Inside Iran: Women's Lives [Hardcover]

Jane Mary Howard (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 093421171X | ISBN-13: 978-0934211710 | Publication Date: July 2002

TV crews and foreign correspondents come and go, but former BBC correspondent Jane Howard made her home in Iran for five years, raising her two young children there. Her experience took her beyond the headlines and horror stories and into the lives of everyday Iranian women. Her brilliantly observed report, takes readers from dinner in a presidential palace to tea in a nomad's tent. From women working in rice paddies and tea plantations to highly educated women in Tehran who have been banned from working in their professions. The image of Iranian women is still one of anonymous ranks of revolutionary marchers, clad in black. But underneath their black chadors or drab raincoats, they not only wear jeans, T-shirts and Lycra leggings, but they also work outside the home, drive, play sports and even become politicians. While many women haven't regained the Western-style freedom they lost in the revolution of 1979, others have won rights they never had before. Practically, every girl has access to primary education now, and even remote villages have clean drinking water, a paved road and a school. Yet, Islamic law continues to impose many inequities and constraints. In cash terms, for example, a woman's life is worth half that of a man's, and in the courtroom, two women have to give evidence to equal one man's testimony. This is a fascinating story of struggle and change, vividly documenting what it means to be a woman in Iran.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Former BBC correspondent Howard, who covered the fall of communism in Bulgaria and the war in Croatia and Bosnia, here recounts her experiences living in Iran from 1996 to 2000 as the wife of a UN diplomat. Relying heavily on anecdotes about individual women, Howard places in context the history and politics of gender in Iran, making this volume accessible to a popular audience. She attempts to evoke the atmosphere of dinner parties and of rice paddies while noting the differences between the official accounts of women's situation and their real circumstances. She also often focuses on paradoxes; for example, new educational opportunities for girls include university attendance while at the same time they can be married at their father's insistence at age nine. The legal code is harsh, but some women have found ways to circumvent it. Howard's tone is generally optimistic, as she points to the creation of the Centre for Women's Participation in the wake of the Beijing Conference on women, but, sensibly, her optimism is guarded. Recommended for public libraries. Cynthia Harrison, George Washington Univ., Washington, DC
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

Places in context the history and politics of gender in Iran, making this volume accessible to a popular audience. -- Library Journal, July 2002

Shows us vividly what life is like in Iran today . . . and will probably surprise many Western readers. . . . Moving and colorful. -- New York Times Book Review, September 29, 2002

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Mage Pub (July 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 093421171X
• ISBN-13: 978-0934211710
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,701,223 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars, January 3, 2003

By 

Kelley Hunt (Texas, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Inside Iran: Women's Lives (Paperback)

In her book, Howard discusses her life as the wife of a diplomat living in Iran for several years. She traveled all over Iran and met women from all walks of life; big city sophisticates, traditonal villagers, nomads and others. Howard discusses the ups and downs of women's lives in a totalitarian Islamic state where there is no freedom of speech or press; where saying or printing the wrong thing can result in imprisonment, fines and/or whippings. There are so many restrictions on Iranian women and Howard does a great job of describing how they get the proverbial short end of the stick in almost every aspect of life (one exception is that female homosexuality carries a lesser punishment than male homosexuality). She describes their brave struggles for personal freedoms and the same privileges that men currently enjoy.
"Inside Iran: Women's Lives" is best described by the author in one of the last paragraphs of her book:

"The general frustrations with everyday life here, the petty restrictions of the dress code and the restrictions on freedom of speech are tempered with the warmth and hospitality of Iranians. For me, it was a fascinating experience and a lot of fun. But for some women, not just foreigners, Iran sometimes feels like a life sentence from which they cannot escape."

Lots of charming black and white photos included.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars From tea in a nomad's tent to presidential places, November 7, 2002

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Inside Iran: Women's Lives (Paperback)

Foreign correspondent Jane Howard made her home in Iran for five years and raised her two children there: these experiences brought a more personal set of insights into the lives of everyday Iranian women, explored here. From tea in a nomad's tent to presidential places, Inside Iran: Women's Lives provides a different image of Iranian women than most books would offer, going beyond the veil to explore how they work outside the home, drive, and even become politicians. A fascinating report.

4.0 out of 5 stars interesting personal experiences in the late nineties, December 22, 2011

By 

Carno Polo "adventure traveler" (Rome, Italy) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Inside Iran: Women's Lives (Paperback)

This book is a diary of a British journalist who had the curiosity and connections to go deep into Iranian society and understand the condition of women. Issues such as pre-marital sex, divorce, family planning, education, sports, politics and many others are discussed here by a woman and with many women. She has done good research and brings up hard numbers to back her arguments. The main focus of the book is on the positive change brought about by the Khatami presidency.

The one drawback is perhaps a bit too much name dropping, a common problem in books written by journalists who meet famous people, but it's a venial sin, the book is well worth reading though it is becoming obsolete as the situation in Iran has changed after the departure of president Khatami from power.