This is an elegantly written memoir of a young Iranian-American poet and journalist about growing up in Iran during the revolution.

Roya Hakakian was raised in a Jewish family in Tehran, daughter of an esteemed poet, in a household that hummed with intellectual life. As a young girl she dreamed of becoming a writer. But in February 1979, when Ayatollah Khomeyni returned with an iron fist from a 15-year exile, everything changed. Within a year, a third of Iran's Jewish population was gone. Within five years, Hakakian's family, too, was contemplating political asylum.

Journey from the Land of No is a lyrical coming-of-age story that creates an intimate portrait of life in Tehran: Roya's family and friends, her life at school, her observations of Iran's political life, and her longing to escape a sense of displacement from her home, culture, and language. This story of one deeply intelligent and perceptive young girl's attempt to find an authentic voice of her own at a time of cultural repression presents a view of Iran that readers have not yet encountered.

This new book has already been adopted for several courses, including a course on the Islamic Revolution at Concordia University.