Funny in Farsi: A Memoir of Growing Up Iranian in America

by Firoozeh Dumas

Book Overview

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - Finalist for the PEN/USA Award in Creative Nonfiction, the Thurber Prize for American Humor, and the Audie Award in Biography/Memoir This Random House Reader's Circle edition includes a reading group guide and a conversation between Firoozeh Dumas and Khaled Hosseini, author of The Kite Runner "Remarkable . . . told with wry humor shorn of sentimentality . . . In the end, what sticks with the reader is an exuberant immigrant embrace of America."-- San Francisco Chronicle In 1972, when she was seven, Firoozeh Dumas and her family moved from Iran to Southern California, arriving with no firsthand knowledge of this country beyond her father's glowing memories of his graduate school years here. More family soon followed, and the clan has been here ever since. Funny in Farsi chronicles the American journey of Dumas's wonderfully engaging family: her engineer father, a sweetly quixotic dreamer who first sought riches on Bowling for Dollars and in Las Vegas, and later lost his job during the Iranian revolution; her elegant mother, who never fully mastered English (nor cared to); her uncle, who combated the effects of American fast food with an army of miraculous American weight-loss gadgets; and Firoozeh herself, who as a girl changed her name to Julie, and who encountered a second wave of culture shock when she met and married a Frenchman, becoming part of a one-couple melting pot. In a series of deftly drawn scenes, we watch the family grapple with American English (hot dogs and hush puppies?--a complete mystery), American traditions (Thanksgiving turkey?--an even greater mystery, since it tastes like nothing), and American culture (Firoozeh's parents laugh uproariously at Bob Hope on television, although they don't get the jokes even when she translates them into Farsi). Above all, this is an unforgettable story of identity, discovery, and the power of family love. It is a book that will leave us all laughing--without an accent. Praise for Funny in Farsi "Heartfelt and hilarious--in any language." -- Glamour "A joyful success." -- Newsday "What's charming beyond the humor of this memoir is that it remains affectionate even in the weakest, most tenuous moments for the culture. It's the brilliance of true sophistication at work." -- Los Angeles Times Book Review "Often hilarious, always interesting . . . Like the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding , this book describes with humor the intersection and overlapping of two cultures." -- The Providence Journal "A humorous and introspective chronicle of a life filled with love--of family, country, and heritage." --Jimmy Carter "Delightfully refreshing." --Milwaukee Journal Sentinel " Funny in Farsi ] brings us closer to discovering what it means to be an American." -- San Jose Mercury News

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0812968379
• ISBN13: 9780812968378
• Release Date: January 2004
• Publisher: Random House Trade
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 0.43 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.2" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Great read!

What a unique memoir. A book for all ages. The blending of cultures is what makes America great. Thank you for sharing the common experience of family and laughter. I look forward to reading Laughing without an Accent.

And truly charming book written by a talented writer

I enjoyed this book so much I have given it to several friends and they have enjoyed it too. I especially love and the end and her fathers reaction to everything. It's a very sweet and funny story about moving to America and blending in.

Very funny actually

Great read- I totally enjoyed Firoozeh’s writing. As a foreigner who moved to the States around the same age Firoozeh did I enjoyed her stories of growing up - the culture shock - the glimpses into her family. So glad I picked it up. Many laugh out loud moments. Seriously worth buying and keeping to re-read. Get the next one- Laughing Without an Accent!

Real Americans

Another reviewer referred to Funny in Farsi as "My Big, Fat Iranian Life" and that's not a bad analogy, although I enjoyed it more than My Big Fat Greek Wedding. There are a lot of funny episodes in the book, as Dumas describes her family's adjustments from pre-Revolution Iran to Seventies California. Dumas was young enough when her family came to America that she grew up speaking and acting as American as the other kids in her suburban neighborhood. The adults in her family had more trouble adapting to the peculiarities of American life, but they jumped right in anyway. Her father aspired to be a game-show contestant, her mother wanted to get along without learning English, and her uncle expected to lose weight without exercising. Sounds pretty normal to me. But it gets a bit serious, too, when they return to Iran at the wrong time. Dumas describes how they are caught up in events and how they manage to return to California. Dumas's story and her upbeat attitude make this an engaging memoir.

to clarify some misunderstandings

I understand the critiques and not-so-positive reviews that this book has received: mostly commenting on how it's just a bunch of stories put together, there's not really any "flow". Or it's just about superficial, daily, trivial issues. Nothing like a typical "memoir". I think they're all valid -- as long as these people are willing to admit their preconceived notions of what a "memoir" should be like. (that's why they're disappointed, right? and it's perfectly ok to be disappointed) But, i strongly suggest finding out what the author's true intentions and goals are before criticizing the work. How? Ask her. (email, letters) Find a reliable source (such as an interview, etc). The main point of the book is on our SHARED HUMANITY. The backdrop of much of her life (especially childhood) was the change from "oh you're from Iran? (and where the heck is the country?)" to "oh you're from Iran? (the country whose people are all evil and we hate you guys!)" She is trying to show a lighter picture of Iranians, Middle Easterners; that Iranians are people like us too! (seriously, do you think that all Iranians and Middle Easterns are serious and boring and American-haters? Is this the image that you get from the media?) When you want to learn about a country or people, watching TV is one of the worst ways to learn it. Sure, it gives you a lot of facts, but the portrayal of people tends to focus simply on the negative side, or sometimes the idealistic/romanticized picture. (imagine, for a foreigner who has never been to the States who watches evening news every evening, don't you think s/he might come to the conclusion that the U.S. is a country full of robbers and theives and rapists and what you have nots? that's all it is on TV!!!) Now apply this logic to Irians, Middle Easterners, Muslims, and whoever. See if you can come up with any good things about them from the media or any good people. (in fact, the only "good" Middle Easterners portrayed on the media that I can think of on top of my head is Aladdin) If you want to get to know a country or culture, befriend someone who is from there! Firoozeh is trying to tell people that there is this other side of Iranians that most of us don't know. (if we're honest, most of us have the attitude of "i don't care! and i don't care that i don't care!") Iranians are just as human as we all are. Too often we're so quick to build walls, we don't even try to build any bridges. We are so quick to point out our differences, we don't even try to find our commonalities. if you're looking for a short, light, funny book that will give you an idea of an Iranian family growing up in America, I recommend it! (i admit that's probably why I like the book!) btw, 1) I've read the entire book. 2) I'm not an Iranian. In fact, I'm Chinese. 3)my comments about Firoozeh and her intentions and goals for the book -- i didn't make these up. I met Firoozeh today. She shared with us herself. :) if you like it, share it with you

A funny and well-written memoir

"Funny in Farsi: A Memoir of Growing Up Iranian in America," by Firoozeh Dumas, begins with 7-year old Firoozeh and her family moving from Abadan, Iran to the strange new land of Whittier, California. From there the story moves back and forth in time, covering the narrator's childhood in Iran, her adulthood and marriage, and more.This is a wonderful book that made me laugh at loud at times. But it's also touching and inspirational. Dumas' narrative follows a colorful and likeable cast of characters, most notably her father Kazem: a hardworking engineer determined to live his own version of the American dream. Dumas' prose is clear, engaging, and quite witty. She writes with a contagious affection for her Iranian culture, the United States, and her family.Although the book is often very humorous, Dumas also effectively covers some serious topics--the language barrier, religious controversy, female body image, the impact of the Iranian hostage crisis, etc. And along the way we get a spicy taste of Iranian culture and tradition. Overall, this is a superb addition to the canon of literature that explores the rich and complex topic of ethnicity in the U.S; it's a book well suited for college courses, reading groups, and individual pleasure reading. As a companion text, I strongly recommend "A World Between: Poems, Short Stories, and Essays by Iranian Americans," edited by Persis M. Karim and Mohammad Mehdi Khorrami.

Lives up to its name--laugh out loud funny!

A book with "funny" in its title already gives readers expectations of being funny--and rightly so, because it lives up to all of its expectations, and I laughed out loud at every page! It's Dumas' witty, clever play on words when she retells her tales of childhood mishaps that makes this book so endearing and easy to identify with. We've all tried to fit in somehow, somewhere and ended up doing exactly the opposite! Dumas manages to take these stories and tell them with such humor, that sad stories turn into absurd ones--providing lots of giggles and laughter on the way. But the book also has tremendous substance, as Dumas writes about her family with love--especially her father, who is the epitome of kindness, and the ultimate lessons she learns growing up in an Iranian family in California. Those lessons of generosity and humanity serve her well through life's ups and downs, and she is able to look back on even the toughest of circumstances with side-splitting humor. I highly recommend this book for anyone that has ever felt "displaced"--and that would be every one of us. Brilliant!

Humorous and Touching

The first thing you notice about Funny in Farsi is that it's impossible to put down. Dumas does an excellent job of weaving absolutely hilarious stories about her family (especially involving her dad, Kazem) with touching tales of family unity in difficult times. It's not just a typical fish out of water story about the struggle to assimilate into new surroundings, it involves much more than that. Funny in Farsi can engage you in side-splitting laughter and bring a touching tear to your eye all in the same chapter. It's an unbelievable book that leaves you wanting more when you reach the end much faster than you would have hoped. Buy this book, you'll love it.