In Together Tea, Marjan Kamali’s delightful and heartwarming debut novel, Darya has discovered the perfect gift for her daughter’s twenty-fifth birthday: an ideal husband. Mina, however, is fed up with her mother’s years of endless matchmaking and the spreadsheets grading available Iranian-American bachelors. Having spent her childhood in Tehran and the rest of her life in New York City, Mina has … City, Mina has experienced cultural clashes firsthand, but she’s learning that the greatest clashes sometimes happen at home.
After a last ill-fated attempt at matchmaking, mother and daughter embark on a return journey to Iran. Immersed once again in Persian culture, the two women gradually begin to understand each other. But when Mina falls for a young man who never appeared on her mother’s matchmaking radar, will Mina and Darya’s new-found appreciation for each other survive?
Together Tea is a moving and joyous debut novel about family, love, and finding the place you truly belong.
more
While it does a fairly good job of portraying Iranian culture and has some truly lovely descriptions, I found this book to be a little heavy-handed with the whole “immigrant experience” angle. It’s tough to read something like this and not compare it to Persepolis, which does a far better job at weaving history together with the character’s personal arc. I guess I just wish the characters had a bit more depth and personality outside of their “Iranian-ness.”
Very pleasant, quick read – took an afternoon. Sort of chick-lit vibe except given more weight since it deals with a family that left Iran during the revolution (but really it’s about a mother/daughter relationship and being an immigrant). Not super heavy on plot but still lovely esp because it talks about FOOD a lot which is all I care about in life.
I really enjoyed this novel, about an Iranian family that came over to the USA after the grandmother is killed by a bomb during the start of the Iranian revolution in the 1970’s.
I thought this was going to be just a fun light read, but this book had so much more to it. I saw it as a study of choices, and in a way the guilt, happiness and sadness that comes with those choices.
The pull between the homeland and the adopted land, the traditions of their homeland being kept up even while not there.
This story mainly focuses on the mother/daughter relationship and the pull between the modern day practices of the USA and those that the mother cannot forget from her life in Iran.
Part way through the story, In the 1990’s mother and daughter return for a trip back to Iran, to visit relatives that they were not able to say goodbye to when they left the country. Daughter Mina, wants to find out who she is and what is important to her, and the mother Darya, has never forgotten her life there. The time in Iran is rich in family, food, visual images of the beauty of the country, which I loved to read about, but as well the dangers of being back there at that time, with all of the strict rules applied to women. Here on this journey Mina is at last able to find a happy medium between her two worlds. I in a way could relate to her feelings of not really belonging to either country, as I was also born in one place but raised in another.
What is it like to live astride the hyphen? To never be Iranian or American but Iranian-American. As a Franco-American this book spoke powerfully about hybridity, culture, and family. It was also a lovely read, and took me to far away places. I’m a sucker for a book that has depth and playfulness, sorrow and joy. This was my favorite read this summer!
I really enjoyed this book. I learned some things about Persian culture, which I appreciate. Also enjoyed the narrative.
Marjan Kamali’s rich depiction of the juxtaposition of Persian and American cultural life is completely soulful. I learned much about how superficial our impressions of other cultures and societies can be through her vivid stories about the characters in this book. Beautifully structured and hearwrenchingly poignant!
Great insight into what it was like to grow up in Iran, and to make the transition to American.
A lovely immigrant and mother/daughter story. I enjoyed it thoroughly!