Pomegranate Soup: A Book Review

Pomegranate Soup is the encouraging story about three Iranian women who escape before the Revolution and who do great things with their lives. I have read other stories about women living in Iran: Not Without My Daughter and Reading Lolita in Tehran. Both of these are are biographical accounts of the traumas women have gone through since the Revolution. Pomegranate Soup is a fictional story, but the author is Iranian, so this novel has a very real feel to it. So even through the Marjan, Bahar, and Layla go through some rough times in Iran, this book shows the positive things they do to improve their futures. I love the positive message this books sends about making lemonade when given lemons. It is nice to read an account about Iranian women that is uplifting and not discouraging. However, the other two book I listed are interesting and informative, and I encourage others to read those as well.

The recipes in this book are so good and I encourage everyone to try these. Marjan's character is so comforting because she is the oldest sister and the mind and hands behind the Babylon Cafe. She often puts her own needs aside to attend to her over emotional sister Bahar and to keep an eye of the energetic teenager Layla. Marjan finally learns that she does not have to be in charge of everything, but I will let you read the novel to figure this out.

Bahar is an emotionally sensitive character and you just have to love her. At first it seems she has been more sheltered than Marjan, but as the book progresses, we learn that she has gone through things that have made her the reserved person she is today. Through the story Bahar has many growing pains, but she is learning to become a stable woman.

Layla is the youngest sister and she has been haunted by the memories of the past, but she is also more carefree because most of her life has been spent in the UK. She is the only one of the girls who has ever been able to have the freedom to just be a teenager and come and go as she pleases, and this troubles Bahar a little bit. However, everyone loves Layla and as you read the book you will learn why. I thought it was clever how the author incorporated parts of the legend of Persian legend of Layla into the modern day character of Layla. I had never known that Eric Clapton's song about Layla was based on the fable of a man who is deprived of the woman he loves, so I learned something new.

This book is a true joy and it shows all the wonderful things that can happen to people who are willing to make the world a better place.