The Bathhouse

by Farnoosh Moshiri

With intense emotion and great literary skill, Farnoosh Moshiri has written one of the most moving novels to come out in years. The story begins with the arrest of a seventeen-year-old girl in the early days of the fundamentalist revolution in Iran. Imprisoned because of her brother's involvement with leftist politics, she is placed in a makeshift jail, a former bathhouse, in which other women are held captive. With a gripping narrative, Moshiri gives voice to these prisoners, exploring their torment and struggle, but also their courage and humanity, in the face of tyrants.

Genres: Fiction, Iran, Historical Fiction, Audiobook, Historical, Young Adult, Middle East

152 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2001

About the author

Iranian born writer Farnoosh Moshiri has published plays, short stories, and translations in Iranian literary magazines before the 1979 revolution and in anthologies published outside Iran in the 1980s. In 1983, she fled her country after a massive arrest of secular intellectuals, feminists, and political activists. She lived in refugee camps of Afghanistan and India for four years before emigrating to the U.S. in 1987.

Reviews

[Carrie Honaker · Rating 4 out of 5]

As we continue to shelter in place, I decided it was time to revisit some of my favorite books of the past. The Bathhouse was high on my list. The slim volume is set in Tehran during the fundamentalist revolution in the 80s, and hauntingly follows the wrongful arrest and forgotten imprisonment of a seventeen-year-old girl who is tortured by militant members of the regime of the Ayatollah Khomeini. Moshiri constructed the fictional account based on interviews with actual victims of Khomeini’s repressive regime. Moshiri herself was one of the sect of intellectuals targeted by Khomeini and narrowly escaped with her two year old son to Houston, Texas. The Bathhouse is an important voice in the canon of prison narratives, and helps bear witness to the atrocities suffered at the hands of fundamentalist political regimes.

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[Suraia Munia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good book but i dreaded reading it. It was depressing to read about how one human can torture another. While the language was simple and touching, it would be better if the author had given a bit more insight into the characters. Overall it is a book worth reading.

[Sara Aikman · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5⭐️s. Simple writing (and lots of spelling mistakes) but a quick glance into how quickly life changed in 1970s Iran. Heartbreaking and I wish the author gave us more

[Amber Beamesderfer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am indescribably sad

[Gwen Spilker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simple writing, but heartbreaking none the less.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good book but a hard read. Not for the squeamish as it deals with awful torture.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

A shocking story of the treatment of Iranian people under Khomeini. It is sad to think how cruel we can be to our fellow human beings, once we've decided they are 'other' - other race, other religion, other political persuasion.

An admirably brave book, which, if it only makes some people realise what went on under Khomeini, and to consider if it could happen in our own country, is a great contribution to the world.

[Becki Basley · Rating 3 out of 5]

A terrifying audiobook story about a woman taken prisoner in the early days of the Fundamentalist Revolution in Iran. Arrested and sent to a converted bathhouse, she experiences horrifying abuse and witnesses even more horrifying situations.
I feel you would have to know more of the backstory about the political situation in Iran at the time to fully understand what was going on. And the ending of the book is rather abrupt but the description and thoughtfulness in the telling of the story makes up for its flaws. It was hard to listen to not because of the writing style but the situations happening within it.

[Susan Frazier-Kouassi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sometimes you don't have to travel to a place to glimpse what life was like there or the struggles people go (went) through. This is the magic of reading! Although labeled as "fiction" the author drew her inspiration and writing from interviews of actual women who had the misfortune of being trapped in the "Bathhouse". Her writing is detailed and eloquent at the same time without having to resort to cliches and commonly used phrases...I could feel trapped in the bathhouse within my imagination.

An excellent read both for a historical perspective in understanding the role that politics and gender can work in or for a particular group in society.

[Xandria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow.

This novel blew me away. The levels of injustice are completely astounding; the amount of torture one person can endure is heartbreaking. Set in 1970s Iran, we follow a teenage girl who just wants to live life undisturbed. Unfortunately, with the rise of religious extremists, she is forced into a world of unbelievable torture and pain. My heart continued to break throughout this novel. It's not for the faint of heart.

[Alfin Rizal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Buku bagus sekaligus ngeri. Cerita tentang penyiksaan para tawanan era Khomeini pada 1970-an di Iran. Rasanya sungguh sulit membayangkan manusia menyiksa manusia lainnya dengan begitu kejam & brutal—tapi farnoosh moshiri menulis detail tentang siksaan itu.

Ini memang fiksi. Tapi penulis terinspirasi dari wawancara dengan para perempuan yang pernah ditawan dan disiksa habis-habisan saat itu. Kalau enggak tahan berimajinasi tentang siksaan, enggak usah baca.

[Yemima Yulia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Betapa mengerikannya, manusia dengan anugerah akal budi dapat menjadi makhluk yang penuh welas asih namun dapat pula menjadi makhluk mengerikan dengan kekejaman yang tak terbayangkan.
Doa bagi semua manusia di mana saja di luar sana yang sementara terpuruk pada lumpur derita yang bersumber dari kedangkalan pemaknaan terhadap kemanusiaan ini ...

[Elsa · Rating 5 out of 5]

powerful, moving, hard read.

[Carly Heiser · Rating 4 out of 5]

read this for a class and it was FANTASTIC.

[Susan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Considering the subject matter, I felt this book fell flat, especially since the novel is based on women's real life stories of similar experiences. A much better, similar book is The Pearl that Broke Its Shell.

[penelopewanders]

I seem to be reading a run of fairly dire stories, so after this I've just picked up some potentially mindless chicklit.
For some reason I thought this was set in Afghanistan, and as that was the theme of the advanced EFL class I just taught, I wondered if this would be something to use in the future. It's not Afghanistan, but Iran, although scenes from the film Osama which my class watched were very reminiscent of the scenes described here.
I find I don't really have too much to say - I thought it was quite well-written in that the reader got a very strong sense of what the young girl was experiencing (although poorly edited- typos abound in the edition I have here as a bookcrossing ring), but ultimately it was so depressing. The powerlessness of the women held, the taunting of the guards... this is not an uplifting book, although it is essential that we know these things are still happening today. But is it enough to know?

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This short novel describes the capture and captivity of a young Iranian girl who is arrested after Iran was overtaken and the religious extremists took over, and curfews and blackouts become the norm. The girl in this novel endures all sorts of torture in the name of religion as her captors try to break her spirit and even execute her family and friends around her. Though very short, this novel is compelling, you can feel the horrors that each woman experiences and their pain as they try to make it through their imprisonment in one piece and without being sent to the Wall of the Almighty, the place where prisoners are executed by firing squad.

An excellent novel, and again makes me feel lucky I live in a country where women are free and I can practice my religion without retribution and imprisonment.

[Laleh · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was a nice, quick read in between books that made me think. It's a story about prisoners in a makeshift jail in Iran during a time of political turmoil, and these prisoners are treated very poorly in hopes of getting them to reveal information their captors want. The author talked to several people about their experiences, and then wove together a story about this bathhouse. I think that if the woman was writing from her own perspective, she might have captured a certain "je ne sais quoi," that I felt was lacking here. The story itself is really incredible, and I am impressed that someone put forth the effort to make those voices heard. However, the writing left something to be desired.

[okyrhoe · Rating 2 out of 5]

The quiet endurance of the girl as she suffers the indignities of captivity is unsettling to read about. One wishes she would react at some point, either by reason or by insanity, as some of her fellow prisoners did.
Although she does construct meaning out of her ordeal - as the first person narrator she is 'writing' an account that is considerably more substantial than her superficial adolescent journals which are taken away from her upon her arrest - it is uncertain whether she matures enough to question the nature of her condition upon release from the tortures of the bathhouse. She's thrown out onto the street, free to go home (wherever/whatever that might be), but without an adequate sense of self-awareness. Her consciousness is still captive, yet to be actualized.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very quick read - I read it in one sitting. The book is a first person account of prison life in Iran as told by a 17 year old school girl who is arrested because her brother is a political activist. The story takes place in an old bathhouse that is converted to a prison by the Islamic Republic. Her story to survive and try to maintain her dignity is a fascinating yet disturbing tale.

The incidents in The Bathhouse are based on interviews with victims of Khomeini's repressive regime.

[Claudia Fiorini · Rating 5 out of 5]

I still remember the characters after few months I finished the book. It makes me think how human nature is. What people can do to survive under torture. What a human can do to another. It reminds me of the book "the doll house" and the Nazi Camps during WWII. It is sad to think nothing changed. It has changed only the reason: now religion over then purity of a race. And the worse is: the people outside know and at the same time they pretend not to know about the bathhouse. Like then for the nazi camps. A great, not easy, book.

[Alaine Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Based on real life interviews, this short novel tells the story of a young student arrested and put into prison in Iran when the regime of the Shah collapsed. Lent by a friend after reading The Blood of Flowers, we had talked about in book group how in that novel the bathhouse was the source of gossip, secrets, and a place where women would share stories and friendship. Here in the novel the bathhouse becomes a place of surreal terror. A short page turning novel that makes me want to read more Iranian fiction/novels.

[Niki · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Bathhouse is written in simple language (with some swearing), but unlike many other reviews online, I did not find it overly riveting or compelling. Farnoosh Moshiri meshes real life situations with a fictional tale to convey the horrors many woman (and men) faced in Iran during the fundamentalist revolution. A high school girl is arrested due to her family's leftist political involvement and she is detained in a makeshift jail in a former bathhouse. The conditions are horrid and their suffering immense.

[Thejourn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading this book is like reading a horror novel - only this is based on true events. I found the language riveting, and liked the objectivity of the first person narrator. The only difficulty I see readers having is the lack of historical context - the reader is literally thrown into the novel without explanation. I recommend reading Persepolis first in order to gain context, then moving onto this haunting work.

[Katy Haupt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this novel because it's realistic. No frills, no sugar coated happy ending. It is straight forward about what the main character is going through and thinking, relaying the same thoughts and desires of the reader. Her wants and thoughts become yours. Her pain is your pain.
It's difficult to reason with yourself that though this tale is fiction, there are places in the world that this is a very true reality.
I definitely recommend this short read.

[Andrea Facio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Listened to this one on audio. Chilling and haunting and horrifying at points to hear the way these women are treated. Very eye-opening view of something we hear so little about in the mainstream. Captivating and humbling. You feel deeply for these women and remember to be thankful for your own freedoms.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It was elegant in its simplicity. The protagonist's horrific experience of torture and wrongful imprisonment is scary and reminds me how thin the cloak of civilized behavior really is. We really can be barbaric to each other at times. But always there are the threads of decency, of courage and love.

[Daisy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was so hard to read, the subject matter is so gruesome and depressing. It's a high school graduate's narrative of what happens to her and other prisoners, mostly women, when they are kept in an old bathhouse by religious zealots. As difficult as it is, I should read and learn more about this era.

[Isolabella · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this story very disturbing. It is well written in simple language. An ideology derived from religion and mix in with politics is a recipe for disaster. Especially in this part of the world. At the end the reader will have a lasting memory of the narrator's horendous experienced in captivity. A book worth reading.

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

What I found most disturbing about this book was the fact that the women took such a big role in torturing the other women....Women that just weeks or months before were in the same position. When her brother says we would have done the same to them if we'd won, I was discussed. How can people be so evil?