Finished reading: The Blood of Flowers by Anita Amirrezvani 📚
The Blood Of Flowers is a magical carpet ride through seventeenth century Iran as seen through the eyes of a spirited and inquisitive Islamic girl who tells the story of her journey from adolescence to adulthood.
Like the threads of the rugs and carpets painstakingly woven by skilled craftsmen and women in the story, this is a tale within tales. The journey begins with a simple life in a small country village where survival is an everyday activity and roles and values are based on traditions handed down through the telling of oral histories. Only superstition and the vagaries of fate can change otherwise seemingly pre-ordained futures.
A passing comet in the sky spells a family crisis, however, and the inability of the village to accommodate changed circumstances requires a new direction and a voyage into the unknown. Arriving in the big city, mother and daughter seek refuge with a long-lost cousin and his family. Their life is transformed from the freedom of simple yet vulnerable existence to paradoxically privileged servitude to their wealthy relatives.
The story’s heroine now embarks on a new period in her life - one of exploration, discovery and awakening of all aspects of her self and environment. In overcoming all the obstacles and setbacks that mark her way, she learns to take responsibility for her life and stand up to those around her.
The author writes in a simple style, which at times seems a little formulaic. That said, it’s not a bad formula to follow and it works to keep the pages turning and the story building. Her style reminds me a little of a pragmatic Paulo Coelho - without the spiritual mysticism - or of sanitised David Mitchell - without the dark and violent fantasy.