Under the Persimmon Tree: A Novel

Set in 1940s Tehran, when patriarchal dominance made women invisible, two girls must sacrifice everything to build lives of their own.

Goli is still a child when her father marries her off to an older cousin. While she dreams of a life beyond the confines of feminine propriety, a devastating cycle of pregnancies and miscarriages pushes her to her breaking point.

Jasmine longs for an education, but her home is ruled by her father's erratic outbursts. Her only escape is to become a second wife, thrusting her into a complicated family, shaped by unexpected bonds.

As Goli and Jasmine, two Jewish girls, come of age in a world governed by religion and patriarchy, they must decide whether the promise of freedom is worth the cost of everything they have ever known.

Set under Germany’s occupation of Iran during World War II and chronicling both the rise of antisemitism and the Shah’s modernization regime, Under the Persimmon Tree unflinchingly portrayals of child exploitation, child marriage, and the oppression of women, and spotlights the extraordinary resilience of women who navigate impossible choices to claim independence.