Marjan Kamami

Fiction 2024 | 326 pages

The Lion Women of Tehran is the tale of two girls who meet in elementary school in the 1950s in Tehran.  They develop a lifelong friendship with a large gap in the middle years when betrayal separates them.  This book tells us what they encountered during their lives.

From the beginning, they have quite different personalities.  Homa is talkative, a risk-taker, opinionated.  Though she is only seven at the start of the book, she soon becomes a communist, driven in part by the fact that her father is in prison for being a communist.  Ellie is more reserved, less socially and politically conscious.  No surprise that, in their teenage years, this becomes a source of tension between the two, when Homa begins to organize and protest, and Ellie isn't very interested.  With their love and respect for each other, however, their friendship thrives.

It doesn't take too long for college plans to be interrupted by an accidental betrayal, and its resulting prison sentence.  And then a husband for one of them, and a baby by rape for the other.

The setting of this book ... the context of the culture, norms, and politics of Iran ... is fascinating.  I loved learning about their food and their families and the way family members relate to one another.  I was quite surprised to learn how long has been the fight for women's right in this country, and how complex it is.

The author draws you into the lives of Homa and Ellie, and where they diverge and when they converge.  It is believable ... both heartbreaking and heartwarming.  Kamali's writing is lovely, making this an easy, rewarding, and engaging read.

My heart is carrying these two women with me, a few days after the finishing the book.  There are surprises and twists, and anguish and disappointment, and yet the bond between them is so very strong.

I sincerely recommend The Lion Women of Tehran.  This is our book club book for this month.  Thank you to Pam for introducing this book to us.

October 2025