My Uncle Napoleon

by Iraj Pezeshkzad | Literature & Fiction |
ISBN: Global Overview for this book
Registered by conto of Lisboa (city), Lisboa (distrito) Portugal on 12/6/2014
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3 journalers for this copy...
Journal Entry 1 by conto from Lisboa (city), Lisboa (distrito) Portugal on Saturday, December 6, 2014

The most beloved Iranian novel of the twentieth century.

Overview:
“God forbid, I’ve fallen in love with Layli!” So begins the farce of our narrator’s life, one spent in a large extended Iranian family lorded over by the blustering, paranoid patriarch, Dear Uncle Napoleon. When Uncle Napoleon’s least-favorite nephew falls for his daughter, Layli, family fortunes are reversed, feuds fired up and resolved, and assignations attempted and thwarted.

First published in Iran in the 1970s and adapted into a hugely successful television series, this beloved novel is now “Suggested Reading” in Azar Nafisi’s Reading Lolita in Tehran. My Uncle Napoleon is a timeless and universal satire of first love and family intrigue.

Journal Entry 2 by conto at Lisboa (city), Lisboa (distrito) Portugal on Sunday, December 7, 2014
A reference in Iran: forbidden with the Islamic revolution, continued to be read in hiding after having sold thousands of copies between 1973 (when it was published) and 1979 and having been turned into perhaps the most popular TV series ever in the country. Even gave rise to the expression "uncle napoleonism" by reference to someone who sees the hand of foreigners in everything that happens around him. And it seems that this feeling is so present throughout the entire Persian society that a work like this was essential to make people aware of the absurdity of it and so that they could even laugh at themselves. It's due noting that the book and the TV series were banned by the mullahs, who have since criticized it on the grounds that the author would have had orders from the imperialists to write it and to destroy the roots of religion.

As for myself, I really enjoyed the book, even if I didn’t find it easy to read and despite being basically a satirical work or a sham (I don’t quite know how to qualify it) that reminded me a little of Don Quixote, which isn' exactly my prefered kind of reading. And it’s under this tone that the author deals with some serious topics such as first love and sexuality but mostly paranoia on a large scale.
Throughout the book the permanent association of sexual experience with a trip to San Francisco is as much fun as the sayings of the man who from his youth collects all that concerned Napoleon and invents for himself a heroic role in several battles very similar to the Napoleonic wars. And is someone who ends wishing that the English will get to finish him off quickly instead of extending the persecution to which allegedly he is subjected (because everything was part of the British plot, even the delay in his nephew’s train).
The book's setting is a garden lodging the households of three brothers, where decisions (including lies to preserve the honor) are taken in family councils. The "dear Uncle Napoleon" uses his insignificance to be relevant, dominating and bullying those around, from the faithful servant (who listens with admiration his fantasies and validates it before skeptics and scoffers, claiming to have been present at the various moments) to the brother and father of the narrator, who accuses Napoleon of having disgraced France and therefore becomes 'persona non grata'.

Journal Entry 3 by conto at Lisboa (city), Lisboa (distrito) Portugal on Sunday, December 7, 2014

Released 9 yrs ago (12/9/2014 UTC) at Lisboa (city), Lisboa (distrito) Portugal

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A surprise Xmas RABCK for a friend in need of some pampering. :)
Have fun and have a wonderful and magic new year!

Journal Entry 4 by wingArvoreswing at Viana do Castelo, Viana do Castelo Portugal on Wednesday, December 17, 2014
What a beautiful surprise this is!

Thank you! Enjoy Iran :-)

Obrigado. Um abraço grande.

Journal Entry 5 by wingArvoreswing at Porto Santo (ilha), Madeira Portugal on Monday, August 22, 2022
At the beginning of the book, I enjoyed all the parody concerning the family and uncle Napoleon. But after 100 pages of the same lies, the same tricks and stories, I got tired of it and gave up. Unfortunately, I'm not in my best condition and lately I haven't been able to focus and read as much as I used to.
The book will now go to cookiescaucasus as part of the wishlist tag game.

Journal Entry 6 by cookiescaucasus at Columbus, Ohio USA on Monday, August 29, 2022
Came home from work and found this on my doorstop. Thank you for sharing! I found this years ago on some sort of "best books from every country" list and put it on my TBR, and then Arvores noticed it on my wishlist. The cover is gorgeous (photo doesn't do it justice). Looking forward to reading this. Especially cool that it's an Iranian book from Portugal.

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