What I love about this book is its ability to engender controversy.... just look at the reviews. I wonder if Ms. Latifi realized it would have such an impact when she wrote it? Every reader finds a different story between the covers....some see a touching tribute to parents, some see an inspirational tale of an immigrant family that overcomes substantial odds, some see it as the whining of a disenfranchised "Persian princess", some see it as a political novel (go figure!), etc. I see another aspect, a touching exploration of the toll of early loss in life. Ms. Latifi lost her father to execution at the hands of Khomeini's henchmen, and, effectively, her mother due to her absence for a critical period of her early life while Ms. Latifi and her sister were studying in Austria and the U.S. No wonder she says she was reluctant to risk loving and commiting herself to someone outside the family! Enjoy this book for all the different tales it tells. I applaud Ms. Latifi for her straightfoward storytelling (so what if it is not written to the standard of a great American classic.) She really tells it like it is, especially with respect to Persian and American traits, warts and all! (I also loved the Persian sayings sprinkled throughout.) Brava!

While I find the author's life interesting and give her and her family much credit, I found the book poorly written. Did anyone edit this book for the author, whose first language is not English? I found grammatical mistakes. Afschineh's story reads like a timeline - "we did this, then we did that..." The word "total" was used too often. For instance, on p. 220 "totally out of control" to describe the scene at the airport when greeting the mom. Or, "totally gorgeous" to describe a man. A 5th grader could have written a better description than that. On p. 244, "he really went all out" to describe Nassar's surprise Disney trip. This is a lame description. On p. 283 alone the setting moves from Tehran, to Indiana, to New York City! Also on p. 283, "nicest, most generous people" to describe Calder's parents. This is another weak statement. How were they nice? How did they show generosity?
The author tries to cover too many events with this book. My sense is that the she wanted to write a book (quickly) to add to her list of accomplishments, without giving the quality and content serious consideration. Apparently the editors weren't concerned with the quality either for they did a poor editing job.

The author has many of the defects of your average American kid: Self-absorbed, superficial, etc.
The book is, however, a graphic coming-of-age story of an immigrant child and has its charm. Not great, but worth reading if that's what you're after.

The author has many of the defects of your average American kid: Self-absorbed, superficial, etc.
The book is, however, a graphic coming-of-age story of an immigrant child and has its charm. Not great, but worth reading if that's what you're after.

I started reading this book and couldn't put it down. This is the incredibly story of the Latifi family who persevered through the revolution in Iran and their immigration to the United States.

I have spent quite some time in the Middle East and having this account of life and hardship in Iran helped me to understand the mentality and culture of women in Iran better.

I immigrated to the United States myself and even though I didn't come here under political asylum I know how hard it is to try to fit into the American culture and still hold on to your heritage. The bonds of family and the will to succeed show once more that you can achieve in this country whatever you want. You just have to have the will to do so, something that we are too quick to forget. This is a must read!

I started reading this book and couldn't put it down. This is the incredibly story of the Latifi family who persevered through the revolution in Iran and their immigration to the United States.
I have spent quite some time in the Middle East and having this account of life and hardship in Iran helped me to understand the mentality and culture of women in Iran better.
I immigrated to the United States myself and even though I didn't come here under political asylum I know how hard it is to try to fit into the American culture and still hold on to your heritage. The bonds of family and the will to succeed show once more that you can achieve in this country whatever you want. You just have to have the will to do so, something that we are too quick to forget. This is a must read!

I started reading this book and couldn't put it down. This is the incredibly story of the Latifi family who persevered through the revolution in Iran and their immigration to the United States.
I have spent quite some time in the Middle East and having this account of life and hardship in Iran helped me to understand the mentality and culture of women in Iran better.
I immigrated to the United States myself and even though I didn't come here under political asylum I know how hard it is to try to fit into the American culture and still hold on to your heritage. The bonds of family and the will to succeed show once more that you can achieve in this country whatever you want. You just have to have the will to do so, something that we are too quick to forget. This is a must read!