Scan barcode
vikkiwarner's review against another edition
3.0
A really lucid and beautifully written account by a young middle-class Iranian woman who was held in a Tehran prison for protesting the government. But it's not just about the terror of being at the mercy of soulless, careless people. The author deeply explores her cultural, familial and personal beliefs and boundaries, and discusses the vulnerability of her own spirituality and activism. This book is amazingly delicately written considering its subject matter.
leslielu67's review against another edition
2.0
Author spends a month in Evin prison in Iran, being tortured and interrogated. She admits to extreme vanity when her head is brutally shaved and she’s no longer beautiful. I didn’t find her particularly sympathetic, which is odd given the circumstance. Maybe she’s not a great writer, or maybe she’s too honest.
allbookedup_'s review against another edition
5.0
I think I was expecting the worst for Zarah when I picked up this book. When I began reading it and found out why she went to prison I was slightly surprised but not completely, I understood where she lives why it happened to her.
Hearing about the various things that happened to her well she was in prison well flashing back to what her life was like before all of this happened, made my stomach clench. It’s as if she was living in two different worlds and not the same country.
I think how the book ended and what happened to Zarah upset me the most. The fact that they could let her go as if nothing happened? I just don’t understand how a person can live a normal life after having been to a prison and tortured.
Hearing about the various things that happened to her well she was in prison well flashing back to what her life was like before all of this happened, made my stomach clench. It’s as if she was living in two different worlds and not the same country.
I think how the book ended and what happened to Zarah upset me the most. The fact that they could let her go as if nothing happened? I just don’t understand how a person can live a normal life after having been to a prison and tortured.
dja777's review against another edition
4.0
Chilling account of the author's imprisonment in an Iranian prison. I do wish she had included an account of how, when and why she left Iran for Australia.
rachel917's review against another edition
5.0
After hearing of Mahsa Amini, I remembered that I read a book over ten years ago about a girl in a similar situation…. I honestly don’t even remember much of this book, but I do remember that the purpose of the book was to educate, and I thought she succeeded on that front. Yet here I see so many comments disregarding the entire purpose of the book. This author spoke up and was told her torture wasn’t cruel enough for a memoir…. And there was no ending to her novel…. Other folks in the same situation for lesser offenses than her own DID NOT MAKE IT OUT ALIVE. The most recent instance just happened, and a coverup was attempted. Who knows how many individuals who were in the same situation as the author have been mistreated, imprisoned, and murdered. Yet the comments here state that torture is worse than what the author experienced. No… it’s literally not. Trauma is trauma. As for an ending, the “ending” comes when people who post 30 second TikTok’s asking for help aren’t hunted down and murdered. They are literally begging for help, and Ghahramani gave us a 15 year heads up on everything they have been facing. I sincerely hope that folks don’t look at the imprisonments and shootings as irrelevant since those individuals weren’t raped (yes, that was posted in one of the top comments).
kidwithmanhead's review against another edition
4.0
Gripping and scary. A deep respect and admiration is held for Zarah Ghahramani.
crystalbreezy's review against another edition
3.0
I did not like how she switched every chapter between past and present throughout the whole book. I felt like a lot of stuff she talked about in the past was not as relevant as her imprisonment. Her imprisonment was also relatively short only 4 weeks so nothing too crazy. Pretty tame as far as Evin prison goes.
busdjur's review against another edition
4.0
Read a swedish edition. It was a hard story to read - made me cry at times.
justinmartyr's review
2.0
The book started off pretty good and then it was a struggle of a train wreck to get through. It takes awhile to find out why the author is being tortured and being interrogated. Which i suppose this builds the story. But the author choose to used repeated reputation all the time. She makes torture seems like it is fun or not all it is cracked up to be. The author also struggles with the plot and tying the beginning middle and the end and leaves many details floating in the Iranian sky. Read at your own demise!