Perhaps the most important work in modern Iranian literature, this starkly beautiful novel examines the trials of an impoverished woman and her children living in a remote village in Iran, after the unexplained disappearance of her husband, Soluch. Lyrical yet unsparing, the novel examines her life as she contends with the political corruption, authoritarianism, and poverty of the village. It follows her vacillations between love for Soluch and anger at his absence, and her struggle to raise her children without their father. The novel critically evokes the unfulfilled aspirations of modern Iran -- portraying a society caught between a past and a future that seems equally weighted down by injustice. This landmark novel -- poineering the use of the everyday language of the Iranian people --revolutionized Persian literature in its beautiful and daring portrayal of the life of a marginal woman and her struggle to survive. Missing Souluch is published with the support of the Association of American Publishers' Freedom-to-Publish Committee, assisting in the publication of voices censored by the U. S. State Department's ban on books from the "Axis of Evil. "
