Married to a Stranger

by Nahid Rachlin

Book Overview

A woman's struggle for self-realization in contemporary Iran, a novel with the clarity and spare sensuousness of Persian poetry or miniature painting.--Ruth Prawer Jhabvala

When Minou Hakini marries a man of her own choosing--an intellectual and a radical--and moves to Abadan, a thriving oil town near the Iraqi border, she imagines her life will be adventurous and liberating. Before long, however, she becomes aware of her husband's suspicious...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0872862763
• ISBN13: 9780872862760
• Release Date: January 1993
• Publisher: City Lights Books
• Length: 220 Pages
• Weight: 0.66 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.5" x 7.9"

Customer Reviews

Easy read

Ms. Rachlin insightfully describes universal human feelings of love and longing in a voice not usually heard from--a woman from Iran. I highly recommend this book for people interested in an original portrayal of familiar but important themes.

A Must read for Iranian-American people

I read Foreigner and Married to a Stranger a few years ago. I borrowed them from the public library (for people who can't find these books to buy, they are available at the public library) and I am planning to re-read them again. I wish there were more books such as Nahid's available in the market. The Iranian Americans are newer immigrants and we do need to read and write and self discover ourselves in the new land in order to be able to understand our complexities and adjust to our new situations. This market without a doubt will be much richer in the future.

well-told story in simplistic style

So far this is my favorite of Nahid Rachlin's books. The story is told in simple sentences, corresponding with the youth and naivete of the main character, Minou, who marries an older man of her own choosing after graduating from high school. She has no idea what she has gotten herself into, and while her parents claim an arranged marriage would have been better, this is questionable since the book takes place in the late 1970s, before, during, and after the overthrow of the Shah and the fundamentalist revolution. The book opens with a young girl's happiness about her upcoming wedding and the tension gradually builds up to the end. Rachlin's books give Americans an inside picture of Iranian culture and society, particularly concerning the position of women. I hope she will continue writing.