You should read this book if:

1. You want to be swept off your feet by the familiarity of young love and the power it holds.
2. You appreciate cultural novels written by authors who have a place in that culture.
3. You love connecting to characters, and when your heart swells and aches with them.

Bahman and Roya are 17 and in love, a feeling that many of us have known before. Set against the political unrest that encased Iran in 1953, their relationship blossoms. But then, by a trick of fate, the day they are destined to meet to bring their love to law, they are separated. Two lovers meant to meet once again continue down their paths, isolated from one another.

This book was pure magic to me. I walked into this novel thinking I would learn a bit more about Iran, about politics, and that the romance in the middle would be insignificant. I wildly underestimated what was to come. The reason I loved this book so much was because of how incredibly attached to the characters I became. I even became attached to the food and the places. I grew up in a small town in MA and I actually believe that Duxton was based on my own hometown Duxbury in at least name. If I wasn't already so invested in this novel, that would have officially done me in.

Every inch of this book was exquisite. From the intimate scene of cooking Persian food to the grappling with grief and loss. It is human and beautiful, and well worth a read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the lovely publishers who have allowed me to experience this ARC in return for honest feedback.

I love novels set in other countries, but I would not recommend this to anyone. It is sooooooo slow, and the story never takes off. The characters are weak and pretty unbelievable--people who pine for each other for 60+ years. I did not understand the point of the chapter dedicated to the nursing home administrator, except to set up the much too neat ending. All in all, it was just too predictable. I won't be recommending it to my library for purchase. I gave it a three, because I did read the whole book.

The Stationary Shop by Marjan Kamali is a tale weaved between current day, and 1950s Iran during the political upheaval between a couple of the star-crossed variety.

This romance/historical fiction read is a slow-burner, but worth the wait. Please make sure to have tissues ready.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC and in return I am submitting my voluntary and unbiased review.

4/5 stars

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to preview this story. The stunning cover made me read the description. After I read that this love story took place in Tehran during the political upheaval in 1953 I knew I wanted to learn more. And I am so happy I was approved to read this beautiful story. It lived up to my expectations.
If you enjoy historical fiction that spans time, stories of first loves and losses, of family tragedy and forgiveness, then you should put The Stationary Shop on your TBR list.

The Stationery Shop is a beautiful love story set amidst the turmoil of the politics in Iran starting in the 1950s and then later in America. It is set over many decades and takes on the culture and food with such beautiful details that I could picture so well a place I really don't know that much about.

The Iranian culture plays into the relationships in this novel where arranged marriages and marrying in your social status were the norm and expectation. The writing is a slower pace which allows you to savor the detailed characters and plotline. While this isn't a page turner, it a gorgeous story about the complexities of our own identities and relationships with those around us.

Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery books for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Stationery Shop takes place in Iran in 1953. It was a country in turmoil. Two young teenagers fall in love, but they are separated by their families and political views. One of the teenagers comes to America. Will they ever see each other again? Very emotional book with a strong plot. Very likable characters. Thank you to Net Galley for allowing me to read an advanced readers copy of this book.

The Stationery Shop, primarily about Roya and Bahman, begins in Iran and ends in America. It is a beautiful story that makes us realize that life is what happens, not what we plan. I won’t summarize this very complicated story since that’s well covered in the book’s description. I will say that it’s one of the best books I’ve read in a few years.

The story takes place from about 1953 to 2013 and touches on the politics and turmoil of Iran, the Iranian customs requirements of women and families, friendships, love, and so much more. The Stationery Shop is where Roya and Bahman, besides finding books and poetry, found love.

Characters are developed beautifully. The author expertly interweaves all of their lives together. Many, many situations happen in these relationships, some happy, some not so much, all believable. Some of the Persian dishes sounded so good that I actually looked up one of the recipes and am anxious to try it.

I was mesmerized by this book. The pace and writing were captivating. The storylines pulled me in, and my empathy surprised me at times. I hated to put it down when life – and nighttime – called.

I sincerely thank NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the opportunity to read and review this book. It was my pleasure. Well done, Ms. Kamali. Well done.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Gallery Books through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The book shares the history of Iran since the early 1950s with the politics of the Shah and Prime Minister Mossadegh. The Iranian culture impacts relationships with arranged marriages and not marrying “below”. At the center of the book is the Stationery Store in Iran which sounds like a place I would love. The characters are well developed and intertwined throughout the book.

Bahman, a political activist, and Roya meet at the Stationery Store and become engaged to be married. Bahman’s mother wants another woman to marriage her son. At the core of the story are the twists and turns in Bahman and Roya’s relationship. Sad things happen at times and I found my heart heavy. All loose ends are tied up at the end of the book.

I really enjoyed this book. I found it very insightful, interesting, and would recommend it.

What an amazing book. God, the blend of history, multi author perspectives and love, I couldn’t put it down.

Set in Iran and the US from the 1950’s to present day, this book centers upon Roya, a teenager growing up in Tehran and its political turmoil. Roya finds sanctuary and love in the neighborhood stationery shop. But, as with life, all does not go as planned for anyone. The book revolves around the themes of love, family, and fate.

This book sounded interesting to me when I read about it on NetGalley. (Thanks, NetGalley and Gallery Books for the advanced copy! All opinions are my own.) I don’t know that I’ve really every read anything set in Iran and know little of its history. Besides, the title has “Stationery Shop” as its name. How could I resist that?

The book did not disappoint. I was interested in Roya and invested in her story pretty much from the start. The flow of the writing, while at a slower pace, fit the narrative. I enjoyed learning about the culture of Roya and her family, how she adjusted in moving to the United States, and the keeping of her identity there. I was also a bit sad for her throughout as I thought on her life and potential regrets. All the characters were complex; even the ones I didn’t like, I liked the way they were written.

I’m glad to have read this book and plan to check out Marjan Kamali’s backlist for more.

Read more of my reviews at https://mommyreadsbooks.blogspot.com/

Marjan Kamali’s The Stationary Shop is not a perfect book, but it is one of the most perfectly tragic books I’ve ever read. By the end, I was blinking hard to stop myself from crying at this love story gone awry. This novel spans decades and thousands of miles, from 1953 in Tehran when the protagonists meet to the 1990s in the United States when they finally meet again at last. What we don’t know—and what is revealed slowly over the course of the book—is what happened to interrupt their all-consuming passion for each other.

Roya, when we meet her, has a safe, comfortable life in Massachusetts sometime in the 1990s. She lives with her kind, loving husband and, although she cares for him deeply, we can tell that this is not the life she once hoped for. She might have gone on with her secret sorrow if a chance encounter hadn’t led to an opportunity to meet with Bahman. Bahman was (still is, one could argue) the great love of her life. The opening chapter ends with Roya asking Bahman why he never met her in a Tehran square like he was supposed to, all those years ago. If they had been able to meet, both of their lives would have been completely different.

We are then whisked away to 1953, as growing internal and external pressures threaten to topple the government of Mohammad Mosaddegh. In spite of the turmoil, Roya and Bahman have bright futures. Roya’s father strongly supports her education. Bahman is described as a boy who will change the world. They meet by chance at a stationary store. Roya is there to read poetry. Bahman is there to pick up prohibited political material. It’s not exactly love at first sight, but it is love at first poetry quotation. The two fall deeply in love. Bahman proposes; Roya accepts. The only problem is Bahman’s very, very troubled mother. Mrs. Aslan wants her son to marry a more “suitable” woman, one she has picked out from a higher social class. As Roya learns more about Bahman’s family, she sees how much Mrs. Aslan torments and manipulates her husband and son to get what she wants. She is one of the most unhappy characters I’ve ever encountered in fiction. She is also so toxic that I wanted to yell at Bahman and Roya to run away from her.

The two are separated during a coup to depose Mosaddegh. I won’t say more about that because a lot of the plot depends on how the two are pulled apart and how Roya attempts to find a life for herself after her great disappointment. Even though Mrs. Aslan is a malevolent force, Bahman speaks for her. He tells us that, in that time and place, mental illness was deeply stigmatized. If he and his father don’t care for her, what would become of her? His mother is clearly ill and there’s no hope of getting treatment for her. No matter how much she hurts him, Bahman always tries to be compassionate.

In other hands, The Stationary Store would have been a completely different store. I daresay an American author would have found a way to give Roya and Bahman a happy ending, because that’s how we are. Instead, Kamali gives us a very human, genuinely tragic story that forces us to consider questions about sacrifice, forgiveness, and frustrated hopes. There is one part of the book that I found jarring because it was an unnecessary diversion. (I don’t know why we needed a chapter from the perspective of the nurse who bonds with Bahman near the end of the book.) Other than that single flaw, I was moved and stunned by this book. It truly was one of the best tragedies I’ve read in a long time. Readers who feel the need for a cathartic cry should definitely pick up The Stationary Store.

What a compelling novel! This expertly written book is sure to the climb the charts. The author did an amazing job writing the political history of Iran in an compelling way. The pacing was well set and i enjoyed seeing the different characters and how they reacted to everything going on during this time period in Iran and how they developed with one another and as themselves because of it .So much emotion was wrought throughout the whole novel and definitely moves the reader through every stage paced beautifully through out this novel!

I enjoyed reading about Iranian culture and found the plot okay. Though I'm not a big romance reader, I did enjoy this book. I would recommend it.

I would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy free of charge. This is my honest and unbiased opinion of it.

A novel about missed love and second chances. While the book follows the basic formula for this storyline, it is not formulaic. In fact, the detail of plot at times bogs down what is otherwise a compelling and page turning read.

The Stationary Shop is a beautiful story of family and love. I admit that it took me about 70 pages before I got really into the story. Once I was invested in the characters I couldn’t put this book down.

**I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review of this book.

The Stationery Shop is a beautifully mastered historical fiction love story that gripped me as soon as I read the opening letter by the senior editor Jackie Cantor. She writes: 'The wealth of feeling it evokes - of young love, of loss and grief, of the valiant but ultimately vain effort to leave the past behind, and of the unexpected connections that can heal us - is so resonant and deeply imagined that I defy anyone who reads it to remain unmoved." Her words alone drew me in and, upon finishing this story, I admit that I wholeheartedly agree with her. This novel is now being added to my list of all time favorite novels. It stirred such strong emotions in me and has left a long-lasting impression upon me. I cannot possibly wrote a review that captures this book as perfectly as the senior editor did.

I love historical fiction with a strong female protagonist, especially if the story is told through differing points of view. This book truly delivered on the promise of the publisher’s blurb. Once I finally started reading, I was so reluctant to stop that I finished this book in under twenty-four hours.

The plot and relationships of the characters are so powerful and intricate that to say much more could spoil the book for someone. Plot and characters aside, I loved the food writing in this book. It was refreshing to see Persian cuisine portrayed so richly.

My only regret with this book was that I waited until my digital ARC was almost expired to start reading it. I would have loved to have read it a second time; now I’ll have to wait for its publication.

I received this book as a digital advance reader copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

If you like historical fiction you will love The Stationery Shop by Marjan Kamali. From the minute Roya and Bahman are introduced in the book, I was captured by this incredible story. I loved learning about Iran and Iranian culture in the 1950s. It was hard for me to put the book down and it must be said--this book is well written. Emotionally, I was wrecked from the ups and downs of their relationship. Yet still, I couldn't put this book down. I highly recommend The Stationery Shop and consider it one of my favorite reads of 2019.

Quite often, I find I not only enjoy, but am enlightened by works of fiction that tell a story set in another country than mine, particularly a different culture. Many have been gently eye-opening, making it so much easier to understand the real people whose lives are completely changed by the politics of others.

The Stationery Shop is one of those books - giving a vision of political upheavals and government coups, at a time and place that is generally unfamiliar to many Americans, yet affects us to this day. I'm very moved by seeing Tehran, Iran through this lens, and having it brought forward to familiar ground, in a sweet, sad love story.

Thought I'm rating this a four, round up to 4 1/2. An edifying, but compellingly readable work.

A portrait of Roya, an Iranian immigrant to America and her love for Bahman, the man who seems to cruelly cast her aside just around the 1953 coup attempt. In the twilight of her life in New England she finds out what really caused her love to be star crossed. Some scenes are touching and haunting, and I enjoyed the insights into 1950s Iran, but I generally found the pace of the book to be confusing or lagging. The Stationery Shop and the owner's connection to the two teen lovers seems a bit contrived, as does the misdirection that separates Bahman and Roya. The lonely senior center/nursing home attendant is meant to parallel the Stationery Shop owner, but she doesn't really work as a character. The author doesn't spend a lot of time describing scenes or how characters look, except for smells of Persian dishes which really do sound amazing. Roya remarks on the differences between American and Iranian social mores, which are interesting. But she doesn't seem to miss her home country, and although its clear she suffers from a sense of deep loss, a lot of remarkable things about her life are not really remarked or reflected upon. I think the book could have spent more time allowing us to understand her struggles and successes to fit in and build a suburban family life in America. It could have left less unsaid about whether Roya ultimately felt fulfilled. My guess is Roya believed her life ultimately played out the way it was supposed too, with a bittersweet surprise at the end, but I'm not entirely sure.