In “Tehrangeles” we meet an Iranian immigrant named Al who came to this country with nothing and while working making pizzas in a pizza parlor he got the inspiration to create a fast food item, a microwave pocket pizza-he proceeded to make a fortune off of it.
Al, his wife, and their four daughters, live in a luxurious mansion and as we experience their points of view we discern the melodramas surrounding them as they plan the creation of a reality TV show about their family, you know, kind of like the Kardashians.
In an interview the author admitted that when she first read “Little Women” she wasn’t very impressed but that over the years the story grew on her. Fans of that classic novel might enjoy comparing the four sisters in “Tehrangeles” with those in the Alcott book to guess who corresponds with whom in each book.
The sisters are: Violet, a kind, vaguely disinterested fashion model, Roxanna, a major social media influencer with a substance abuse problem, Mina, a brilliant but reclusive hermit who spends most of her time online, and Haylee, the youngest, an exercise freak who is about to take a deep dive into the echo chamber of conspiracy theories which are so prevalent these days.
As the story opens the sisters are anticipating their reality TV show with varying levels of enthusiasm. The father Al is excited about it, he craves the publicity. Their mother Homa misses Iran, she’s depressed and wants nothing to do with a TV show about her family. Oh, and the pandemic is just about to happen.
The climax of the story occurs as the family hosts an enormous party at their mansion right as the pandemic is blowing up. It is a super spreader event. Do you remember those? Ah, the memories. At the party Al decides to experiment with psychedelic drugs and has quite an interesting time.
“Tehrangeles” is the story of a wacky, thoroughly modern family coping with all the distractions of their daily lives while one member of their group, their mother Homa, just wants to go back to Iran, to the simpler life, without any of this shallow garbage that spews forth endlessly from every screen and high-tech device.
The true star of this reality show is actually their Persian cat, Pari, who is featured on the cover of the book.
Vick Mickunas of Yellow Springs interviews authors every Saturday at 7 a.m. and on Sundays at 10:30 a.m. on WYSO-FM (91.3). For more information, visit www.wyso.org/programs/book-nook. Contact him at vick@vickmickunas.com.
Credit: Contributed
Credit: Contributed
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