The Ayatollah Begs to Differ: The Paradox of Modern Iran

(Paperback)

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'The best book yet written on the contradictions of contemporary Iran ...... it captures like no book in recent memory the ethos of the country, in elegant and precise prose' Los Angeles Times Hooman Majd, acclaimed journalist and New York-residing grandson of an Ayatollah, has a unique perspective on his Iranian homeland. In this vivid, warm and humorous insider's account, he opens our eyes to an Iran that few people see, meeting opium-smoking clerics, women cab drivers and sartorially challenged presidential officials, among others. Revealing a country where both t-shirt wearing teenagers and religious martyrs express pride in their Persian origins, that is both deeply religious yet highly cosmopolitan, authoritarian yet reformist, this is the one book you should read to understand Iran and Iranians today. 'Westerners who tend to seek out only Iranians who talk and think like themselves should use this as a guide' Financial Times 'Mr President, if you are serious about negotiating with Iran, you need ...... the best book on contemporary Iranian culture and all of its complexities and contradictions. Don't go to Tehran without it' Washington Monthly, 'What Obama Should Read'

Reviews

Captivating ... wise and witty ... essential reading * GQ *
Illuminating, critical and affectionate * Economist, Books of the Year *
Westerners who tend to seek out only Iranians who talk and think like themselves should use this as a guide * Financial Times *
Mr President, if you are serious about negotiating with Iran, you need ... the best book on contemporary Iranian culture and all of its complexities and contradictions. Don't go to Tehran without it * Washington Monthly, What Obama Should Read *
The best book yet written on the contradictions of contemporary Iran ... it captures like no book in recent memory the ethos of the country, in elegant and precise prose * LA Times *
It is rare to have this perspective delivered in English with such richness and nuance - it is a perspective quite distinct from the reportorial assembly work of Western reporters or the pained laments of Iranian exiles . . . one hopes that American policymakers will take the time to absorb this book * Steve Coll, author of Ghost Wars *
Majd's cosmopolitan perspective permeates his book . . . an impressionistic collection of reporting, memoir, travelogue and commentary * Washington Post *

Author Bio

Hooman Majd was born in Tehran, Iran in 1957, and lived abroad from infancy with his family who were in the diplomatic service. He attended boarding school in England and college in the United States, and stayed in the U.S. after the Islamic Revolution of 1979. Majd had a long career in the entertainment business before devoting himself to writing and journalism full-time.