Every great work of art ... is a celebration, an act of insubordination against the betrayals, horrors and infidelities of life.

Thus the regime has deprived Iranian women not just of their present rights, but also of their history and their past.

The more we die, the stronger we will become

A good novel is one that shows the complexity of individuals, and creates enough space for all these characters to have a voice; in this way a novel is called democratic - not that it advocates democracy but that by nature it is so. Empathy lies at the heart of Gatsby, like so many other great novels - the biggest sin is to be blind to others' problems and pains. Not seeing them means denying their existence.

When I first left Iran at the age of 13, Iran had become such a shining star - it was the point to which all my desires and dreams returned.

Basically, fundamentalism is a modern phenomenon. In the same way that Hitler evoked a mythological religion of German purity and the glory of the past, the Islamists use religion to evoke emotions and passions in people who have been oppressed for a long time in order to reach their purpose.

Reality has become so intolerable, she said, so bleak, that all I can paint now are the colors of my dreams.