Marjan Kamali, born in Turkey to Iranian parents, spent her childhood in Kenya, Germany, Turkey, Iran, and the United States. She holds degrees from UC Berkeley, Columbia University, and New York University. Her debut novel, Together Tea, was a Massachusetts Book Award finalist. Marjan lives with her husband and two children in the Boston area.
Roya, a dreamy, idealistic teenager living amid the political upheaval of 1953 Tehran, finds a literary oasis in kindly Mr. Fakhri's neighborhood stationery shop, stocked with books and pens and bottles of jewel-colored ink. Then Mr. Fakhri, with a keen instinct for a budding romance, introduces her to his other favorite customer—handsome Bahman, who has a burning passion for justice and a love for Rumi's poetry—and Roya loses her heart at once. Their relationship blossoms, and the little stationery shop remains their favorite place in all of Tehran. A few short months later, on the eve of their marriage, Roya agrees to meet Bahman at the town square, but suddenly, violence erupts—a result of the coup that forever changes their country's future. In the chaos, Bahman never shows. For weeks, Roya tries desperately to contact him, but her efforts are fruitless. Reluctantly, she moves on—to college in California, to another man, to a life in New England—until a chance encounter nearly sixty years later gives her the opportunity to ask him the questions that have haunted her for more than half a century: Why did you leave? Where did you go? How is it that you were able to forgive me?
The blurb of the book describes the plot pretty perfectly, so going in, I wasn't sure how I was going to be surprised. But of course I shouldn't have worried at all. For one thing, Kamali's writing is absolutely beautiful. I decided to start annotating books now more casually, books that I was reading for fun, and there was no shortage of beautiful language in The Stationery Shop that I underlined and flagged. Kamali's command of language is stunning. Not only can she describe things in strange, wonderful ways, but the way she writes evokes so many emotions at once. At the end of one passage, I can be left simultaneously joyful and sad, or angry and compassionate. In this way, The Stationery Shop captures true humanity.
The story itself feels unique because of the way Kamali writes it. Without that special something, we could all recognize this story as a sort of Romeo and Juliet, a sort of classic, a history that will repeat itself until the end of time. By utilizing this familiar framework, Kamali is able to color in some other interesting and definitely unique details, such as the setting of 1953 Iran, with people full of political ideas and a time that is colored by political actions. I really enjoyed the political element of the story, and how it imprints itself on the characters and the work itself. That's not the say the novel is political—in fact, that would be going to far—but to truly embed her characters in the politics of the time, and to have that play a role in the love story without the whole novel being overwhelmed by it is a balance perfectly struck. All-in-all, that's part of what makes the familiar framework of the plot work. Having this other element that is unique, a story often not discussed in historical fiction, makes the novel truly special.
There were times that I struggled to believe Roya and Bahman were truly in love. Possibly because 1953 was another time, and for young love it doesn't always take much, but either way, I found that it rarely distracted from the novel's overarching purpose. Kamali takes great care to convey a love that can cross time and space, that can survive all of life's tragedies and triumphs. And it's not just one love, either, that's the focus. One of the novel's great delights is how there is more than just one love story highlighted. I believe that Kamali navigates the space through time well, pacing the novel perfectly by dividing it into the different life stages of the characters, and never letting one detail be forgettable or fall through the cracks.
A definite must-read for those loving sweeping stories, stories that move through time, or just a perfect short read to kick off the year, The Stationery Shop is a true gem. For more from Kamali, visit her online at MarjanKamali.com.
*This review can also be found on my Goodreads page*
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