Although Mahbod Seraji's Rooftops of Tehran is at times incredibly corny, it portrays the experiences of a first love splendidly. Watching Pasha's shyness change into daring and blatant flirting was exciting; the reader watches loves transformation as we have all experienced. The one where we can hardly look at the person we desire, and then later develop an awesome sense of self-confidence and tell them everything we feel. At least that's been my experience... the story made me nostalgic.
In regards to his choice for how to incorporate Farsi into his English text, I was slightly disappointed. I prefer when authors write the word in the text and add a footnote of its English translation. Seraji, however, uses an awkward style where he uses the Farsi word followed by a comma and a translation within the sentence. For example on p. 27, "He hates the Shah and the mullahs, the educated religious officials." This disrupts the flow and naturalness of the narrator. Pasha would never say anything like that unless maybe he was actually telling us the story knowing that we don't know Farsi. This technique is used throughout the text and just doesn't seem to fit.
I enjoyed reading Rooftops of Tehran for historic reasons, too. I think it provides a good sense for why the revolution happened. Seraji also offers an understanding for cultural identifiers, such as funeral traditions, through his novel.
I agree that the story contains excellent cultural identifiers. As teachers of literature, it is important to include novels that portray a clear picture of life in a "foreign" place. I feel Seraji does an excellent job making the culture relevant to non-Iranian students.
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