Half a Cup of Sand and Sky by Nadine Bjursten
Life is complex. People are complex. Countries are complex.
A wonderfully elaborate illustration of the complicated nature of love, loyalty and international politics, Half a Cup of Sand and Sky (Alder House Books) follows a nuanced female protagonist living in Iran during the convulsive period of the 1970s and 1980s. Author Nadine Bjursten provides a broad view of political activism and the fight for human rights in the Middle East, while maintaining a sense of intimacy with the main characters. Half a Cup of Sand and Sky is notable for the literary quality of the writing as well as a fascinating plot of international intrigue that remains relevant today.
A City on the Brink
When Amineh was a young girl, her mother shared many important lessons in the solitude of their rose gardens in Qamsar, Iran. Amineh learns of the beauty of the world, the wisdom in poetry and art and the importance of seeking understanding outside of her own experience. She cherishes her childhood, and the peace she felt in the vast space of the desert. When her parents are lost in an accident, the family farm is sold, and Amineh moves to Tehran to fulfill her mother’s wish that she receive an education. She finds Tehran in the 1970s in a state of protest, activism and on the brink of drastic social and political change. At times, Amineh wishes that she had the rebellious spirit of her best friend Ava, willing to risk everything to achieve something better for their country. When Amineh encounters Farzad, a charming older man, at a political rally, she is attracted to his confident nature and the kindness in his eyes. Little does she realize that his fervent efforts to stand up to a corrupt government will endanger her sense of peace for decades to come.
Half a Cup of Sand and Sky provides a ground level look at life in Iran during this fascinating period of recent history; delving into the home that Amineh and Farzad build together, as well as the friendships, promises and compromises along the way. This story simultaneously examines global politics, nuclear armament and convoluted international policies in a manner that is informative and intriguing. As Farzad pursues his life’s work of dissuading countries to develop weapons, the reader learns something of the unbelievably high stakes of nuclear proliferation. The devastating potential of the atomic arms race remains just as relevant today as it was decades ago when this story unfolds. A compassionate look at daily life in the Middle East along with a focus on social activism are among the reasons this book was selected as a finalist for the prestigious PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction.
Evocative, Immersive Prose
Nadine Bjursten tells Amineh’s story with descriptive sentences, flowing prose and the wonderful wordplay of a top-tier literary talent. Within the first few pages of Half a Cup of Sand and Sky, the reader will likely recognize that the words used by Bjursten carry a depth of meaning and emotion that extend beyond the page. One way this is accomplished is through the use of sensory details to create each vivid setting. In one passage, Amineh recalls her home in the desert of Iran:
She relished the sensation of the wind sweeping in front of her, behind her, catching and whipping her hair. Thistles caught at her ankles, but she didn’t mind. The desert was the closest thing she knew to happiness. She felt a surge of contentment under the empty sky, in the white heat, among the barren folds of rock and sand, where solitariness itself was natural, even laudable.
Life Lessons From a Turbulent Era
In addition to wonderful writing, the pages of Half a Cup of Sand and Sky hold great wisdom. Amineh’s triumphs, shortcomings and important life decisions bring happiness at times and sorrow at others. Through it all, the insightful words of her mother and father help her to keep going in the face of great challenges. One of the greatest lessons of this story is stated clearly within the opening pages and elucidated through Amineh’s journey.
To get a clearer understanding of anything, we must go deeper and be prepared to accept that the truth lies outside our current idea or belief. It is perhaps one of our most important pursuits as human beings.
Half a Cup of Sand and Sky by Nadine Bjursten is a profound story, beginning in the desert of Iran and moving around the globe to a number of additional, intriguing settings. Amineh, Farzad and their family face tremendous challenges in their search for happiness, meaning and peace during the turbulent era of the 1970s, 80s and early 90s. Readers will enjoy exquisite writing, moving characters and insightful lessons on what it means to be a wonderfully imperfect human being.
Nadine Bjursten’s career began unconventionally soon after she graduated from Temple University in Philadelphia, (where she spent many a free afternoon in a helicopter taking black-and-white photos of the city). She was about to start work at a publication in New York but something stopped her. She spoke with some cultural magazines, and before she knew it, she was landing in La Paz, Bolivia, where she would remain for a couple of years, working her way up to become editor-in-chief of Bolivian Times.
From there she has headed diverse publications in New York and Washington, DC, from DM News to Arms Control Today, including several years at the Global Security Institute where she learned about the security challenges facing our world.
She spent the last twelve years raising her twin girls while researching, writing, and traveling to such countries as Iran and Russia.
Her first novel, Half a Cup of Sand and Sky, formerly By These Limbs, was a finalist for the Pen Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction and nominated for both the Bath Novel Award and the Mslexia Novel Competition. Her manuscript, The Point Where the Light Breaks, came in second place in the Geneva Literary Prize.
