Parnaz Foroutan

The Girl from the Garden Parnaz Foroutan

Publisher Marketing: An extraordinary new writer makes her literary debut with this suspenseful novel of desire, obsession, power, and vulnerability, in which a crisis of inheritance leads to the downfall of a wealthy family of Persian Jews in early-twentieth-century Iran. For all his wealth and success, Asher Malacouti the head of a prosperous Jewish family living in the Iranian town of Kermanshah cannot have the one thing he desires above all: a male son. His young wife Rakhel, trapped in an oppressive marriage at a time when a woman s worth is measured by her fertility, is made desperate by her failure to conceive and grows jealous and vindictive. Her despair is compounded by her sister-in-law Khorsheed s pregnancy and her husband s growing desire for Kokab, his cousin s wife. Frustrated by his wife s inability to bear him an heir, Asher makes a fateful choice that will shatter the household and drive Rakhel to dark extremes to save herself and preserve her status within the family. Witnessed through the memories of the family s only surviving daughter, Mahboubeh, now an elderly woman living in Los Angeles, "The Girl from the Garden" unfolds the complex, tragic history of her family in a long-lost Iran of generations past. Haunting, suspenseful, and inspired by events in the author s own family, it is an evocative and poignant exploration of sacrifice, betrayal, and the indelible legacy of the families that forge us." Review Citations: Booklist 06/01/2015 pg. 39 (EAN 9780062388407, Other) - *Starred Review Library Journal Prepub Alert 03/01/2015 pg. 70 (EAN 9780062388384, Hardcover) Booklist 06/01/2015 pg. 39 (EAN 9780062388384, Hardcover) - *Starred Review Kirkus Reviews 06/15/2015 (EAN 9780062388384, Hardcover) - *Starred Review Library Journal 07/01/2015 pg. 76 (EAN 9780062388384, Hardcover) Publishers Weekly 07/13/2015 (EAN 9780062388384, Hardcover) - *Starred Review People Weekly 09/07/2015 pg. 44 (EAN 9780062388384, Hardcover) Shelf Awareness 08/28/2015 (EAN 9780062388384, Hardcover) Contributor Bio:  Foroutan, Parnaz Parnaz Foroutan was born in Iran and spent her early childhood there. She received PEN USA's Emerging Voices fellowship for this novel, which was inspired by her own family history. She has been named to the Hedgebrook fellowship and residency, and received funding from the Elizabeth George Foundation, among other institutions. She currently lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two daughters.