Here’s what other writers are saying about #ADoorBetweenUs
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“A Door between Us is a vivid, thrilling story of clashes and collisions, between tradition and civil liberties, between families, between individuals and institutions, between reform and reaction. With touches of humor, it is also a narrative of rumor, gossip, torture, terror, intrigue, and betrayal after the election of 2009 in Iran. Best of all it is a story of the deep bonds between people, of family ties and spiritual allegiance, and sustaining love, in a period of unrest and horror. You will not forget these scenes and these characters.”
— Robert Morgan, NY Times bestselling author of Gap Creek & Chasing the North Star
“A deeply compelling story about the struggle for democracy in Iran. The broken dreams of a generation poised for change are brought vividly to life in this powerful and haunting tale.”
— Ausma Zehanat Khan, author of Among the Ruins
“A Door between Us is an enthralling story of hope, courage, and the powerful ties that bind families and communities together. Ehsaneh Sadr expertly weaves together three divergent perspectives, offering a gripping and nuanced look at the tumultuous 2009 Iranian election. From start to finish, the story held me rapt, its poignant message of interconnectedness lingering with me long after I turned the last page.”
— Amanda Skenandore, author of Between Earth and Sky
"Captivating and heartbreaking, A Door Between Us deftly captures the connections and conflict between two families with opposing ideologies in the aftermath of Iran’s 2009 Green Wave movement. With a fresh, compassionate voice, Sadr reveals our inherent closeness beyond the divisions and separations. An assured, immersive debut."
— Marjan Kamali, author of Together Tea and The Stationary Shop
“In a riveting story, Sadr captures the lines that divide Iranian society and the specter of tragedy that haunted it. She cuts right to the heart of life in 2009 and its consequences in a deeply understanding story.”
— Nazila Fathi, author of The Lonely War
"The fraudulent 2009 Iranian elections and ensuing repression not only divided the country but also tore families apart. In A Door Between Us, Ehsaneh Sadr vividly tells the story of one such divided family that brilliantly captures the pain, the hopes, the shattered dreams, the betrayals and the new friendships, all wrapped in the multitude of struggles of contemporary Iran."
— Trita Parsi, author of Losing an Enemy
Ehsaneh Sadr's debut novel A Door Between Us is a powerful story that illuminates both the personal and the deeply political aspects of contemporary Iranian society. Sadr's understanding and depth of knowledge about the ways Iranians must navigate societal and familial pressures in a time of crisis is a refreshing shift from the many flat and essentialized ways Iran has been framed by media narratives. Her writing is a reminder of all the things we're missing in seeing and understanding Iran, as well as the ways that she, as an insider-outsider, narrates some of the painful and recent history of Iran for non-Iranians. An impressive and relevant work that adds to the richness of our Iranian-American literary canon.
— Persis Karim, Director, Center for Iranian Diaspora Studies & Co-Editor, Tremors: New Fiction by Iranian American Writers
"Set during the 2009 post-election protests known as the Green Movement, A Door Between Us is an authentic and intelligent depiction of Iran beyond the headlines and a poignant story of families belonging to the most traditional elements of the Islamic Republic. Ehsaneh Sadr’s insightful debut, with its thoughtful social justice message, paints a very human and, at times, harrowing picture of a complex nation and a group of people rarely present in Western fiction.”
— Holly Dagres, Atlantic Council
