Customer Reviews

Pomegranate Soup

5 star:		(32)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I read "Pomegranate Soup," by Marsha Mehran, and found it far deeper and wider than I ever expected given the youth and beauty of the lady pictured on the fly-leaf. As I closed the cover, I had to wonder: "How is it that she still looks like a baby, as if nothing has ever hurt her?" Marsha writes of a little family of three sisters, Iranian ex-pats who land in the west of Ireland, find it pleasing, and open an ethnic restaurant.

From the kitchen, they practice their exotic culinary skills and spy the true nature and spirit of the place, the scent of the air, the curious customs and peccadilloes of the people, and from this haven crafted a story that could amuse and even satisfy, but is not quite as simple as it looks at the start. In telling us her own story, which is cleverly entwined with the exotic and remarkable cuisine of her homeland, she reveals herself to be a gifted writer, an astute observer of human nature, and an authentic participant in living history with a little more family history than immediately meets the eye. And then there is another thing, something else, a dark underside, a secret, the truth of the sisters' exodus from their homeland.

"Pomegranate Soup" at times reads a little like "Ballykissangel," (Dervla Quigley?) but which is no harm. The little threads of pop culture help define time and place, and if the author has borrowed a little to help plump up the prose and fill in the gaps, well, it's no harm and indeed makes the story quite accessible. The impressions of Ireland and the Irish nature accrued by Ms. Mehran are truthful and fearless, and often seem quite innocent, especially when contrasted to the private sorrow that the sisters share. There's very little time in this story for television watching, but still there are some small signals that indeed Marsha is fond of "Ballykiss" and which radio station she listened to (Mid-West Irish Radio, which indeed can be reached over the Internet at www.midwestirishradio.com), and this has made "Pomegranate Soup" more endearing if anything. And then, there's mention of a little bridge in Dublin that I know I have crossed more than once.

"Pomegranate Soup" is a cookbook of life. In it you will find huge love and huge courage, which when heated and stirred make a unique and remarkable story well worth reading. The recipes are all authentic, and purely Persian, truly exotic and delicious fare for the west of Ireland, and then, exactly the right thing, because if there's one thing that's very clear in reading "Pomegranate Soup," it's on how many points the sisters and their new neighbors share the same heart and tastes. As for the secrets, well, you must read about them for yourselves. I trust myself with secrets.

As with all first novels, comparisons to previously published works are sure to be made. Some reviewers view this novel as an Iranian version of Chocolat ( which is a fair enough assessment) since both books celebrate the pleasure and magical qualities of food.

The year is 1980 and the three Aminpour sisters, have escaped Iran's revolution and settled in a small Irish village intent on opening a business and building a new life. With her savory recipes and personable characters, Mehran cooks up an intoxicating concoction that transports the reader back in time to an Ireland that has not yet been urbanized. She manages to capture the simple wisdom of free spirited, nurturing and tolerant women unknowingly drawn into conflict with an egotistical, overbearing, repressive man. It is a novel of opposites.....good versus evil, sour versus sweet, cold versus hot, acceptance versus rejection.

In addition, the author shares eleven treasured recipes and intertwines them into this tale of family, friends and food. You might say that this is the original "fusion cuisine".

For many years, Papa's Pastries shop provided the citizens of Ballinacroagh, Ireland with the tantalizing scents of freshly baked breads and sweets. When Papa Delmonico passed away, his wife, Estelle, unable to manage the shop alone with her arthritis, closed its doors and retreated to her home at the edge of town. The shop remained empty for many years. The paint faded and chipped. The plastic cloths melted into the table tops. Dust gathered on the floor and the windows grew dim from disinterest.

The Aminpour sisters were forced to leave their native Iran and need to make a new life for themselves. The oldest sister, Marjan, turns to what she knows best-cooking-and decides to open an Iranian Café. Fate and family connections bring them to Ballinacroaugh, a town that sits at the base of the mountain where St. Patrick prayed, fasted and blessed the people of Ireland. Traditions run strong and deep in Ballinacroagh. When this trio of mysterious dark skinned women drive into town in an old hippie bus and re-open the former Pastry shop as the Babylon Café, tongues start wagging.

Marsha Mehran's debut novel is astonishing for a new writer. She delivers the thoughts, motives and emotions of her characters with the crisp pungency of a Middle Eastern bazaar. I can't remember when I last felt compelled to read a book in a single sitting, but I absolutely could not put it down. I vow that I will rush to get on the waiting list for the next book by this talented author.

"Pomegranate Soup" follows the lives of three sisters exiled from Iran: the eldest, Marjan, a talented chef, the middle sister Bahar, haunted by an abusive husband and fleeing from a violent past, and the youngest, fifteen-year-old Lalya, who turns heads with her Oriental beauty and mysterious cinnamon and rosewater scent.

The three arrive in the sleepy, close-minded Irish village of Ballinacroagh determined to open an Iranian restaurant, which turns out to be exactly what the bland community needs. The restaurant, though slow to take off, is eventually a success, and the three sisters soon have a network of friends and staunch regulars to defend them from the vicious gossips and bullying Thomas McGuire, who wants to buy out the Babylon Café in order to turn it into a disco.

Marjan blossoms, creating an herb and flower garden from nearly barren soil and using her talent in the kitchen to bring a touch of the magical to people's lives: the closet comedian Father Mahoney, who is transformed by Marjan's abgusht, the gentle, lonely widow Estelle Delmonico, who takes the girls under her wing and is soothed by the exotic teas served from Marjan's samovar, Fiona Athey, unwilling hairdresser with a thespian past, and Malachy McGuire, Thomas's sensitive Iberian son (product of his wife's fling with a shipwrecked Spanish sailor) who falls in love with Layla.

The novel is beautifully written, woven with flashbacks from Revolutionary Iran, wisps of Persian, and sprinkled with delicious-sounding Persian recipes for dolmeh (stuffed grape leaves), red lentil soup, baklava, dugh, abgusht, fritters, lavash bread, torshi, chelow, fesenjoon, a tribal herbal headache remedy (nutmeg, cardamom, cloves), and pomegranate soup, all of which are key players in the novel.

A delightful, hunger inducing read in the spirit and tradition of Chocolat and Like Water for Chocolate, "Pomegranate Soup" is a magical journey of Irish lore, Persian spices, and the healing powers of love.

This awesome story of the Iranian Aminpour sisters relocated to Ireland was deliciously delightful. The more I read, the more I wished that the Babylon Cafe was in my neighborhood so I could go in for a delicious, steamy cup of Bergamot tea or a tasty bowl of the exotic red and mysterious Pomegranate soup.

Each chapter begins with a recipe that is carefully and mythically woven into the story. You will find yourself smelling cinnamon, cardamon and nutmeg and even going to your spice cabinet just to check if perhaps you have a little bottle of saffron to sniff! I know, I did!

I fully intend to try all of the exotic recipes. A fabulous first book by a talented author. I plan to read every book she writes. Worth every star, for sure!

Sometimes it is good to suspend belief and surrender your imagination to a form of magical realism which can transcend cultural barriers.

Three orphaned sisters, who fled Iran seven years earlier, have found their way to a small town in Ireland where they hope to make a home. They bring with them their heritage, their demons and their hopes for a better future. Marjan, Bahar and Layla open the Babylon Cafe in the heart of Ballinacroagh's Main Mall. The smell of traditional Persian cooking wafting through the Mall works its own magic on many of the townsfolk: business is growing as is acceptance. But the past is not yet finished with the sisters, and their future is threatened.

In part this novel is about the clash of cultures and inherent suspicion about what is different. It is equally about the power of hope and the unifying role of food and the role of senses in life. In many ways, both the characters and the setting are irrelevant to these unifying points. The setting could be small town anywhere, the sisters could have any different cultural heritage. At the same time as each sister confronts her demons, many of the townspeople find the courage to question their own assumptions and values.

The novel contains some delicious recipes which some readers will wish to try, while others of us will simply enjoy the possibility. While many of the characters are lightly drawn stereotypes this doesn't really detract from the power of the novel. A comparatively light read to be sure, but one with a powerful underlying message for those who want to accept it.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

This is a fruity and tasty book that shows a maturity in very young writer that I hope will continue for future books. Its full of flavor and taste and it makes you want to have more. This is a new author and she does a great job making this a delicious read.The recipes are wonderful and come from a culture I know little about. The Irish characters are great.This is a movie waiting to be made. Its a perfect read in my opinion and I hope there is more to come from this small town and its characters

For the first half of the book, I couldn't get past the startling similarities to Chocolat by Joanne Harris. It was almost as if Mehran was trying to write the same novel with an Iranian/Irish twist. By the end, I was able to appreciate the novel for itself, but I found it remarkably unoriginal. The addition of recipes, although not a new idea, was welcome, and I have even tried some of them out (v. v. good). I think it was an entertaining read, a fair attempt to portray some of the issues faced by women in Iran. The Irish portion seemed less than authentic.

I read this book for a reading group. My usual reading consists of gory serial killers,blood and guts!

I was so pleasantly surprised. This story grabs you from the first page and never lets you go. Three sisters from Iran move to a tiny town in Ireland and open a cafe.

The local characters are quirky and fun. They come alive and pull you in. The stories of the sisters' lives in Iran were at times disturbing and sad. We have to read them, we can't turn a blind eye to things that happen in our world no matter how hard it is to read! They tried to leave that part behind, but it is a part of them that made them the strong women they became.

I love that the author included recipes at the beginning of each chapter. The unfolding of the story revolved around these recipes. I found that fun and interesting.

I felt like I was a visitor in the Babylon Cafe. Drinking my mint tea and watching the story unfold. Truly a wonderful, fun book.

I am not a good reviewer and I can never do a book justice by trying to explain it so just pick it up, read it, you will not be disappointed. I look forward to more from Marsha Mehran!

While riding into Manhattan one Friday evening on the LIRR, I struck up a conversation with a woman who was obviously engaged by the book she was reading, an earnest and intent expression on her face. We ended up having the loveliest of conversations...about family, work, but mostly about books. She spoke about Brooklyn Follies and Until I Find You, and the Time Traveler's Wife, before she mentioned that her close friend was a novelist, had written a book called Pomegranate Soup. When we reached Penn Station, we each expressed how glad we were for having met and talked. Exchanging only handshakes, we went our separate ways. It was an encounter that would leave me in a good mood for days...and figured I was meant to read the books she mentioned, a message from the universe and all that. Ok, so about the book already...A delight! This book is redolent, full of sensory experiences, and yet it's as ethereal as spirit, too. What I love about this book, absolute love about it, is that it's sensory descriptions are so soulful, and it's spiritual elements are so earthy!! I think this is what the mystics must experience, the blurring of boundaries between the physical and the divine, all of one thing. Can't wait for the next installment. And never has the LIRR served up such impeccable service!!