{"product_id":"to-keep-the-sun-alive-isbn-9781948226769","title":"To Keep the Sun Alive","description":"\u003cb\u003e\"[A] tenderhearted début novel . . . A wide–ranging narrative, showing the enduring ramifications of filial and political violence.\" —\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe New Yorker\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe year is 1979. The Iranian Revolution is just around the corner. In the northeastern city of Naishapur, a retired judge and his wife, Bibi–Khanoom, continue to run their ancient family orchard, growing apples, plums, peaches, and sour cherries. The days here are marked by long, elaborate lunches on the terrace where the judge and his wife mediate disputes between aunts, uncles, nieces, and nephews that foreshadow the looming national crisis to come. Will the monarchy survive the revolutionary tide gathering across the country? Will the judge’s brother, a powerful cleric, take political control of the town or remain only a religious leader?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAnd yet, life goes on. Bibi–Khanoom’s grandniece secretly falls in love with the judge’s grandnephew and dreams of a career on the stage. His other grandnephew withers away on opium dreams. A widowed father longs for a life in Europe. A strained marriage slowly unravels.  The orchard trees bloom and fruit as the streets in the capital grow violent. And a once–in–a–lifetime solar eclipse, set to occur on one of the holiest days of year, finally causes the family—and the country—to break.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTold through a host of unforgettable characters, ranging from servants and young children to intimate friends, \u003ci\u003eTo Keep the Sun Alive\u003c\/i\u003e reveals the personal behind the political, reminding us of the human lives that animate historical events.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e“How do we recognize the moment our future has been written for us? In \u003ci\u003eTo Keep the Sun Alive\u003c\/i\u003e, as the Islamic Revolution looms just outside the gate of an Iranian family orchard, Rabeah Ghaffari has built a world so lush, so precise that you will find yourself rewriting history if only to imagine it could still exist.”\u003c\/b\u003e—Mira Jacob, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Sleepwalker’s Guide to Dancing\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003ePraise for \u003ci\u003eTo Keep the Sun Alive\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAn official ABA Indie Next List selection\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA \u003ci\u003eBig Other\u003c\/i\u003e Most Anticipated Small Press Book of the Year\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA \u003ci\u003eThe Millions\u003c\/i\u003e Most Anticipated Book of the Year\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"[A] tenderhearted début novel . . . A wide–ranging narrative, showing the enduring ramifications of filial and political violence.\" —\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe New Yorker\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"In her debut novel, Ghaffari addresses the political concerns of the period through an intense portrait of a family struggling against them.\" —\u003cb\u003eAnnabel Gutterman, \u003ci\u003eTime\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Ghaffari’s fiery debut tenderly depicts a family against the harrowing backdrop of the 1979 Iranian revolution.\" —\u003cb\u003eDavid Canfield, \u003ci\u003eEntertainment Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"The dynamic family story is a moving exploration about how our political environments and affiliations can make us question and test our deepest relationships.\" —\u003cb\u003eSamantha Zabell, \u003ci\u003eApartment Therapy\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Told through a host of unique characters, including servants, children, and friends, \u003ci\u003eTo Keep the Sun Alive\u003c\/i\u003e tells the largely untold personal stories behind one of modern world history's most important political moments.\" —\u003cb\u003eSadie Trombetta, \u003ci\u003eBustle\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"From page 1 on, you'll be deeply invested in the story of a large family affected by the Iranian Revolution in the '70s . . . Ghaffari's saga is so evocative you'll nearly be able to smell the orange trees in the family's orchard.\" —\u003cb\u003eElena Nicolaou, \u003ci\u003eRefinery29\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Ghaffari’s novel examines the lives of Iranians from different walks of life—retired judges, children, servants—as they go about their business amidst political turmoil and strife.\" —\u003cb\u003eSarah Stiefvater, \u003ci\u003ePureWow\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Ghaffari skillfully illustrates the very human consequences of political history.\"\" —\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Christian Science Monitor\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"More than the Iranian revolution, it’s a meditation on the nature of stories—the way they shape our lives and the power they have to not only enrich, but sustain us.\" —\u003cb\u003eRachel León, \u003ci\u003eChicago Review of Books\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Rabeah Ghaffari’s story set during the 1979 Iranian Revolution is more than a history lesson. The saga is a character study about how our place in the world is viewed by others, but more importantly, what our place in the world means to us.\"\" —\u003cb\u003eAdam Vitcavage, \u003ci\u003eElectric Literature\u003c\/i\u003e, 1 of the 20 Best Debut Novels of the Year\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"An intimate yet sprawling chronicle of life in Iran before and during its revolutionary years . . . The stories she tells of Iran are rendered in authoritative fashion—only fitting for a book that is about the persistence of memory. They fulfill \u003ci\u003eTo Keep the Sun Alive\u003c\/i\u003e’s mission of capturing a specific place and time.\" —\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eForeword Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"This is the rarest kind of novel, one which loves as much as it teaches. Its characters burrow into your heart, and there you will want them to stay . . . A true and complete delight.\" —\u003cb\u003eWill Harris, \u003ci\u003eBooks and Bao\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Ghaffari is an empathetic writer, able to suffuse even the smallest character with a rich inner life. The web she weaves between the personal and political is so intricate, \u003ci\u003eTo Keep the Sun Alive\u003c\/i\u003e warrants more than one read.\" —\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Rumpus\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Ghaffari’s exciting debut is a family epic centered on several months in 1979 . . . Ghaffari weaves each character’s deep history into the novel, creating a very complete world. Her poetic prose relays deep and intimate emotion in a single line; its richness makes characters' joys and tragedies palpably felt by readers, too. This is a beautifully written story of a family's upheaval and its roots in their own history.\" —\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e (starred review)\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"A story of grand scale told with humility, precision and vivid sensory detail . . . This is a rich, evocative and thoroughly impressive first novel.\" —\u003cb\u003eEmma Levy, \u003ci\u003eShelf Awareness\u003c\/i\u003e (starred review)\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Evocative debut set during the Iranian Revolution . . . Ghaffari delves into her characters with sensitivity for their positions and differences. Readers will savor the emotional depth of one family’s experience of the terrifying effects of religious fundamentalism and political instability.\" —\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"In her lush and atmospheric debut, author Ghaffari sketches a complex portrait of a country on the brink of revolution and explores the poignant ways political unrest can bind or tear families apart . . . A nuanced, character–driven exploration of a formative moment in a country's complicated history. An evocative and deeply felt narrative portrait.\" —\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Written in rich, enrapturing prose, \u003ci\u003eTo Keep the Sun Alive\u003c\/i\u003e transports us into the world of a vibrant, multigenerational family and their ancestral fruit orchard. Rabeah Ghaffari evokes an Iran on the brink of revolution, in a story of love, uprising, familial bonds, and the lives behind history books.\" —\u003cb\u003eHala Alyan, author of \u003ci\u003eSalt Houses\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"How do we recognize the moment our future has been written for us? In \u003ci\u003eTo Keep the Sun Alive\u003c\/i\u003e, as the Islamic Revolution looms just outside the gate of an Iranian family orchard, Rabeah Ghaffari has built a world so lush, so precise that you will find yourself rewriting history if only to imagine it could still exist.\"\" —\u003cb\u003eMira Jacob, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Sleepwalker's Guide to Dancing\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eRABEAH GHAFFARI\u003c\/b\u003e was born in Iran and lives in New York City. She is a filmmaker and writer whose collaborative fiction with artist Shirin Neshat was featured in \u003ci\u003eReflections on Islamic Art\u003c\/i\u003e, and whose documentary, \u003ci\u003eThe Troupe\u003c\/i\u003e, featured Tony Kushner. Her most recent feature–length screenplay, \u003ci\u003eThe Inheritors\u003c\/i\u003e, was commissioned by producer\/costume designer Patricia Field. \u003ci\u003eTo Keep the Sun Alive\u003c\/i\u003e is her first novel.","brand":"Catapult","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46300592373989,"sku":"NP9781948226769","price":16.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9781948226769.jpg?v=1767742705","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/to-keep-the-sun-alive-isbn-9781948226769","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}