I have never been drawn to the memoir genre, but by some chance this book found its way into my hands when I was perusing the shelves at my local library.

I think I had heard of it once in a youtube video essay about 'Lolita' and my interest was piqued.

I happily give 'Reading Lolita in Tehran' five stars, and feel it would be remiss to give it anything less. As an American who has only ever studied literature in the west, this was an invaluable insight into not only what books can mean to people, but also a refreshing take on classics from a perspective wholly new to me, these new interpretations and readings making me feel my own understanding of these words expanding.

This memoir is a love letter to literature. To the escapism it offers, to the way fiction helps us understand ourselves in new and unexpected ways, but it is more than that.

I knew nothing of Iran prior to reading this book, and to learn about that history through the eyes of someone who was there and able to articulate her experience so boldly and beautifully is a triumph of the 'own voices' movement.

Author Azar Nafisi is a fabulous storyteller, interweaving vivid images of ice cream and emotion masterfully into the fabric of the narrative, itself a series of memories of events and people, all of whom are described so precisely you can conjure them as you read.

I would recommend 'Reading Lolita in Tehran' to any bookworm, book club, or person prepared to be taken on a journey through Lolita,Gatsby, Henry James, and Jane Austen along with Nafisi and 'her girls'.