Review: ‘Song of a Captive Bird’ is a Stunning Account of Famed Iranian Poet Forugh Farrokhzad’s Life
Not quite historical fiction and not quite biography, there’s a genre that exists halfway in between and Jasmin Darznik’s Song of a Captive Bird: A Novel fits perfectly. While the book is fiction, it documents the real life and times of Forugh Farrokhzad, the Iranian poet. Forugh led a fairly controversial life for her time – fiercely independent, she wrote from a strong feminist perspective; her poetry was considered to be so controversial that it remained banned for about ten years after the Iranian Revolution. Now, she is thought of as one of Iran’s most famous and influential poets and an early advocate for feminism, women’s rights and independence. Jasmin Darznik’s novel tells the story of Forugh’s childhood and life in Tehran.…