A beautiful, powerful and important novel which imagines five women in contemporary Iran as they converge on a garden on the outskirts of Tehran, seeking to escape the confinements of tradition. The book was originally published in 1989, and Parsipur was jailed for, among other subversive activities, writing about women's sexuality and their quest for independence. She never received any royalties for that first edition, but this new translation will enable her to do so. - Nancy -