Full Description
During the 1979 revolution, Iranians from all walks of life, whether Muslim, Jewish, Christian, socialist, or atheist, fought side-by-side to end one tyrannical regime, only to find themselves in the clutches of another. When Khomeini came to power, freedom of the press was eliminated, religious tolerance disappeared, women's rights narrowed to fit within a conservative interpretation of the Quran, and non-Islamic music and literature were banned. Poets, writers, and artists were driven deep underground and, in many cases, out of the country altogether. This moving anthology is a testament to both the centuries-old tradition of Persian poetry and the enduring will of the Iranian people to resist injustice. The poems selected for this collection represent the young, the old, and the ancient. They are written by poets who call or have called Iran home, many of whom have become part of a diverse and thriving diaspora.
Contents
Contents
Acknowledgments
A Note to the Reader
Introduction
The State of Red
And Behold - Simin Behbahani
In This Dead-End Road - Ahmad Shamlou
Death Sermon - Nader Naderpour
The State of Red - Mandana Zandian
Parts of a Pedestrian in a Tunnel - Rasoul Younan
Of Sea Wayfarers - Esmail Khoi
Blood and Ash - Nader Naderpour
Camouflage Costumes - Granaz Moussavi
Untitled - Shams Langeroodi
A Mob! Tumult! - Peyman Vahabzadeh
My House Is Cloudy - Nima Yushij
Blood's Voice - Mohsen Emadi
If Rising from Your Grave - Naanaam
Death from the Window - Naanaam
Life - Naanaam
The Sticky Dream of a Banished Butterfly (Excerpt) - Maryam Hooleh
Our Tears Are Sweet - Simin Behbahani
I See the Sea . . . - Shams Langeroodi
You Said, It's Only Grapes - Simin Behbahani
Translating Silence
Me - Granaz Moussavi
The Poem - Mohsen Emadi
From "23" - Shams Langeroodi
The Shah and Hosseinzadeh - Reza Baraheni
Hosseinzadeh, the Head Executioner - Reza Baraheni
Ass Poem - Reza Baraheni
Depression - Yadollah Royai
Petition - Nader Naderpour
A List of Names - Partow Nooriala
Nargess - Partow Nooriala
Always the Same . . . - Ahmad Shamlou
I Did Not Expect - Ahmad Reza Ahmadi
Of Your Uncles - Ahmad Shamlou
99 Names of Exile
99 Names of Exile - Kaveh Bassiri
Ghazal 2 - Nader Naderpour
Spring Story - Nader Naderpour
Marco Polo - Ali Alizadeh
Red-Raft Woman - Esther Kamkar
Map of Ashen Roads - Sholeh Wolpé
Memorial Day - Kaveh Bassiri
Family of Scatterable Mines - Solmaz Sharif
Airport - Granaz Moussavi
Bleeding Green
From Green to Green - Sohrab Sepehri
The Green of Iran - Sholeh Wolpé
Song of a Forbidden Woman - Granaz Moussavi
At the Hamlet of Golestaneh - Sohrab Sepehri
Summer Is a Green Story - Esther Kamkar
A New Idea - Rumi
Feminist - Maryam Ala Amjadi
When a Color Stops Being a Color, Becomes Something Else Completely - Shideh Etaat
Rebellious God
Rebellious God - Forugh Farrokhzad
Lovers! - Tahirih
Return to the Wellspring - Jila Mossaed
Criticizing the Veil - Iraj Mirza
Collage Sixteen - Ziba Karbassi
Martyrs of Iran - Roger Sedarat
I Didn't Ask for My Parents - Sholeh Wolpé
God's Poem - Nader Naderpour
Fire; take a step . . . - Sepideh Jodeyri
Hezbollah - Sheema Kalbasi
A Homily on Leaving - Nader Naderpour
Religion - Amy Motlagh
Of Leaving - Sholeh Wolpé
Stepping through Time
The Art of Stepping through Time - H. E. Sayeh
In Praise of Big Noses - Persis Karim
Untitled - Peyman Vahabzadeh
Those Who Stood Up for Tolerance - Hafez
Rhyme by Rhyme - Tahirih
Stay Light on Your Feet - Rumi
Collage Eleven - Ziba Karbassi
Collage Fourteen - Ziba Karbassi
The Plumber's Poem - Zara Houshmand
My Hands Tremble Yet Again—A Soliloquy - Sheida Mohammadi
Hot Tea, a Warm Muffin - Shideh Etaat
Mulberries and Chador - Farzaneh Milani
Return from My Body's Black-and-Blue - Sheida Mohammadi
Caravan - H. E. Sayeh
Connection - Forugh Farrokhzad
I Won't Quit Loving - Hafez
Morning Star - Ziba Karbassi
Twittering - Pegah Ahmadi
Someone like No One - Forugh Farrokhzad
Water - Sohrab Sepehri
About the Poets and Translators
