A #1 "New York Times" paperback non-fiction bestseller for more than two months, "Reading Lolita in Tehran" is a harrowing yet poetic reflection on the transformative power of art and the determination of the human spirit.

For the two years before she left Iran in 1997, Azar Nafisi gathered with several of her former students, all young women, to read and discuss prohibited works of Western literature. Reserved at first, the women soon learned to speak their minds and share their forbidden dreams. From this utterly unique perspective emerged a celebration of the power of the written word and the triumph in the face of oppression.