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    Children of the Jacaranda Tree
    Children of the Jacaranda Tree
    Children of the Jacaranda Tree
    Audiobook8 hours

    Children of the Jacaranda Tree

    Written by Sahar Delijani

    Narrated by Mozhan Marno

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    A country divided by revolution

    A people united by love

    Neda is born in Tehran’s Evin Prison, where her mother is allowed to nurse her for a few months before the arms of a guard appear at the cell door one day and, simply, take her away. In another part of the city, three-year-old Omid witnesses the arrests of his political activist parents from his perch at their kitchen table, yogurt dripping from his fingertips. More than twenty years after the violent, bloody purge that took place inside Tehran’s prisons, Sheida learns that her father was one of those executed, that the silent void firmly planted between her and her mother all these years was not just the sad loss that comes with death, but the anguish and the horror of murder.

    These are the Children of the Jacaranda Tree. Set in post-revolutionary Iran from 1983 to 2011, this stunning debut novel follows a group of mothers, fathers, children, and lovers, some related by blood, others brought together by the tide of history that washes over their lives. Finally, years later, it is the next generation that is left with the burden of the past and their country’s tenuous future as a new wave of protest and political strife begins.

    Children of the Jacaranda Tree is an evocative portrait of three generations of men and women inspired by love and poetry, burning with idealism, chasing dreams of justice and freedom. Written in Sahar Delijani’s spellbinding prose, capturing the intimate side of revolution in a country where the weight of history is all around, it is a moving tribute to anyone who has ever answered its call.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBrilliance Audio
    Release dateJun 18, 2013
    ISBN9781469219080
    Children of the Jacaranda Tree
    Author

    Sahar Delijani

    Sahar Delijani was born in Tehran’s Evin Prison in 1983 and grew up in California, where she graduated from the University of California, Berkeley. She makes her home with her husband in Turin, Italy. Children of the Jacaranda Tree is her first novel; it has been translated into twenty-seven languages and published in more than seventy-five countries. Find out more at SaharDelijani.com/en.

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    Reviews for Children of the Jacaranda Tree

    4/5

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    • 4/5
      This book starts with a gripping first chapter. A pregnant woman in labour is blindfolded and transported to a prison hospital to have her child. She must not deliver until she gets there. It is a shocking start for the book which progresses with more vignettes that often left me flabbergasted. After a short while in the women’s care, these babies, born in custody, are stripped from the mother and sent to relatives and friends to be raised. The novel focuses on what happens to these children as they grow to adulthood amid the political unrest and turmoil of Iran. The story spans for several decades. The writing is beautiful and very compelling. Because the novel focuses on the children, their caregivers, and their parents, I found there to be quite a lot of characters. Further, the stories often jumped from the past to the current time. At first, this confused me, but I persevered and soon found that the book wasn’t written like a typical plot driven story, but rather like an anthology of connected short stories or vignettes. After that, I worried less about remembering who was who and I was able to enjoy the individual stories of hardship, imprisonment, or suffering. Beyond reading for entertainment, this novel sends a powerful message, educating readers with the dreadful terror the characters experience that mirror the truth about Iran and its people. Rich descriptions, unforgettable characters, unbelievable injustice, and victory grace the pages of this fascinating novel. All in all, a most fascinating novel!
    • 4/5
      The story was extremely compelling and thought-provoking, revealing the struggles and horrors faced by the people of Iran during the post-revolutionary era. But there were so many characters that it got confusing and I would have benefited greatly if the book had contained a family tree to refer to, so I could remember who was who, and how everyone was related. I also felt that some of the stories seemed to remain unfinished. We'd see a glimpse of a character for a very short period of their lives, and we'd get excited to learn more about how things turned out, but we were just left hanging since the story never really came back to that character. For example, we got to know Leila a bit at the beginning when she was taking care of the kids. But then we read nothing more about her until she's an older woman, and even then she's only mentioned briefly in passing... What happened in her life? I would have liked to know more. Same with Dante - he appears late in the story even though he was brought up in Leila's home...and we learn almost nothing about him. What was the point of his character exactly? He didn't contribute much of anything to the story, so I felt like he should have been taken out entirely, or developed a little more so that his presence had more of a purpose. So while the characters were endearing and interesting, I never got enough about anyone to feel satisfied. I felt like I had gone to a steakhouse for a good meal, and all I got was an appetizer and dessert. I needed more meat in the middle. Another 100 pages to further develop some of the stories would have been greatly appreciated. The organization of the book was also a bit strange, where, at times, from one paragraph to the next, a lot of time had passed, but this was not made clear to the reader who thought it was a continuation of the previous scene. An extra carriage return would have been helpful to indicate a break in the story. But perhaps this was due to the fact that I had an advance copy, rather than a final manuscript. This is nonetheless a beautifully written book, with very poetic language and innovative analogies. Many times throughout the book I marveled at the creative choices the author made to describe things, and I actually read some of the passages more than once to fully experience the imagery it evoked. But despite the author's rich use of language, I was struck a few times by a few words that were used on a context that didn't make sense, such as the 'tugging of a receipt under an ashtray' (rather than putting or pushing it under), and the girl 'shriveling from the cold' (instead of shivering). These are tiny details obviously, but they struck me as very odd given how impressed I was with the writing in general. So despite some misgivings, I still enjoyed this book for what it was and would certainly read another book by this author.
    • 4/5
      CHILDREN OF THE JACARANDA TREE is the story of the Iranis who fought against the repressive government of the Shah only to see their dream of freedom dashed by the Revolutionary Guards of the new regime. It continues with the revolt of their children and the scattering of the families.The novel opens in 1983 when Azar, a prisoner in Evin Prison in Tehran, is about to give birth to her daughter, Neda. The way the prison officials treat her is beyond belief. Eventually, though, she gives birth and is able to keep her in her cell, shared by thirty women. All of them find joy in the new baby.Her husband is also in prison, in a different area, for his part in the political activities. He gets to meet his daughter before Neda is taken away from them. Later, he is tried.In a distortion of reality, everyone in Iran is called Sister or Brother, implying a closeness that is actually non-existent.Another family, headed by Maman Zinat, is also portrayed in the book. Members of that family are also serving prison terms and she takes care of some of their children. Later on we meet the children when they are adults.The parents try to protect the children from physical danger and emotional danger. The results are not always what they expected. Eventually, some of the Iranis are able to leave Iran, though it never really leaves them. When Iran does hold a democratic election decades later, it turns out that not only are the results suspect, those in power are able to identify the people supporting the opposition via videos of them at political rallies. The horrors continue.Sajar Delijani paints a vivid picture of life in Iran during the decades following the deposition of the Shah as it affects these Iranis who only hope for a better life.I received an Advance Reader’s Edition of this book from goodreads.
    • 5/5
      okay, so this was an amazing read for me...up until the last chapter. while the final pages were beautiful, they were a bit more disjointed in their flow. so rather than seamlessly coming together, the branches of this incredible story, it was a bit of a bumpy close. as though, perhaps, a bit of grafting had occurred. heh. see what i did there? yeah i know. sorry. :/ but...this book is very much worth your time. delijani's writing is gorgeous. its evocative and almost ethereal. everything feels very real and believable, yet it's almost dream-like, reading this book. this novel comes from experiences within delijani's own family. i just can't even imagine. we are so insulated in north america - even those who are well-read, knowledgeable about the middle east and interested in politics, human rights and world issues. those are all wonderful subjects to be interested in and follow, but we are still far removed from realities lived by so many every day. we have no idea.