Rejoice in My Gladness: The Life of Tahirih

by Janet Ruhe-Schoen

Drawing on extensive research and steeped in the culture of daily life in nineteenth-century Persia, this is the definitive account of the life of Tahiriha renowned poetess and one of the leading feminists of her time. She spent her life denouncing the second-class status of women, and was eventually martyred for her outspokenness and courage in the face of the male governing establishment in Persia.

Genres: Biography, Baha I, History, Nonfiction, Womens Studies

383 pages, Paperback

First published May 28, 2011

About the author

Janet Ruhe-Schoen is a writer and collagist. She’s published four books of biography, most recently Champions of Oneness: Louis Gregory and His Shining Circle, telling the stories of African-American lawyer and human rights activist Louis Gregory and others who worked with him to integrate communities in early 20th Century North America.
In 2011 she published Rejoice in My Gladness: The Life of Tahirih, telling the story of the 19th Century Iranian poet and feminist martyr Tahirih Qurratu’l-Ayn.
She's also the author of A Love Which Does Not Wait - 9 biographies of great pioneering Baha'i teachers, and The Nightingale, Baha'u'llah/ El Ruisenyor, Baha'u'llah.
Ruhe-Schoen worked as a journalist in Chile and the U.S., and has traveled widely, beginning with an epic voyage to the Soviet Union in 1969.
In her art as in her writing and her life, Ruhe-Schoen is dedicated to witnessing and documenting the oneness of creation, especially the oneness of humanity. She’s always been healed and assuaged by color, rhythm and form. She is a poet and considers her art visual poetry.
She is currently most interested in developing fiction work and making visual art.
www.facebook.com/JanetRuheSchoen.auth...

Reviews

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you have never heard of Tahirih before, prepare yourself for a revelation. This remarkable biography of the 19th century Persian poet and feminist is of the first order. The author has taken great pains to not only depict with skill and appeal the stunning presence of one of Persia's foremost poetic geniuses, but also to introduce us to a rich history of her time and place. Tahirih's heroic courage can only be regarded as epic, and that she gave her very life for her beliefs and the emancipation of all women in a country where women were traditionally subservient is a tribute to her stature as one of the greatest women to have ever come out of Persia. I highly recommend this stirring, illuminating, deeply moving, humbling, and inspiring book.

[Gayle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful story of Tahirih, one of the 19 disciples of the Bab and the only woman. She was a prodigy and was allowed to teach in her father's school, to all men, behind a curtain in Persia in the early 1800s. She became a follower of the Bab, The Manifestation of God. She taught men and women about the Bab and in one historic moment she declared the equality of men and women by taking off her veil in front of a gathering of men at the same time women in America were raising the cry for equality. So much new information in this book. I loved it!

[Eduardo Rioseco · Rating 5 out of 5]

Janet Ruhe-Schoen arma un relato coherente sobre una figura fascinante, pero sobre la cual existen muy pocas fuentes directas. Una buena parte del libro contiene historias sobre otros personajes con los que Táhirih se relacionó cercanamente y de los cuales hay más bibliografía, y a partir de esas historias la autora extrae conjeturas plausibles para llenar las innumerables lagunas. Algunas de esas otras historias paralelas son tan fascinantes como la de la propia Táhirih y la autora no logra contener el impulso de contarlas con cierto detalle, con lo que el libro gana en amplitud pero hace que inevitablemente se sienta un poco disperso. Si uno mira con benevolencia esa manera atrevida de armar una biografía, el libro puede llegar a ser muy gratificante.

[Alessia Sofia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved it!

Not a full five-star rank because I do feel some bits could have definitely been edited in a way that enhances readibility, but that's a personal preference.

[Kat Mayerovitch · Rating 5 out of 5]

As much a book about the Babi religion and the emancipation of women worldwide as the story of Tahirih herself, this is a wonderful introduction to the life of this 19th century heroine. Even having heard and read stories about her before, there was much in this book that I did not know. It gives so much context to both her writings and her life.

[Esther Bradley-detally · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this a profound book, lyrically written, and found ideas, facts, and images new to me and of considerable depth; my hat is off to the author; splendiferous