Softcore

by Tirdad Zolghadr, Tirdad Zolghadr

The Promessa, a 1970s cocktail bar, is to be reopened in Tehran. Not as the glamorous location it once was, but as a slick showroom for art, fashion, and corporate receptions-a heady mix of profit, culture, and metropolitan swagger.

By and by a hidden agenda emerges, involving an international network with gruesome intentions. Join the narrator, a young man with artistic ambitions who has no wish to disappoint his cosmopolitan backers, as he frantically struggles to open the Promessa on time. Shamelessly opportunistic, he turns local painters into stage props, militia members into video artists, and a spate in prison into a career opportunity.

A frenetic, compelling look at modern Tehran, conspiracy theories, political fashions and the omnivorous international art world.

Tirdad Zolghadr was born in 1973, spent his early childhood in Tehran and then grew up an airline brat in various European and African cities. He works mainly as a freelance critic/curator and writes regularly for Frieze magazine. His most recent film, 'Tropical Modernism' addresses the history of the Iranian left and was premiered at the Oberhausen Short Film Festival 2006.

200 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2007

Reviews

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Complètement wtf ! Toutefois, intéressant de voir l’Iran d’un point de vue de bobo pseudo intellectuel.

[Matthewphoenix]

It took me months to read this 209 page book; every chapter was a struggle, reading scores of adjectives and (up-to-date Fashion, Designer, and Brand Name) proper nouns. This book was recommended by a friend who knows a thing or two about Iran, and suggested this book, adding "It's important to note that this book is written by an Iranian for a Western audience." With that in mind I am slightly forgiving on the infinitesimal annotation of the author's product familiarity; I took on the perspective that he was trying to say, as a writer for many contemporary art magazines//curator//co-founder-of-Iranian-feminist-magazine//educator-at-Bard-in-NY//etc, "Hey guys, your concept of the world around you is extremely warped by, among other things, peer pressure and media overstimulation. I am going to flaunt my elitist prowess several tiers above your head to place you into an inferior position; perhaps then you may listen?" Had he cut out all that obnoxious and overstimulating material, the book would be less than half its length.

Read at your own risk, but that's what I take from it.

[Scritturaselvaggia]

abbastanza divertente e molto pop, il lato positivo è che è ambientato a Teheran, se fosse ambientato a Milano sarebbe tutta una altra cosa e sarebbe praticamente illeggibile. Miracoli della geografia.

[Darran Mclaughlin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not very good. Zolghadr is obviously clever and worldly but he has no skill as a writer of fiction judging on the basis of this novel. I only really read this to broaden my fictional horizons by reading a work of contemporary Iranian fiction but I was disappointed.

[Shumon Basar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Art. Tehran. Terrorists. Money.

[jm · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not sure this really shows us modern day Teheran, but just a string of hipster stereotypes.

[Rebeccah · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn't finish it. I found the author's "style" aggravating. One could call it 'observant,' as he focussed mainly on describing the characters' accoutrements and surroundings. There was, however, little-to-no character development and not much of a plot, while the structure seemed highly distracted. Whenever the main character began to delve deeper into his thoughts or feelings, or even into a topic, the story would veer away to something else entirely, which it only dealt with superficially. A recurring character like his great aunt Zsa Zsa remains an enigma, because the author does not flesh her out, except to list her wild adventures. Much of the book appears to me to be lists of observations strung together. I would say I was disappointed, if the book had engaged me on any level emotionally, but since it didn't, well....