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Dec 06, 2010

Sepi rated it:

Rooftops speaks to the universality of the human condition- that knows no color, creed, sect or country. It is a story of hope,despite the abysmal darkness of a great loss. The voice evolves throughout the story, as does the young hero. Its piercing reality, relentless humor and often heartbreaking anguish turns the pages, and all along we hope we hope that love fills the void left by the loss--and we as readers are whole again.
A touching tale that must be told

1 comment like (6 people liked it)

Jan 22, 2009

Tamera rated it:

A friend in the media sent me an advance reader copy of this book. It swept me away. I'm still struggling to find my way back into my real world - yes, it's one of those books: the story stays with you, the characters don't fade; a beautiful touching story in the voice of a 17-year old, written like a pro, not a word out of place, not a thought out of character. So visually intense - I felt like I was watching a movie and not reading a book. Powerful, magnificently powerful.
I was blown More...

2 comments like (6 people liked it)

Sep 23, 2011

Maja rated it:

Just two quick remarks. First - had a problem which I always have with books translated into Croatian in the constant never ending present tense > it just bugs me. I sounds text bookish and cold and I just don't like it and think it's wrong. Second - main character's best friend Ahmed is one of the coolest book characters I can remember, one of those you get a crush on. So, watch out. :) To wrap it up - a really really good book, warm, funny and one of those that makes you understand the Arab More...

4 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 30, 2010

Sally rated it:

This is a beautiful novel, with sensitively drawn characters in a volatile and violent period of Iran, from 1973 to 1974 during the reign of the Shah of Iran. At the heart of this novel is a love story, but there's much more. The sustaining nature of intimate friendships and family relationships, and the sacrifices that the characters make for each other are poetically and movingly portrayed. At a time when U.S. foreign policy with Iran weighs heavily, this novel provides a personal and valuable More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Jan 16, 2012

Jana rated it:

Rooftops of Tehran is both a bittersweet coming of age tale as well as a story of the tragic loss of innocence.

The setting is Tehran in 1973 and 1974, a period when Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi, a brutal dictator, ruled his country with an iron fist with the help of the United States. Members of his National Intelligence and Security Organization, the dreaded SAVAK, were seemingly everywhere. Mohammad Mosaddeq, the democratically elected Prime Minister of Iran, from 1951 to 1953, was More...

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Dec 04, 2010

Linda rated it:

What a wonderful insight into the life and culture of Iran under the Shah. As Americans this is a part of world that is a mystery to us. And guess what? We are a mystery to them too.

This story is narrated by a teenage Pasha, struggling to find himself as a man during the early 1970's in Tehran. He is coming of age, learning how to shave, playing soccer in the alley and falling in love all under the stars on the roof of his family's home. When he unwittingly leads the secret pol More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Nov 13, 2010

Yvette marked it as to-read

Rooftops of Tehran: A Novel by Mahbod Seraji
Pasha Shahed is a typical teenage boy who likes hanging out with his friends on the rooftop terrace of his house, dreaming about life, love, and what the future holds. What makes this 17-year-old different is that he is living under the harsh reign of the shah in Iran during the summer of 1973. With his biggest worry being his feelings for Zari, the girl next door who has been promised to another since birth, Pasha has a rude awakening when the SA More...

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Jan 11, 2010

CuriousLibrarian rated it:

I find this book difficult to review. It is easily the best book I've read this year. But I'm so frustrated by the final two pages that it practically negates how much I loved this book. I am not referring to what you might think if you have read the book, but rather how "easy" the denouement is after all is said and done. That's all I can say without being spoilery, but I'm happy to discuss in comments if anyone wants.

Backing up...

I seem to have become enamore More...

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Aug 26, 2009

Holyn rated it:

I read this for the book club at my local library and am glad I did since I don't know if I would have picked it up on my own.

Rooftops of Tehran is set in Tehran in the late 1970s as the city is beginning to boil before the overthrow of the Shah and the Ayatollah's reign. The narrator is a 17 year old boy and it's a story of his life and loves.

The common theme through this book, for me, was love and friendship and how duty plays into each of these for Pasha and his frien More...

2 comments like

Jul 25, 2009

Kathleen added it

Rooftops of Tehran, by Mahbod Seraji, narrated by Jonathan Todd Ross, produced by Recorded Books, downloaded from audible.com.

This is the story of two teenage boys, aged 17, in Tehran just before the revolution. The two boys meet on their roofs at night, smoke and talk, and get glimpses of the beautiful girls they’re in love with. But one night the boys witness the capture of one of their neighbors who was thought to be a political danger to the government. This capture and execut More...

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May 25, 2009

Dana rated it:

This book is set in Iran just before the revolution. Pasha is a seventeen year old who spends his evenings on his rooftop joking around with Ahmed, his best friend. They discuss school, their futures and Ahmed's love. But Pasha has a burdensome secret. He has fallen in love with his beautiful next door neighbor, Zari. He watches from a distance falling more and more under her spell.

Zari is betrothed to a young medical student, Doctor, who is an activist. Pasha feels the guilt and kee More...

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Aug 29, 2009

Tara rated it:

This is novel about close friendships and how love can survive all things. The setting is Tehran 1973 and 1974. The story is told from the viewpoint of an 18 year old young man, Pasha. Pasha has a best friend, Ahmed and these two have an extremely close, trusting friendship. They share everything and unlike Americans, they express their feelings without fear. I was so incredibly touched by the bond between them and also by the bonds between everybody in the neighborhood. The family ties, the car More...

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Sep 01, 2010

May rated it:

in many ways this novel is a gift. this is the first book i have read that is set in Iran, and it has opened a whole new desire in me to read and learn more about the country. it's no secret that we need more books about persian culture in the english literary scene right now, and this book is eye-opening, culturally rich, relevant, and well-written. The love story that becomes the main focus of the book is a bit exaggerated and melodramatic, but works to tie everything together and adds to the More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jul 01, 2011

Candice rated it:

I found this book at turns heartwarming and heartbreaking, with some humor thrown in. Mahbod Seraji lived the first 19 years of his life in Iran and gives a clear picture of the Persian culture. It’s a coming-of-age story for 17-year-old Pasha, but it’s also a glimpse of what life was like in 1973-74 under the Shah. The first part of the book is structured in a tantalizing way. From the beginning, set in the Roozbeh Psychiatric Hospital in Tehran in the winter of 1974, the reader knows that More...

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Jan 01, 2010

Derek rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Dec 20, 2011

Ana Luisa rated it:

Só tenho uma palavra para descrever este livro: Perfeito.
Acho incrível a maneira como tudo é descrito, desde o ambiente, os sentimentos e até mesmo a cultura iraniana. Quando leio um livro, a primeira coisa que procuro é aprender algo novo, seja uma lição de vida ou até uma curiosidade sobre algum aspecto, mas o que encontrei neste livro foi algo que vai mais além…
Vencedor de vários prémios, este livro dá-nos a conhecer um pouco da luta pelo fim de ditadura vivida entre os anos de 1973 More...

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Jul 31, 2011

April rated it:

I don't think I've ever openly cried for any characters from a book the way I did with this one. "Rooftops of Tehran" is a poignant book that absorbed me completely. I actually had to put it down for a bit as things became very intense when Zari's actions turn the tide in such a shocking way. I love Ahmed's character and that he is Pasha's best friend. I adore Pasha's emotions and thoughts on Zari. Even Pasha's father and his stories and the quirks of his mother endeared to me. I More...

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May 30, 2010

Ellen rated it:

I think this is potentially a really great book club book. It is not as graphic in some respects as The Kite Runner but it tells an interesting story of young love in the waining years of Shah Reza Pahlavi's reign. Ill-fated lovers, political and social commentary and local color all mix together. I found myself asking the most important question, "How much of this is true?" I remember how unquestioning I was when I first met someone from Persia, the eminent history, Dr. Nasratollah Ra More...

0 comments like

May 25, 2009

Cathyb rated it:

I tried to write my review for this novel as soon as I finished reading; however, I was unable to do so. Whether it was from writer's block or from fear of writing an inadequate review, I do not know. I am leaning toward the latter. I considered stringing together a set of adjectives: brilliant, funny, original, haunting. Although they could all be used to describe this novel, it would not have been enough. Instead, I started off with the following: Rooftops of Tehran, a debut novel by Mahbod Se More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 17, 2009

Serena rated it:

Mahbod Seraji's debut novel Rooftops of Tehran is a beautifully crafted journey set in Tehran, Iran, during the tumultuous 1970s. Pasha Shahed is a teenage boy who in the summer before his last year of high school faces the reality of his homeland, the despair of irrevocable change, and his first love.

"'And your star guides you when you're in trouble, right?'

'Your star and the stars of the people you love.'

Ahmed closes one eye and lifts his thumb to block More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 03, 2009

Chelsea rated it:

This book was really good and I liked that it mixed the story of Pasha's coming of age and falling in love with the history of Iran at the time and the beginnings of revolution and uprising. It's a little sad, but there are happy parts too. It's also a bit of a mystery that you piece together a little at a time. The story goes back and forth between 1973- where he is enjoying life, spending time with friends, and falling in love with the girl next door- and 1974 where he is in a mental hospital More...

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Aug 23, 2009

Emily rated it:

Rooftops of Tehran is so many things: semi-autobiographical, a beautifully done coming of age story, a portrait of a specific time and place (Tehran 1973-74). It's peopled with wonderful characters, the kind who stay with you after you've finished the book, who pop into your head for a visit like old friends. It's also one of the best portraits of teenage life I've ever read. The way Seraji evokes Tehran and the Persian culture, the smells and tastes, sights and sounds is so powerful that I felt More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

May 24, 2009

Ambra rated it:

From the beginning, the writing style intrigued me. The educated and thoughtful mind of a philosopher muddled with the unavoidable conflicts of being in love as a teenager. Even previously knowing next to nothing of the culture, the story pulled me in, ensnaring me in a tale of love, friendship, death, tyranny, culture, and That. Pasha and the members of his alley spend their time loving, laughing, crying, rebelling, and mourning, which the reader experiences with them. As I read, this book quic More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Oct 11, 2010

Jessica rated it:

Love it! A love story that made me cry.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 22, 2010

Lavinia rated it:

I would have given this book 5 stars except for the constant use of the F-word and a brief joke about masturbation. Unfortunately I can't grab a copy for everyone and edit them myself. I see no reason to add such language to a perfect book. Now that that is out of the way. This book has "that". "That" something that makes it hard to put down. The kind of book that I had a few minutes of time so I decided to read a few pages and then ended up losing all track of time and readi More...

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Feb 20, 2010

Dora rated it:

I really am giving this novel "3 and a half" stars- I liked many things about it, and found the last 100 pages very moving (I even cried!), but it wasn't my favorite or anything.

This is a coming of age novel/teenage love story set in Tehran, on the brink of revolution in the 70's.

Things I didn't like:
* The language was very simple, and I didn't feel the book had a lot of literary depth. Perhaps if I were younger I would have liked it better- I think this More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jul 31, 2010

Michaiah rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 18, 2012

Meg rated it:

WOW! This was a powerful book! It is a coming of age story that takes place in Iran in the 1970's. I hardly laugh out loud in books, but this one had so many witty characters that I just fell in love with. I also cried a ton too, but that's not as rare...It was beautifully written and I had a very hard time during the second half of the book putting it down. I feel as though novels like these are so important to us here in America to help us understand countries like Iran, in which most of us kn More...

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Dec 15, 2010

Eliza rated it:

I honestly didn't expect to really like this book. I picked it up at the Green Valley Book Fair for a couple bucks as something different, outside my normal reading choices. Instead, it was a very compelling, personalized look at Iran in the 70s leading up to the revolution.

I was struck by how much stock everyone put in sending the high school graduate to America to study. Even though all his papers were faked, he spoke no English, and had no where to live, this was regarded a a surefi More...

0 comments like

Mar 07, 2010

Lisa rated it:

WOW! What an amazing story & debut novel by Mahbod Seraji. I absolutely love, love, LOVED this book! From the first few pages I was instantly immersed into the Persian culture and political backdrop of 1970s Iran. I felt like I was a part of the actual story, living right along with the characters in their Tehran alley.

The love story between Pasha and Zari was so mesmerizing, and so haunting - made all the more special by being a forbidden romance. I adored all of the quirky characte More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

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