Things We Left Unsaid

Within the most lovely of book covers is the first Iranian novel I've read! Recommended by a dear and new Iranian friend.

The story takes place in Iran in 1963, pre Iran-Iraq war, pre-Islamic Revolution, in the oil city Abadan. It is narrated by a comfortable housewife, Clarice, 38, who has a husband, a teenage son, and tween twin daughters. They are a Christian Iranian-Armenian family, which also includes two more members who drop by daily, Clarice's opinionated mother and her overweight unmarried sister.

Oddly, the setting was not all that different from the lifestyle and dynamics of an American family in the 60s. I was also somewhat surprised by the number of references to American-made products, a reminder how global the world has show more become and has been for a while. I was grateful to an included Glossary listing unfamiliar (to me) places, people, events, traditions, and foods.

The plot centers on the arrival of new neighbors, also Iranian-Armenian, and the upheavals that peculiar family cause in the emotional life of Clarice, and to a lesser degree, to her children.

It took me a little while to warm up to the nature of the story--the dull domesticity of housework, the family squabbles that come and go, and the peacemaker personality of Clarice. I wouldn't say this is my normal go-to type novel but as time went on, I relaxed into it, into the rhythm of Clarice's days, her observations of beauty around her, and her inner dialogues that drive the story: those many, many things "left unsaid."

I enjoyed most learning about the setting, the desert town built to house oil refinery workers, the traditions and some history of Armenians, even the dramatic experience of a plague of locust descending, and the surprising Western-like suburban neighborhoods complete with green manicured lawns. I enjoyed most the traditional food preparations! It's one of my favorite things, to learn about regional middle-eastern foods and ingredients. Call it my own domesticity preference. And if the opportunity arises, I will definitely seek an Iranian/Persian restaurant so that I may taste some of the delicious-sounding, long traditional foods.

I gave it three stars for the enjoyable immersive quality in this tale of the lives of ordinary people. And I gave it another star for the personal enjoyment I had by reading a novel recommended by my friend who felt the novel described some of his own experiences and particularly recommended it to me, a far away friend that is very real and dear to me.

This is a novel, I suspect, is a loving remembrance for author Pirzad who grew up in Abadan. It was a time of safety, comfort and familial love, the quiet before the coming storms in Iran. show less

Un chouette roman qui nous plonge dans le quotidien d'une famille bourgeoise arménienne en Iran : Clarisse, la mère, son mari, ses deux filles jumelles Armineh et Arsineh, et son fils Armen. On les suit dans les petites choses de la vie, les activités des enfants, les rassemblements avec la communauté arménienne... Clarisse a une soeur, beaucoup plus exentrique qu'elle et auprès de qui elle passe pour une femme trop raisonnable, et a encore sa mère, qui s'inquiète en permanence pour sa fille célibataire.
Une jour s'installent dans la maison d'à côté un jeune et séduisant homme, Emile, avec sa vieille mère Elmira et sa jeune fillette Emilie ;la famille Simonian. S'engage alors de truculentes mais somme toute banales show more relations qui vont petit à petit faire changer beaucoup de choses dans la vie de Clarisse. Son propre mari va se lier d'amitié avec ce nouveau voisin Emile, les jumelles vont trouver en Emilie une nouvelle amie, pas toujours très simple, et même Armen va tomber amoureux de cette Emilie à la forte personnalité.
On assiste au fissurage progressif de cette famille de Clarisse qui semblait si unie, mais l'auteur ne tombe pas dans la facilité de tout faire exploser. Rien n'est tout noir ou tout blanc, chacun peut se retrouver dans ces craquements et ces retenues.
Une belle lecture d'une histoire de famille, de couple, d'enfants. Assez universel avec néanmoins ses touches plaisantes de la culture arménienne. show less

Roman attachant à l'écriture alerte, qui sait restituer avec justesse la vie quotidienne d'une mère de famille iranienne qu'un changement de voisinage va bousculer et aider utilement à prendre conscience d'elle-même. Avec une grande bouffée de vie et d'humour.

Est-ce la traduction ? ce livre ne m'a pas vraiment emballée, j'en attendais beaucoup, espérant découvrir une auteure inconnue de moi et de beaucoup d'autres...