’s warm home, wander through the colorful stalls of the Grand Bazaar, and share their ambitions for becoming 'lion women.'But their happiness is disrupted when Ellie and her mother are afforded the opportunity to return to their previous bourgeois life. Now a popular student at the best girls’ high school in Iran, Ellie’s memories of Homa begin to fade. Years later, however, her sudden reappearance in Ellie’s privileged world alters the course of both of their lives.Together, the two young women come of age and pursue their own goals for meaningful futures. But as the political turmoil in Iran builds to a breaking point, one earth-shattering betrayal will have enormous consequences.Praise for Marjan Kamali‘Evocative, devastating, and hauntingly beautiful’ Whitney Scharer, author of The Age of Light‘A beautifully immersive tale’ Jasmin Darznik, author of The Good Daughter and Song of a Captive Bird‘At once masterfully plotted, beautifully written, and populated by characters who are arresting, lovable and so real’ Elinor Lipman, author of Turpentine Lane‘A sweeping romantic tale of thwarted love’ Kirkus Reviews‘Enchanting’  My Weekly

*** If you read The Little Coffee Shop of Kabul and enjoyed The Beekeeper of Aleppo, you will love The Stationery Shop of Tehran ***1953, Tehran. In a small shop in a country on the brink of unrest, two people meet for the very first time.Roya loves nothing better than to while away the hours in the stationery shop run by Mr Fakhri. The store, stocked with fountain pens, shiny ink bottles, and thick wads of writing paper, also carries translations of literature from all over the world. Bahman, with his burning passion for justice, is like no one else she has ever met.But all around them, as their relationship blossoms, life in Tehran is changing.Suddenly, shockingly, violence erupts: a coup d'etat that forever changes their country's future, as well as their own.Marjan Kamali's beautiful novel explores themes of love and loss, and delivers an unforgettable ending. ‘An enchanting romance’ MY WEEKLY‘Simultaneously briskly paced and deeply moving, this will appeal to fans of Khaled Hosseini and should find a wide audience’BOOKLIST  ‘Evocative, devastating, and hauntingly beautiful… This book broke my heart again and again’Whitney Scharer, author of THE AGE OF LIGHT‘What a pleasure — a novel that is all at once masterfully plotted, beautifully written, and populated by characters who are arresting, lovable and so real’Elinor Lipman, author of TURPENTINE LANE  ‘A beautiful and sensitive novel that I loved from the first page’Alyson Richman, international bestselling author of THE LOST WIFE  ‘A beautifully immersive tale … brings to life a lost and complex world and the captivating characters who once called it home’Jasmin Darznik, New York Times bestselling author of THE GOOD DAUGHTER and SONG OF A CAPTIVE BIRD‘A sweeping romantic tale of thwarted love’KIRKUS REVIEWS‘The unfurling stories… will stun readers… For those who enjoy getting caught up in romance while discovering unfamiliar history of another country’LIBRARY JOURNAL‘Grab your tissues'BOSTON MAGAZINE‘A tender story of enduring love.’MINNEAPOLIS STAR TRIBUNE‘I! Am! Obsessed! With! This! Book!’COSMOPOLITAN.COM

A BBC RADIO 2 BOOK CLUB PICK 'As heart-wrenching as it is achingly beautiful' Sadeqa Johnson, author of The House of Eve'Heartbreaking and life affirming' Adrienne Brodeur, author of Little Monsters'Courage, friendship, loyalty, hardship, love – this novel has everything' Mary Beth Keane, Ask Again, YesFrom the author of The Stationery Shop of Tehran, a heartfelt, epic new novel of friendship, betrayal and redemption set against three transformative decades in Tehran, Iran. In 1950s Tehran, seven-year-old Ellie lives in grand comfort until the untimely death of her father, forcing Ellie and her mother to move to a tiny home downtown. Lonely and bearing the brunt of her mother’s endless grievances, Ellie dreams of a friend to alleviate her isolation. Luckily, on the first day of school, she meets Homa, a kind, passionate girl with a brave and irrepressible spirit. Together, the two girls play games, learn to cook in the stone kitchen of Homa’s warm home, wander through the colorful stalls of the Grand Bazaar, and share their ambitions for becoming 'lion women.' But their happiness is disrupted when Ellie and her mother are afforded the opportunity to return to their previous bourgeois life. Now a popular student at the best girls’ high school in Iran, Ellie’s memories of Homa begin to fade. Years later, however, her sudden reappearance in Ellie’s privileged world alters the course of both of their lives. Together, the two young women come of age and pursue their own goals for meaningful futures. But as the political turmoil in Iran builds to a breaking point, one earth-shattering betrayal will have enormous consequences.Praise for Marjan Kamali ‘Evocative, devastating, and hauntingly beautiful’ Whitney Scharer, author of The Age of Light ‘A beautifully immersive tale’ Jasmin Darznik, author of The Good Daughter and Song of a Captive Bird ‘At once masterfully plotted, beautifully written, and populated by characters who are arresting, lovable and so real’ Elinor Lipman, author of Turpentine Lane ‘A sweeping romantic tale of thwarted love’ Kirkus Reviews ‘Enchanting’  My Weekly

NATIONAL BESTSELLER An “evocative read and a powerful portrait of friendship, feminism, and political activism” (People) set against three transformative decades in Tehran, Iran—from nationally bestselling author Marjan Kamali. In 1950s Tehran, seven-year-old Ellie lives in grand comfort until the untimely death of her father, forcing Ellie and her mother to move to a tiny home downtown. Lonely and bearing the brunt of her mother’s endless grievances, Ellie dreams for a friend to alleviate her isolation. Luckily, on the first day of school, she meets Homa, a kind girl with a brave and irrepressible spirit. Together, the two girls play games, learn to cook in the stone kitchen of Homa’s warm home, wander through the colorful stalls of the Grand Bazaar, and share their ambitions of becoming “lion women.” But their happiness is disrupted when Ellie and her mother are afforded the opportunity to return to their previous bourgeois life. Now a popular student at the best girls’ high school in Iran, Ellie’s memories of Homa begin to fade. Years later, however, her sudden reappearance in Ellie’s privileged world alters the course of both of their lives. Together, the two young women come of age and pursue their own goals for meaningful futures. But as the political turmoil in Iran builds to a breaking point, one earth-shattering betrayal will have enormous consequences. “Reminiscent of The Kite Runner and My Brilliant Friend, The Lion Women of Tehran is a mesmerizing tale” (BookPage) of love and courage, and a sweeping exploration of how profoundly we are shaped by those we meet when we are young.

From the award-nominated author of Together Tea and The Lion Women of Tehran, a poignant, "powerful" (The Wall Street Journal) and "affecting novel about first love" (Real Simple) that explores loss, reconciliation, and the quirks of fate. Roya, a dreamy, idealistic teenager living amid the political upheaval of 1953 Tehran, finds a literary oasis in kindly Mr. Fakhri’s neighborhood stationery shop, stocked with books and pens and bottles of jewel-colored ink. Then Mr. Fakhri, with a keen instinct for a budding romance, introduces Roya to his other favorite customer—handsome Bahman, who has a burning passion for justice and a love for Rumi’s poetry—and she loses her heart at once. Their romance blossoms, and the little stationery shop remains their favorite place in all of Tehran. A few short months later, on the eve of their marriage, Roya agrees to meet Bahman at the town square when violence erupts—a result of the coup d’etat that forever changes their country’s future. In the chaos, Bahman never shows. For weeks, Roya tries desperately to contact him, but her efforts are fruitless. With a sorrowful heart, she moves on—to college in California, to another man, to a life in New England—until, more than sixty years later, an accident of fate leads her back to Bahman and offers her a chance to ask him the questions that have haunted her for more than half a century: Why did you leave? Where did you go? How is it that you were able to forget me?