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List Price: $25.00 | | Publisher: Mage Publishers
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Editorial Review:
The life of Taj al-Saltana, daughter of the ruler of Iran, Naser al-Din Shah Qajar, epitomized the predicaments of her changing era. Overcoming her limited education within the harem walls, Taj chronicled a thirty-year span in the life of a generation that witnessed a shift from traditional order to revolutionary flux. It is as though she had chosen this moment to recall her personal history--a tale filled with "wonder and anguish"--in order to record a cultural and political leap, symbolic of her time, from the indulgent, sheltered, and often petty world of her father's harem to the puzzling and exposed, yet emotionally and intellectually challenging world of a new Iran.
Now almost one hundred years later Taj's memoirs are relevant and qualify her not only as a feminist by her society's standards but also in comparison with feminists of her generation in Europe and America. Beyond her fascination for the material glamour of the West at the turn of the twentieth century--fashion, architecture, furniture, the motorcar--she was also influenced by Western culture's painting, music, history, literature and language. And yet throughout this time she kept her bond with her own literary and cultural heritage and what she calls her "Persianness."
Despite her troubled life of agony--an unloving and harsh mother; a benevolent but self-indulgent father; an adolescent, bisexual husband; separation from her children; financial difficulties; the stigma of leading a libertine lifestyle and the infamy of removing her veil--Taj's is a genuine voice for women's social grievances in late 20th-century Iran, and one that reveals a remarkable woman in her own right.
"A Thousand and One Nights meets Raise the Red Lantern in this tale of growing up among royal wives and concubines in what is now Iran. . . . Taj saw and recorded a changing society, dissected the role of women in it, and questioned its conventions." (Booklist)
"In this startlingly frank account of life in a Qajar harem, Taj al-Saltana exposes herself and the royal Persian court to public scrutiny. . . . This she does candidly, not only revealing her innermost thoughts and feelings, but also expressing often uncomplimentary views on her country and countrymen. Her account reveals exceptional political awareness among the women in the harem. . . . A treasure-trove of photos of a now bygone era embellish, enhance, and round out this portrait of a fascinating moment in Iran's long and troubled history." (Middle East Journal)
"Taj's account of her childhood in the royal harem is the only account so far by an insider." (Los Angeles Times)
"While the feminist sentiments of the young woman appear modern, it is the simplicity and directness of Taj's personality that makes the work memorable." (Library Journal)
"Taj al-Saltana's memoirs bring home the intense conflicts of a life straddling the harem and modernism. The publishers have succeeded in producing a handsome volume, well stocked with plates and illustrations. Amanat's useful historical sketch enables the book to be appreciated by the general reader as well as the student, reminding us yet again, of the inevitable need to make one well-known, aspect of a Middle Eastern culture familiar to the West." (Times Literary Supplement)
Crowning Anguish Reviews:
In the name of Iran 
2006-11-29 - This book was a non-fiction story of daughter of King of Kings Naser Din. She expressed her difficult circumstances of her life as a lady living in a patriarchy society. Once, she learned secular education she moved away from superstitution. She no longer believed that lighting was god's anger but because of scientific reason. In 1936, she passed away as a destituted person.
Persian Princess 
2004-07-25 - A good primary source, of which few exist. I wanted to point out to one of the reviewers that the language of Iran (Persia) is Persian and NOT Arabic. The memoirs were written in Taj's native Persian (not Arabic) and then translated into English.
I don't think so... 
2001-10-25 - I was required to read this book for a class on the history of the modern Middle East. I thought this would be one of the more interesting textbooks that I have to read this semester. I was wrong; this thing is painful.
I've been informed by a friend of mine from the area that it probably loses something in the transition from Arabic to English, but to me the whole thing is overwritten, self centered and features the "heroine" blaming her problems largely on society. Of course she does go into detail about that society, providing the historical value, but still. In places it reads like a manuscript rejected from Harlequin Romance Novels.
If you really want a picture of life in the Middle East. read "Struggle and Survival in the Modern Middle East" by Edmund Burke. Gives a better pictue.
Crowning Anguish 
2001-09-29 - I was largely disappointed with this book - I expected an autobiographical glimpse into the life of a pioneering feminist Iranian princess and her family. What I got was a "dear diary"-style mess penned by a selfish and astonishingly conceited young woman. Princess Taj al-Saltana's memoir of her life in her father's harem is loaded with self-aggrandizing statements and little else. Granted, the princess' spoiled brat mentality and overblown self image are undoubtedly products of her coddled earlier life as the daughter of the Shah, however, the constant self promotion makes for terribly boring reading. Taj rehashes the same themes and stories time and again, all while constantly paying homage to her own alleged beauty and intellect. I am sorry to say that the princess' method of relating her story was tiresome, and I couldn't wait for it to end. I found myself rolling my eyes each time I came across a ludicrous reference to her great beauty or amazing mental capacity -- her photographs and her actions do not quite measure up to her excessive claims. I was also disappointed by the lack of information regarding harem life. For example, while she writes of the rituals involved with marriage, her disjointed writing style and intense self-focus give the reader only a fleeting idea of what actually happened during her marriage ceremony. The princess' writing is unfocused and often skips back and forth in time, making her story difficult to follow. The reader is provided with very little useful information about royal harem life. The princess' interest in civil rights for Iranian women is overshadowed by her greater interest in her own freedom to do as she pleases.
The book was edited by Abbas Amanat, who provides a dry and lengthy prologue (of just over 100 pages) which sets the stage for the princess' memoir. I found it puzzling at first that the prologue was so long, however, I soon recognized the need for it. The princess provides very little historical orientation in her memoir, and it is necessary for the editor to fill his readers in with pertinent information regarding the political and social atmosphere in turn-of-the-century Iran. While I agree that the intended topic of "Crowning Anguish" is fascinating, those interested in learning about harem life would be better off skipping this book.
A memoir of Great significance to feminism and Qajar History
1998-10-01 - A truly tragic account of the life of a Persian Princess in the nineteenth century, this book will touch nerves even today. But aside from recounting a life, Taj Al-Saltana's memoir makes three significant contributions to the history of Persia. First and foremost, it is an original and quite possibly the first modern-day feminist book by a Persian woman on the condition of women in Taj's era. Second, her memoir is immensely important to understanding life in the Qajar Dynasty's royal harem. Finally, this book allows the most private look into King Nassir Al-Din's life. Nassir Al-Din ruled Persia for nearly one half of the nineteenth century.
This book comes with a detailed introduction from its editor Professor A. Amanat of Yale University. The intro is in-depth, reader friendly, and helps set the stage for understanding Taj's era and life in Persia. I would highly recommend the Book "Pivot of the Universe" also by Amanat, on the life of Taj Al-Saltana's father, King Nassir Al-Din Qajar.
