My Life as a Traitor
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| My Life as a Traitor | |
| Author | Aarah Ghahramani, Robert Hillman |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Biography/Memoir |
| Publisher | Farrar, Straus and Giroux |
| Publication date | December 2007 |
| Pages | 256 |
| ISBN | ISBN 192121550X |
My Life as a Traitor is a 2007 biography and memoir, written by Zarah Ghahramani and Robert Hillman.[1] The book documents the life of Ghahramani, including her early childhood. In 2001, Ghahramani was arrested for citing crimes against the Islamic Republic of Iran and sent to serve a centence in Evin Prison;[1] this is one of the main focuses throughout the book, as well as the prison conditions and analysing the modern-world Middle East.[2] The book was first published on December 26, 2006 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux.[3][2] The book won the award for Australian Small Publisher of the Year for 2006.[4]
[edit] Plot
The biography focuses on analysing the life of the author, Zarah Ghahramani and her imprisonment in the infamous Evin Prison. After taking part in student demonstrations at Tehran University,[5] Ghahramani was taken, by police, from the streets of Tehran and put into this prison, where she was tortured and beaten.[3] When in Prison, she was subject to not only beatings, but psychological torture, only retaining her sanity via scratching messages to fellow prisoners.[1] She is kept in the prison for almost one month, and is released after being driven to a distant desert outside of Tehran, where, at the time, she was unsure of her fate and whether or not she would be executed or released.[1]
[edit] Reception
Lisa Schwarzbaum of Entertainment Weekly commented that "she [Ghahramani] recounts her beatings with dignified anger in this vivid, sometimes horrifying memoir, My Life as a Traitor mixing scenes from prison with sensual memories of her life before what her father called the regime of the primitives."[6] Firoozeh Dumas comments that the book is "a compelling story...a must read for anyone interested in understanding the complex nation that is Iran."[7] The Sunday Telegraph that the book is "Beautifully written, it's horrifying, enlightening and, ultimately, uplifting."[7]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d My Life as a Traitor. Barnes & Noble. Retrieved on 2008-01-17.
- ^ a b My Life as a Traitor. By Zarah Ghahramani, Robert Hillman. Google Book Search. Retrieved on 2008-01-17.
- ^ a b My Life as a Traitor. Powell's Books. Retrieved on 2008-01-17.
- ^ Australian Small Publisher of the Year 2006. Scribe Publications (HTML). Retrieved on 2008-01-17.
- ^ Book Review: My Life as a Traitor. International Herald Tribune. Retrieved on 2008-01-20.
- ^ My Life as a Traitor. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on 2008-01-17.
- ^ a b Editorial Reviews. Amazon.com. Retrieved on 2008-01-17.
