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  • Published: 1 March 2012
  • ISBN: 9781448106738
  • Imprint: Cornerstone Digital
  • Format: EBook
  • Pages: 336

The Good Daughter

My Mother's Hidden Life




A poignant and beautifully written story of three generations of Iranian women

'With this one word, Lili had finally understood many things: that no matter what she promised or sacrificed or gave, she would always be 'broken' to her daughter.'

When Jasmin Darznik finds a photo among her father's possessions shortly after his death, she recognises the child in the veil and bride's clothes as her mother, Lili, but the groom is unfamiliar.

Who had her mother married all those years before? A few months later Lili sends Jasmin ten cassette tapes which reveal the secret history of their family: the true story of the abusive man she married, and the daughter she was forced to leave behind.

This is an unforgettable story of secrets, betrayal and exile, and of an unshakeable mother-daughter bond.

  • Published: 1 March 2012
  • ISBN: 9781448106738
  • Imprint: Cornerstone Digital
  • Format: EBook
  • Pages: 336

About the author

Jasmin Darznik

Jasmin Darznik is the author of three previous books. Her debut novel, Song of a Captive Bird, was a New York Times Book Review "Editors' Choice" and a Los Angeles Times bestseller. Her novel The Bohemians was a New York Times Book Review summer recommendation and her memoir, The Good Daughter, was a New York Times bestseller. Her essays have appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and other publications. Darznik holds an MFA in fiction from the Bennington Writing Seminars, a J.D. from the University of California, and a Ph.D. in English from Princeton University. She is currently chair of the MFA Program in Writing at California College of the Arts in San Francisco.

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Praise for The Good Daughter

A beautifully recounted homage to her mother's life and struggles.

Booklist

'an astonishing tale of two cultures miles apart yet inextricably linked through the daughter or a woman who had the courage to stand up and be counted.'

Resident

Deeply affecting...How can you not feel for these women? Once you read this book, you will see Iran and Iranians with new eyes. A brilliant debut.

Anita Amirrezvani, author of The Blood of Flowers

Richly detailed ... An eye-opening account that disturbs with its depiction of women in Iranian society, but warms the heart in its portrayal of their gritty endurance.

Kirkus

Truly mesmerising

Scotland on Sunday