Sahar Delijani ( fa, سحر دلیجانی; born 1983) is an Iranian author. Her debut novel, ''

Children of the Jacaranda Tree ''Children of the Jacaranda Tree'' is the internationally acclaimed debut novel of Iranian writer Sahar Delijani. Partially inspired by the writer's family history, it is a story about one of the worst best kept secrets of post-revolutionary Iran: ...

'', has been published in more than 75 countries and translated into 30 languages.

Life

Sahar Delijani was born in Evin Prison in

Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the Capital city, capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is th ...

while both her parents were detained as leftist political activists, fighting against the newly established Islamic regime. Delijani's mother spent two years and a half in prison and her father four years. Her uncle, her father's younger brother, however, was among thousands of political prisoners executed and buried in mass graves by the regime in 1988. Delijani, her older brother and her cousin were raised by her grandparents and aunt until their parents' release. Much of this experience, inside and outside Evin Prison, serves as an inspiration for Delijani's debut novel, which spans the decades from 1983 to 2011 and the

Iranian Green Movement The Iranian Green Movement ( fa, جنبش سبز ایران) or Green Wave of Iran ( fa, موج سبز ایران), also referred to as the Persian Awakening or Persian Spring by the western media, refers to a political movement that arose after ...

, when young Iranians once again take to the streets, set to make their own history. In 1996, at the age of 12, Delijani and her family moved to

Northern California Northern California (colloquially known as NorCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. Spanning the state's northernmost 48 counties, its main population centers incl ...

. In 2002, she attended

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

, earning a BA degree in Comparative Literature. Graduating in 2006, she moved to

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. Th ...

, Italy where she lived for over 10 years. She has moved back to California where she is working on her second novel. Twice a Pushcart nominee and longlisted for the Granum Foundation Prize and Le Livre de Poche Prix des Lecteurs, Delijani's writing has appeared in several literary magazines and newspapers including ''Literary Hub'', ''Kweli Journal'', ''BBC Persian'', ''The Bellevue Review'', ''Slice Magazine'', ''DW Persian'', ''

Corriere della Sera The ''Corriere della Sera'' (; en, "Evening Courier") is an Italian daily newspaper published in Milan with an average daily circulation of 410,242 copies in December 2015. First published on 5 March 1876, ''Corriere della Sera'' is one of I ...

'' and

La Nazione ''La Nazione'' is one of the oldest regional newspapers in Italy, and was established on 8 July 1859. The paper is based in Florence, Italy, Florence. History and profile ''La Nazione'' was founded by Bettino Ricasoli, interim head of the Grand ...

Selected Works/Publications

* *

Recognition and reception

came to immediate international attention well before its publication at the 2012

London Book Fair The London Book Fair (LBF) is a large book-publishing trade fair held annually, usually in April, in London, England. LBF is a global marketplace for rights negotiation and the sale and distribution of content across print, audio, TV, film and di ...

as a multi country simultaneous auction started among different publishers, selling North American rights to Atria Publishing/

Simon & Schuster Simon & Schuster () is an American publishing company and a subsidiary of Paramount Global. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. As of 2016, Simon & Schuster was the third largest pub ...

; U.K. rights to

Weidenfeld & Nicolson Weidenfeld & Nicolson Ltd (established 1949), often shortened to W&N or Weidenfeld, is a British publisher of fiction and reference books. It has been a division of the French-owned Orion Publishing Group since 1991. History George Weidenfeld ...

Orion Publishing Group Orion Publishing Group Ltd. is a UK-based book publisher. It was founded in 1991 and acquired Weidenfeld & Nicolson the following year. The group has published numerous bestselling books by notable authors including Ian Rankin, Michael Connelly, ...

; and Italian rights to

Rizzoli Rizzoli is an Italian surname. People *Achilles Rizzoli (1896–1981), an American artist *Angelo Rizzoli (1889–1970), an Italian publisher ** RCS MediaGroup, formerly "A. Rizzoli & C." and "Rizzoli Editore", a publishing company founded by Angel ...

. The novel was released in June 2013 to positive reviews and was furthermore hailed by

Khaled Hosseini Khaled Hosseini (;Pashto/Dari ; born March 4, 1965) is an Afghan-American novelist, UNHCR goodwill ambassador, and former physician. His debut novel ''The Kite Runner'' (2003) was a critical and commercial success; the book and his subsequent ...

, author of The Kite Runner, who calls it "a celebration of the human heart's eternal yearning for freedom" and names it as one of his recommended books in the March 2013 newsletter of The Khaled Hosseini Foundation.

was among

Kansas City Star ''The Kansas City Star'' is a newspaper based in Kansas City, Missouri. Published since 1880, the paper is the recipient of eight Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Star'' is most notable for its influence on the career of President Harry S. Truman and ...

's Top books of 2013. In December 2012, Delijani was heralded by the Italian national newspaper,

La Stampa ''La Stampa'' (meaning ''The Press'' in English) is an Italian daily newspaper published in Turin, Italy. It is distributed in Italy and other European nations. It is one of the oldest newspapers in Italy. History and profile The paper was fou ...

, as one of the literary protagonists of 2013.

was a finalist for

Elle ''Elle'' (stylized ''ELLE'') is a worldwide women's magazine of French origin that offers a mix of fashion and beauty content, together with culture, society and lifestyle. The title means "she" or "her" in French. ''Elle'' is considered the ...

's Gran Premio 2014, a

Women's National Book Association The Women's National Book Association (WNBA) was established in 1917, as an organization to promote the role of women in the community of the book.The Women's National Book Association Walker, Belle M. The Bookman; a Review of Books and Life (1895� ...

's Great Group Read 2014 selection. CBS Local Best Book Club Picks for Fall 2014 and a candidate for Prix des Lecteurs Sélection 2015 by

Le Livre de Poche Le Livre de Poche (literally "The Pocket Book") is the name of a collection of publications which first appeared on 9 February 1953 under the leadership of and published by the , a subsidiary of Hachette. In terms of its influence on the mainstr ...

References

External links

Official website

Author Sahar Delijani's biography

Sahar Delijani's ''Children of the Jacaranda Tree'' Book Review

Sahar Delijani's Profile at Victoria Sanders and Associates

Sahar Delijani's Interview with BookBrowse.com

Articles by Sahar Delijani

Books by Sahar Delijani, Thriftbooks
{{DEFAULTSORT:Delijani, Sahar 1983 births Living people Iranian women novelists Iranian novelists Iranian women writers University of California, Berkeley people 21st-century American novelists American women novelists 21st-century American women writers Iranian refugees Iranian emigrants to the United States Writers from Tehran