Veil of Roses
Book Report Noor-ul-ain Zar 4/29/12 8-10 The book I have chosen to do this month is Veil of Roses by Laura Fitzgerald. I have chosen this book because I think it describes some similar things, I have heard of and some things that happen in my country sometimes too. The genre of this book is realistic fiction. And realistic fiction means, it’s not real but it could definitely happen to anyone. The book is basically about an Iranian-women named Tamila who has been basically stuck in Iran for the longest time and finally got to come to America for the first time.
And she is so used to not having any freedom, America opens many doors for her. But only on one condition, she has to find a husband in two months, which is hard work. The setting on this book goes to America to Tucson, Arizona. It also takes place in, houses, coffee shops, English class and even outside. The mood of this book (or how the reader feels when reading the story) goes on and off. It goes from mysteries, to happiness, and sadness too. Usually, the tone of the book reflects the mood of the book. If the way the author writes the book, and a certain chapter is sad, then the reader will also feel sad.
The point of view the book is in first person. And I know it’s first person because it contains the words “ I, and me”. The characters in this book are, Tamila Soroush or known as Tami Joon (the main character) basically she is fun, shy, and open to new things. She basically has been shut in a box because she hasn’t had much rights and now that she is in America, she is very experimental. She has a family who cares a lot about her, but also are very protective. Maryam, Tami’s sister is very protective. She loves Tami a lot, but always has an eye on her.
She tries to get Tami the best husband as possible but needs to realize that Tami should be on her own to find one. Ardishir ( Maryam’s husband) is very supportive, rich and also takes care of Tami. He seems Tami’s point of view in things, and is very nice and not that important in the story. Ike (Tami’s love interest) she meets him in America at a coffee place and at first they don’t click but later they do. And the other character, Haroun who potentially wants to marry Tami. This story is basically about a girl named Tami, who comes from Iran to America to live with her sister Maryam and her husband Ardishir until she finds a husband.
She only has a short period of time, and cannot live with Maryam and her husband for long because her Visa will expire. If she does not find a husband, who has a Visa she will have to go back to Iran forever. So she comes and lives with Maryam, and isn’t adapting to change very well. When she gets to America, she is open to all types of things she never got to do when she was in Iran. She got to go out without her hijab (covering of woman’s head) and got to do everyday things that are usually taken for granted like going out for coffee, which cannot be done in Iran.
So as she searches for a husband one day she goes to a coffee shop on her way to her English class and meets an American guy named Ike. She doesn’t try to talk to him, but when Tami gets confused because shes from Iran, Ike helps her out and they become friends, but she hides Ike from Maryam because she isn’t supposed to engage a conversation with any other American guy. Then Maryam finds other people for Tami, and none are good and after tons of hardships Tami finally marries Ike. Yes, the story is very effective and powerful. I enjoyed the story very much.
The strengths are that, the author made it so believable that she is from Iran even though it’s realistic fiction. The weaknesses are that it could have been written more effective, and better words. My overall response to the book, is that I enjoyed it very much and mostly because I could relate to it being from a different country and knowing how hard it is to settle to a new country, and see how differently things are done and different places. I would recommend this to people with the similar, country or someone who understands being from other places.
But I would also recommend this to people who aren’t from other countries so they can learn about new cultures and how things are done in Iran. Overall, I really did enjoy the book and I think If people actually didn’t judge the book by the cover and read it, they would enjoy it. It teaches a lot of things, and opens you to new cultures. You will also start, to learn how we take little things for granted like simply walking down the street for granted. But, overall this book was amazing and I would recommend this, to everyone.
