Reading Group Guide

The Persians

Sanam Mahloudji

This reading group guide for The Persians includes an introduction, discussion questions, and ideas for enhancing your book club. The suggested questions are intended to help your reading group find new and interesting angles and topics for your discussion. We hope that these ideas will enrich your conversation and increase your enjoyment of the book.

Introduction

The women in the Valiat family have complicated relationships. They are mothers, daughters, granddaughters, and cousins, connected by a storied name that at best means anonymity and irrelevance in America and at worst spells ridicule as well as a fear of unwanted attention from the Islamic Republic of Iran. One of the Valiat women, Shirin, a flamboyant Houston event planner, gets arrested for attempted prostitution while in Aspen, which triggers a series of events that results in the women of her family—her niece, Bita, a law student studying in New York City; her mostly estranged daughter, Niaz; and her mother, Elizabeth—coming together and confronting the truths about their collective past, all while Seema, Shirin’s late older sister, wanders through a purgatory-like existence.

Topics & Questions for Discussion

1. The novel is divided into three sections: “A Second Face,” “We Like Poison,” and “Operation Ajax.” How do the events within each part relate to their respective titles?

2. Early in the novel (page 19), Bita asks herself, “What kind of Persian was I?” Discuss how Bita tries to make sense of her identity throughout the novel. How do you think she would answer this question by the end of the novel? How would the other characters answer it for themselves?

3. Shirin expounds on the importance of jewelry, saying, “When you evacuate, you take your jewels. All our Revolution stories involve jewelry” (page 20). What is the significance of jewelry in this story?

4. The novel rotates the first-person perspective between Bita, Shirin, Niaz, and Seema, but uses the third person when with Elizabeth. What does this narrative style do for your reading experience? How would things change if Elizabeth’s sections were narrated in first person?

5. The first Elizabeth section begins “This is a story of a nose” (page 41). Elizabeth’s family teases her about her large nose, which makes her obsess over it. How does this influence Elizabeth’s choices and sense of self? Had Elizabeth’s nose not been so notable, how might her life have been different?

6. The mother-daughter relationships in the novel are often fraught. How is motherhood represented in these relationships? Do you think certain characters might make better mother-daughter pairs? Why or why not?

7. Several characters comment on how their Iranian heritage is devalued in America. Shirin calls America “the history killer” (page 20), and while in therapy, Bita narrates that “nobody cared who your great-great grandfather was” (page 91). What does it mean to live in a country where one’s lineage is unrecognized? For characters like Bita and Mo, what does it mean to be Iranian American?

8. Both Elizabeth and Niaz take charge of their sexuality as young women—Elizabeth through art and Niaz with Kian, a boy who is her gateway into political activities. How is female sexuality explored in the novel and how does it relate to the characters’ personal development?

9. Elizabeth and Niaz tell their respective love stories, Bita is forging a new romance with a woman, Shirin craves male attention, and Seema’s most loving relationship was with her grandmother. How does the pursuit or lack of love shape the characters’ lives?

10. Though the Valiat name means little in America, the characters still benefit from their family money. Discuss how wealth and status influence the characters’ choices and behavior throughout the book.

11. The Valiats are descendants of Babak Ali Khan Valiat, “the Great Warrior,” the source of their prestige. As the novel progresses, it becomes clear that there are conflicting accounts of this figure, one of which greatly startles Seema. Talk about conflicting narratives and how contradiction plays a role in the story.

12. Niaz stands as the only character we see interacting in great detail with contemporary Iran. What do you think is her greatest strength? Weakness? Why?

13. Consider the following line (page 23): “We are born artists, us Persians, born dreamers. Even if we express it in high finance or dentistry.” Elizabeth draws and paints, Bita is an aspiring writer, Niaz writes poetry, Seema designs labels for jam jars. You could even say that Shirin is an artist in the way she has created her persona. What role does art and being an artist play in the book?

14. While there is a collective coming together, each character also goes on her own journey. Are Bita, Elizabeth, Shirin, Seema, and Niaz changed by the end of the book? If so, how? What changes each woman? If not, in what ways hasn’t she changed? What do you think stops her and why?

15. The novel ends in March 2006. Why do you think the story doesn’t take us to present day? How might life have changed for the family in the years since? Can you imagine what their lives might be like today?

Enhance Your Book Club

1. Early in the novel, Shirin notes that Iranians “have a lineage of the greatest poets on earth” (page 22) and mentions “Hafez and Saadi and Ferdowsi and Farrokhzad.” Look up these poets and read some of their work.

2. Iranian history and politics are integral to The Persians, particularly the Islamic revolution of 1979. How much did you know about Iranian politics prior to reading this book? Consider researching further into the relevant history.