Rooftops of Tehran by Mahbod Seraji

In a middle class neighbourhood of Tehran, 17 year old Pasha spends the summer of 1973 on his rooftop with his best friend Ahmed, joking and talking about the future. Even as Pasha asks burning questions about life he also wrestles with a crushing secret. He has fallen in love with his beautiful neighbor, Zari, who has been betrothed since birth to another man. And despite Pasha’s guilt ridden feelings for her, over the long hot summer, his tentative friendship with Zari deepens into a rich emotional bond. The bliss of all this is shattered in a single night when Pasha unwittingly acts as a beacon for the Shah's secret police. The violent consequences awaken Pasha and his friends to the reality of living under the rule of a powerful despot, and lead Zari to make a shocking choice from which Pasha may never fully recover. This is a book that is filled with emotion. It's eye opening and is infused with centuries old Persian culture. It reaffirms the human experiences we all share - laughter, tears, love, fear, and above all, hope. Our group rated it as 8 out of 10.

Nabila Ahmad