The Blood of Flowers

… or the art of storytelling

By Anita Amirrezvani
Webpage
Read an excerpt
or listen: Shohreh Aghdashloo‘s voice

A young girl comes of age as a carpetmaker’s apprentice in 17th century Iran: “Everything about Iran-born, former Northern California dance critic Anita Amirrezvani’s first novel is meticulously designed: its nine-year creation; its hypnotic cadence and considered approach to plot and characters inspired by Iranian tales and its immaculately researched historical detail, down to its unnamed narrator. It’s all crafted, as the author’s note indicates, “in tribute to the anonymous artisans of Iran.” … read more
San Francisco Chronicle, Christine Thomas, June 10, 2007.

Excerpts from Q & A (emphasis are mine):

… One morning when I was looking around my living room at my Iranian rugs, embroidery, and miniature paintings, it occurred to me that none of the work was signed. As in most parts of the world, the identity of the craftsperson was considered unimportant and went unrecorded and unrecognized … my thoughts turned to the lives of these artists, and I began to wonder where they came from, what their stories were, and whether they were still alive … my goal was to acknowledge the labor of the “unnamed craftsperson” whose work has endured through the centuries…

… seventeenth-century women would have been quite strong in their own spheres … one of my key concerns in writing the novel was to portray women as they might have seen themselves…

… I avoid the term “weavers” because Iranian rugs are typically created knot by knot, as opposed to being woven through an intersection of warp and weft threads …

… Shah Abbas … loved crafts … To fund the state coffers, he created workshops for carpet making, since hand-loomed silk rugs were starting to become known and admired in Europe… Some of the greatest carpets ever made were produced in Iran during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries…

… Many travelers to Iran in the pre-modern era reported with surprise that illiterate peasants could recite extremely long passages of poetry. The place of poetry cannot be overestimated in the culture; it has always been considered the highest art …

… After so many years of blackout when it comes to Iran, I thought people might be interested in learning things about it that go beyond the politics of the moment … I wanted to give readers insight into the soul of the culture: the wedding customs, the cuisine, the life of women, the craft of rugmaking, and the uses of traditional storytelling — the things that have made Iran what it is and Iranians who they are. In doing so, I hope to get beyond the headlines and broaden the dialogue about Iran.

Anita Amirrezvani was born in Tehran, Iran, and raised in San Francisco. The blood of flowers is her first novel. Anita has worked as an arts journalist and dance critic in San Francisco.

Update another review: Layer carpets, layered stories by Jessica Yadegaran, Contra Costa Times,