Scan barcode
allisonnoelle's review against another edition
4.0
An interesting, well-written account of Shirin Ebadi's life and the concurrent political changes taking place in Iran. She starts the book on August 19, 1953, when Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh— a leader beloved by many who recently nationalized Iran's oil— was toppled by a coup backed by the US and led by the shah. It was during this time that Ebadi attended post-secondary education and developed a political consciousness. Along with many other women, she protested the shah's corrupt regime. These protests eventually culminated in the 1979 revolution, in which the shah was overthrown and replaced by Ayatollah Khomeini. Khomeini transformed Iran from a secular democracy to an Islamic Republic.
Unfortunately, Khomeini's regime also implemented discriminatory laws against women (e.g., stating that a woman's life was worth half of a man's). Ebadi and some of her friends were demoted from judges to clerks. Opposition to the regime was violently subdued at this time.
On September 22, 1980, Saddam Hussein's Iraq invaded Iran. The Iraq-Iran war lasted from 1980-1988, and during this time resistance to the Khomeini administration was placed on the back burner by most. A revolutionary group which opposed Khomeini called MKO fought alongside Iraq against Iran in hopes of gaining power, but this decision was not popular among the public. Ebadi recounts how many people decided to leave Iran after a few years of war.
After the war, the morality police became more belligerent than ever, but Ebadi was able to return to work as a lawyer. She and other women were allowed a greater role in the workplace because Iran's economy suffered without their contributions. As a pro-bono lawyer, Ebadi advocated for a more progressive interpretation of the Koran on behalf of women, poor people, and children. In 1997, a reformist named Mohammed Khatami was elected president of Iran. There was more freedom of speech at first under this new regime, but soon repression regressed to its old ways. In the end of the book, Ebadi discusses the moment she found out she won the Nobel Prize and how hopeful she felt by the majority-female crowd celebrating upon her return to Iran.
While I enjoyed the book, I was a little bit uncomfortable with the way that Ebadi went to so much effort to distinguish herself from "criminals" and sex workers when she was spending time in jail as a political prisoner. Rather than seeing incarcerated people and sex workers as fellow oppressed members of Iranian society, she rejected any sort of solidarity with them. Further, I wish she would have talked a little bit more about other oppressed groups, such as religious minorities and queer/trans people.
One other quarrel I have with the book is Ebadi's complete dismissal of the Iranian / broader Middle Eastern diaspora's activism. I certainly agree that her decision to stay on the ground in Iran allowed her greater opportunity to do certain sorts of political activism, but I don't think she should have dismissed the potential of Middle Eastern people around the world to make a change, especially when they would meet certain death in Iran for protesting in some circumstances. Like I mentioned in the above paragraph, I think her political thinking would benefit from solidarity with people with different identities and living in different geographical locations.
Unfortunately, Khomeini's regime also implemented discriminatory laws against women (e.g., stating that a woman's life was worth half of a man's). Ebadi and some of her friends were demoted from judges to clerks. Opposition to the regime was violently subdued at this time.
On September 22, 1980, Saddam Hussein's Iraq invaded Iran. The Iraq-Iran war lasted from 1980-1988, and during this time resistance to the Khomeini administration was placed on the back burner by most. A revolutionary group which opposed Khomeini called MKO fought alongside Iraq against Iran in hopes of gaining power, but this decision was not popular among the public. Ebadi recounts how many people decided to leave Iran after a few years of war.
After the war, the morality police became more belligerent than ever, but Ebadi was able to return to work as a lawyer. She and other women were allowed a greater role in the workplace because Iran's economy suffered without their contributions. As a pro-bono lawyer, Ebadi advocated for a more progressive interpretation of the Koran on behalf of women, poor people, and children. In 1997, a reformist named Mohammed Khatami was elected president of Iran. There was more freedom of speech at first under this new regime, but soon repression regressed to its old ways. In the end of the book, Ebadi discusses the moment she found out she won the Nobel Prize and how hopeful she felt by the majority-female crowd celebrating upon her return to Iran.
While I enjoyed the book, I was a little bit uncomfortable with the way that Ebadi went to so much effort to distinguish herself from "criminals" and sex workers when she was spending time in jail as a political prisoner. Rather than seeing incarcerated people and sex workers as fellow oppressed members of Iranian society, she rejected any sort of solidarity with them. Further, I wish she would have talked a little bit more about other oppressed groups, such as religious minorities and queer/trans people.
One other quarrel I have with the book is Ebadi's complete dismissal of the Iranian / broader Middle Eastern diaspora's activism. I certainly agree that her decision to stay on the ground in Iran allowed her greater opportunity to do certain sorts of political activism, but I don't think she should have dismissed the potential of Middle Eastern people around the world to make a change, especially when they would meet certain death in Iran for protesting in some circumstances. Like I mentioned in the above paragraph, I think her political thinking would benefit from solidarity with people with different identities and living in different geographical locations.
blairewithane's review against another edition
4.0
This memoir provides powerful insights into Iranian history and one woman's struggle to stay in her country and work for reform from within despite threats, jailing, and the loss of many of her rights. A study in working within a repressive system.
coffeebooksrepeat's review against another edition
5.0
It was a bad time and place to be a woman but worse when you are a learned one.
Reading books like Iran Awakening made me appreciate the freedoms I currently hold —
freedom to choose my clothes,
freedom to choose my peers,
freedom to talk about things I want in public places,
freedom to be educated,
freedom to learn,
freedom to read,
and like what I am doing this very moment,
freedom to write, freedom to write whatever I want.
Highly recommended read!
Best 70-peso purchase!
5 full scoops of Bastani Ice Cream and a cup of tea for Shirin Ebadi!
Reading books like Iran Awakening made me appreciate the freedoms I currently hold —
freedom to choose my clothes,
freedom to choose my peers,
freedom to talk about things I want in public places,
freedom to be educated,
freedom to learn,
freedom to read,
and like what I am doing this very moment,
freedom to write, freedom to write whatever I want.
Highly recommended read!
Best 70-peso purchase!
5 full scoops of Bastani Ice Cream and a cup of tea for Shirin Ebadi!
saharkm's review
4.0
I really enjoyed this book! I love my country and the folks who are trying to make it a better place for our future children.
This is Iran ❤️
This is Iran ❤️
emlickliter's review against another edition
2.0
Iran Awakening: A Memoir of Revolution and Hope by Shirin Ebadi --This is one I read in college, and I just remember how badly I wanted it to be over. I'm pretty sure we pulled a prank on the professor because of how our class collectively disliked this book. PSA: Don't prank your professor unless you are 100% sure that he won't get you expelled.
But if you are really interested in seeing the changes Iran went through in the last half century from a woman's perspective, this may be for you. As long as you are ok with really long, repetitive ranting. Happy Reading!
But if you are really interested in seeing the changes Iran went through in the last half century from a woman's perspective, this may be for you. As long as you are ok with really long, repetitive ranting. Happy Reading!
jenvetter's review against another edition
5.0
Shirin Ebadi is an amazing thought leader and activist who isn't afraid to point to flaws in current social and political structures. A force to be reckoned with, she explains current issues in the Middle East with stories from her own experiences. My copy is signed by Shirin (a Nobel Peace Prize laureate) from the PeaceJam conference where she was a keynote speaker.
thaitessa's review against another edition
5.0
Such an important read. I’ll admit, much of my knowledge of Iran and it’s recent history is a patchwork quilt of stories from the news, which were neither complete nor unbiased. I learned about the US’s complicity and instigation of events in Iran—and I wonder whether most Americans know about this.
I applaud Shirin Ebadi and her courage and pursuit of justice and equality and her fight for the rights of Iranians. She is a most worthy recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. She is encouraging and inspiring.
I hope that, as Ebadi said at the end of her book, that using political progress to change positions will lead to positive and fruitful interactions. I pray that the rights and freedoms of Iranians will increase.
I applaud Shirin Ebadi and her courage and pursuit of justice and equality and her fight for the rights of Iranians. She is a most worthy recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. She is encouraging and inspiring.
I hope that, as Ebadi said at the end of her book, that using political progress to change positions will lead to positive and fruitful interactions. I pray that the rights and freedoms of Iranians will increase.
teghan's review against another edition
4.0
I read this book right after I finished 'Infidel'. Due to my overwhelming response to that book, no follow up could even compare. 'Iran Awakening' is the memoir of a woman who fights injustices in Iran. I found the book more to be an annotated modern history of Iran, while fascinating, I wanted to know more about her personally. Her feelings and thoughts as the atrocities were committed around her. What I did take from the book in addition to the well explained history, was an example of what can happen when a radical right-wing religious party gets control of a nation. Iran used to be a nation where religious tolerance flourished and there was a general equality for all. (Women were not forced into submission and the author herself attended a university without a thought about it). The pre-revolution Iran she describes seems very similar to any Western nation. Which is why it struck me so. When the revolution occured, people, especially women, saw their rights evaporate infront of their eyes. Laws which had been codified and practiced now simply did not exist. Who is to say that this cannot happen in Canada? The rights we have so long taken for granted must be cherished and fought for. Or we could lose them.
Sidenote: I read this right before I read 'Prisoner of Tehran' and it helped to understand the latter all the better. Historically and politically.
Sidenote: I read this right before I read 'Prisoner of Tehran' and it helped to understand the latter all the better. Historically and politically.