One title on her list:
My Uncle NapoleonRead about another title on Dumas' list.
by Iraj Pezeshkzad, translated by Dick Davis
Mage, 1996
It's difficult to exaggerate the popularity in Iran during the 1970s of "Dayee Jon Napoleon" -- both the novel and the TV comedy series based on it. Literally translated as "Dear Uncle Napoleon" but called "My Uncle Napoleon" in its English version, the story centers on three Tehran families in the 1940s living under the thumb of an egotistical patriarch who believes himself the incarnation of Napoleon Bonaparte. He is also extremely paranoid, believing, among other things, that the British are responsible for all of Iran's misfortunes. To this day, Iranians use the phrase "Uncle Napoleon" to describe a conspiracy theorist. The book and TV series were of course banned in Iran after the 1979 revolution -- ensuring their popularity with a new generation.
--Marshal Zeringue
Posts
