Unfortunately for governments like that of Iran, when they forbid something, people become more interested.

The negative side of the American Dream comes when people pursue success at any cost, which in turn destroys the vision and the dream.

Poor reading, like poor writing, is imposing what you already know on texts. You should go into reading to discover, not to reaffirm what you know.

We do not read in order to turn great works of fiction into simplistic replicas of our own realities, we read for the pure, sensual, and unadulterated pleasure of reading. And if we do so, our reward is the discovery of the many hidden layers within these works that do not merely reflect reality but reveal a spectrum of truths, thus intrinsically going against the grain of totalitarian mindsets.

It is amazing how, when all possibilities seem to be taken away from you, the minutest opening can become a great freedom.

I finally returned to Iran in 1979, when I got my degree in English and American literature, and stayed for 18 years in the Islamic republic.

My passion has always been books and literature, and teaching.