chiliqueen's Full Review: Marsha Mehran - Rosewater and Soda Bread
In Rosewater and Soda Bread, Marsha Mehran's followup to Pomegranate Soup, the Aminpour sisters Marjan, Bahar, and Layla continue their adventures in West Ireland circa 1987, a year after they opened their Iranian restaurant Babylon Cafe. After fleeing personal tragedies in Revolutionary Iran, the sisters seek some sense of normalcy in their new homeland. They've managed to make the Babylon Café successful despite the meddling of Dervla Quigly, a bossy and dour "moral guardian" who detests anyone (or anything) foreign and is determined to cause trouble, and against the will of Thomas McGuire, who, like his counterpart from Chocolat, broke into their restaurant and attempted to destroy their livelihood.
Marjan, the eldest, acts as the protector of her younger siblings after their parents died. She finds herself distanced and unable to open up to a man who shows interest in her, while her sister Bahar, who suffered unspeakable trauma at the hands of her sadistic husband while still in Iran, secretly clings to the Catholic religion. Brassy Layla wants to "go all the way" with her boyfriend Malachy, going as far as asking Marjan to order "protection."
In the middle of these domestic dramas, a crisis is unfolding in their sleepy village: a beautiful young woman washes up on the shore suffering from internal injuries. She's found naked, won't or can't speak, and her fingers are mysteriously webbed like a mermaid's. Her savior is the elderly Italian immigrant Estelle Delmonico, who at her advanced age is alone, childless, and crippled with arthritis.
Yet other secondary characters from "Pomegranate Soup" make appearances, but if you haven't read the first novel, these names (and subplots) are forgettable. The material feels more like a short story than a full-length novel, and the origins of the mysterious "mermaid" are only briefly touched upon towards the very end; indeed, her actual origins seem anticlimactic after the risks and dangers that Marjan, Estelle, and others take to conceal and protect the girl from the Irish authorities.
Despite the lightweight subplots, Rosewater and Soda Bread is a delightfully told tale of food (luscious descriptions and recipes of Persian cuisine), culture (Irish as well as Persian), the mysteries of religion and the heart, and the deep bonds of sisterhood. It's a read that fans of Garden Spells, Chocolat and Like Water for Chocolate will enjoy.
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