The Girl from the Garden

Starred review from July 13, 2015
Foroutan's richly layered debut explores the dark political maneuverings inside a single household in a Jewish enclave in Iran. When Rakhel marries Asher Malacouti, the most prosperous Jewish businessman in the town of Kermanshah, it seems like an ideal match. Asher is consumed with the need to have a male child to inherit the business, and Rakhel is desperate to conceive, but she appears to be barrenâa fact that becomes even more wrenching when her sister-in-law has little trouble getting pregnant. After several years, Asher takes the radical step of taking a second wife: his cousin's disgraced ex-wife, Kokab, whom he has lusted after for years. Rakhel resorts first to subtle manipulation and then to more drastic measures in order to retain her husband's attentions and keep her place in the household secure. Eventually, during the Iranian Revolution, she leaves for America. In present-day southern California, Rakhel's niece, Mahboubeh, now an old woman, attempts to find common ground with the bitter old woman she remembers from childhood. The framework of flashbacks within flashbacks (present-day Mahboubeh, Mahboubeh as a young girl, Rakhel as a young woman) can be difficult to navigate, but Rakhel's slow descent into darkness exhilaratingly propels the plot, and Foroutan's sumptuous prose paints a vivid portrait of a rarely explored historical and cultural setting.

July 1, 2015

In this debut novel, Mahboubeh Malacouti, an elderly woman living in Los Angeles, recalls the stories surrounding her family in early 1900s Iran. Through her memories, Mahboubeh brings to life her Uncle Asher, the wealthiest Jewish man in the town of Kermanshah, and his young, barren wife, Rakhel. As Mahboubeh describes Asher's obsession with having an heir, she begins to unravel the mysteries surrounding her mother's death and confronts the unsavory darkness beneath her uncle's exterior. Inspired by her own family history, Foroutan's fluid narrative successfully paints an immersive tale of the inner strength of women living in a time and within a culture when their personal thoughts and opinions were unwelcomed by men and meant to be kept to themselves. VERDICT Though Foroutan is better at writing about the past than the present (the portrait of modern-day Mahboubeh is sketchy and leaves much to be desired--perhaps another novel?), she clearly has a gift for storytelling. Readers who enjoyed Nadia Hashimi's The Pearl That Broke Its Shell and similar tales of young women overcoming personal obstacles will certainly appreciate. [See Prepub Alert, 2/9/15.]--Shirley Quan, Orange Cty. P.L., Santa Ana, CA

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from June 1, 2015
After his father's death, Asher grew his holdings until the Malacoutis were the most prosperous family in their Iranian town. Now he longs for a son to continue the legacy, but his wife, Rakhel, has yet to conceive. Practically still a child herself, Rakhel knows that her worth depends on her ability to produce an heir, and she feels desperate in the face of her repeated failures. When her sister-in-law, Khorsheed, gives birth to the family's first scion, Rakhel sinks further into despair, growing increasingly resentful and withdrawn. Distracted by his desire for a son and a passionate longing for his cousin's beautiful wife, Kokab, Asher makes a decision that will alter the entire family's life and force Rakhel to take actions of her own to ensure her future. Their fateful tale is recounted by Khorsheed's daughter, Mahboubeh, now an elderly woman herself, left only with these memories of a family destroyed by passion and envy. In this stunning first novel, Foroutan draws on her own family history to integrate the lore and traditions of old Iran. Suspenseful and haunting, this riveting story of jealousy, sacrifice, and betrayal and the intimately drawn characters within will not be easily forgotten.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)