Interruptions [Hardcover]

Massud Alemi (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 15, 2008

INTERRUPTIONS examines the various paths we choose when our day-to-day life is interrupted. Farzin, a gay man living in Tehran, finds himself accused of a crime he did not commit. He, however, realizes that if he tells the truth to the authorities, he will be more severely punished for his sexual orientation, than for the crime which he is thought of having committed.

Interruptions is also an intimate look at the interrupted psyche of a country whose dreams of freedom and justice have repeatedly been thwarted. Alemi s examination of Iranian society and its complex rituals is fresh and full of life. Continual political upheavals in an Iran dominated by fanatics form the backdrop to Interruptions where the rich history of Farzin s family is interwoven with the misfortunes of a nation.

Editorial Reviews

Review

In its elucidation of ancient and modern history, Interruptions is rich in suspense and irony. … Alemi has successfully dramatized a complex political and social history in a compelling novel. --Gay & Lesbian Review

About the Author

MASSUD ALEMI was born in Iran and moved to the United States in 1977. He writes fiction and non-fiction both in English and his native Persian. Interruptions is his first novel. He lives in the Washington DC area.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 274 pages
• Publisher: IBEX Publishers (January 15, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1588140490
• ISBN-13: 978-1588140494
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,470,328 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Massud Alemi was born in Tehran, Iran, and emigrated to the United States for higher education in 1977. The Islamic Revolution of 1979 provided the excuse he needed to study history. He's been preoccupied with the roots of the Islamic revolution in the country of his birth, a preoccupation that led him to writing. He graduated from George Mason University in Virginia, and went on to get an MBA.

Interruptions (2008) is his debut; it's about the personal fallout of large scale political events, and the machinations by which an ordinary person is caught in a scheme of larger ideological conflicts. It's also a tale about how insignificant choices often lead to monumental consequences, and in particular the futility of the individual in the context of a political juggernaut. Alemi believes the biggest sin of traditional societies is that they always sacrifice the individual for the collective whim.

The love story in Interruptions takes place in one of the tumultuous periods of recent Iranian history. It's after World War II when unprecedented openness and freedom descended upon the nation. The political and social background gives the story a unique flavor that you'd want to read and perhaps gain a new appreciation for Iran's struggle. Secondly, the characters are unique in not accepting their fate, wanting more out of life. It is the force of their need that propels the story. That need coupled with the inadequacies of the characters and their lack of any tools to deal with their inadequacies (and of course, the particular background of the story) causes disruptions at different levels in their lives. "Interruption in every aspect of people's lives is a real thing, and needs to be acknowledged, and so this is what my novel is about."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Life Interrupted, January 22, 2008

By 

H. F. Corbin "Foster Corbin" (ATLANTA, GA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Interruptions (Hardcover)

Many Westerners-- I for one-- are fascinated with the Middle East and the literature from that part of the world, whether it is ancient writers such as Rumi or Omar Khayyam (a college English instructor of mine loved him) or modern writing such as THE SIRENS OF BAGHDAD, THE RELUCTANT FUNDAMENTALIST, BITTERSWEET, READING LOLITA IN TEHRAN or THE KITE RUNNER-- all of which I have read recently. Now Massud Alemi, born in Iran but living in the United States since 1977, has written his first novel INTERRUPTIONS with an added twist. The central character Farzin Rouhani is a young high-school teacher living in Tehran who happens to be a homosexual. On a spring day in 1981 he flees from his home to escape his dueling parents and sets out to visit his lover Bijan, "half way across town." He has the misfortune to get caught up in the middle of a protest against the government and is arrested and taken into custody. Farzin is in a Catch 22 situation. He certainly is innocent of any plans to overthrow the government. On the other hand, if he admits that he was on the way to visit a male lover, he faces a much direr punishment. ( For instance, the Tehran daily newspaper the "Kayhan" in its November 13, 2005 edition reported the execution by hanging of two men in their twenties for the crime of homosexuality.)

In almost a 21st century version of A THOUSAND AND ONE NIGHTS Farzin writes down both the history of Iran and his family which is interlaced with the events of his current situation. Mr. Alemi, in addition to Farzin, creates other three-dimensional characters-- Sophie, The Malboro Man, Colonel Nemat, Lily, Hamid et al. He contrasts the beauty of the Iranian landscape with the violence of the revolution. Mr. Alemi is no slouch when it comes to English either although the book blurb states that Persian is his native language. Servants are the "spendthrifts of secrets," The young Sophie's eyes are "inky orbs." The characters Lily, Sophie and Dr. Tofiq eat dinner in a "soft lemon light." Sophie's young brothers speak with "bucolic courtliness."

This writer is at his best when he is telling wonderful stories, some of which are reminiscent of the great writer Gabriel Garcia Marquez-- no small accomplishment-- rather than when he waxes philosophical and gives a long discussion on the word "interruption" near the end of this otherwise very good and impressive first novel.

Let us hope Mr. Alemi writes another novel soon.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A brilliant book, February 8, 2008

By 

Seth J. Frantzman (Jerusalem, Israel) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Interruptions (Hardcover)

Ostensibly this is the story of Farzin Rouhani and his entanglement with Revolutionary Iran, but in truth it is a much broader tale of three things; Farzin, his illustrious family and the Iranian nation. Farzin's story is set in 1981, between the spring and fall, when the forces of `counterrevolution' in Iran were rounded up and tortured, raped and shot by the `Revolutionary' forces and their various state-run organs for the suppression of all manner of freedoms.

Farzin is a victim of circumstance. On his way to visit his lover he finds himself in the middle of a communist-feminist demonstration and he is arrested as a ringleader of the demonstration. Throughout his time in prison he is asked to recant, repent and admit his part in the conspiracy against the government and his `treasonous' behavior. He releases himself from his circumstances by writing a lavish story about his ancestors. These ancestors include a mystical sage named Mullah Abbas and his descendent Nozar Rouhani who marries an independent woman named Sophie Nemat, whose former husband is a well known soldier of the Shah.

Throughout these tales of family background the reader is drawn into the complex history of 19th and 20th century Persia. Russians and English are out to colonize the country. The last of the Qajars and the first of the Phalavi dynasty are introduced. The rise of Communism and nationalism in the 1950s under the Tudeh party and Mossadegh respectively. This is all a prelude to the dramatic destruction of cultured and diverse Persia which took place after the revolution of 1980 and the imposition of Islamism and the Ayatollahs. It is hard not to wince when one recalls that it was leftists in the west who were the greatest denouncers of the Shah and his Savak, and those same leftists led by Michel Foucault celebrated the rise of Islamism and the `revolution'. They celebrated even as women's rights activists were tortured and executed and homosexuals, Jews and Bahais were arrested. One is sickened by the degree to which people who call themselves `progressives' in the West were intimately involved in the suppression and destruction of society recalled in this well written fascinating book.

This is more than simply a story, it is a recollection of the destruction of a nation and its people. It is the true testament of an author to be able to weave not only a compelling narrative but also expose society and its tragedies. This is such a read and none will be disappointed. It is a fascinating and gripping tale that moves quickly along and has surprises at every turn.

Seth J. Frantzman

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Powerful picture of Iran's troubled history., January 29, 2008

By 

G. Torres (Fairfax, VA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Interruptions (Hardcover)

I just finished reading one of the best novels I have read in my life. Interruptions is Massud Alemi's first novel and what a fresh breeze of a literary event. At first I was afraid it was going to be one of those formulaic pieces at the altar of best-sellerdom like we have come to read and are about to watch on the silver screen too. What I liked about this story is its depiction of the natural evolution of the characters involved and the reality of their experience. Norman Mailer said of existential experience being necessary for writers of fiction, and I am shocked just trying to imagine what kind of experience Mr. Alemi could have had in his life to prepare him for such an epic.

The background history of the novel is full of real incidents, for example the period of 1941-1953 is well depicted as far as I can tell, and what if it is not. Who cares for the accuracy of the historical moments, when in the hands of a great first-time novelist you can see the entire era and feel it as if you are there. And that's a real gift isn't it? The love story that takes place in the middle of that era is grand as grand can be and invokes such empathy that I can't remember I had in me.

I read fiction quite often and can say with absolute certainty that I read "Interruptions" with pleasure and picked up a few pieces of wisdom as well. Thank you Mr. Alemi for the joy and good luck in your future endeavors.