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Viking triumphs in six-way auction for ‘sublime’ story of Iran by Sharafedin and Torbati
Viking has triumphed in six-way auction for Woman, Life, Freedom: Revolution in Iran by journalists Bozorgmehr Sharafedin, who has reported for the BBC and Reuters, and Yeganeh Torbati of the Washington Post.
Commissioning editor Greg Clowes acquired UK and Commonwealth Rights from Carrie Plitt at Felicity Bryan Associates on behalf of Alice Whitwham and Beniamino Ambrosi at the Cheney Agency.
Scheduled to be published in autumn 2025, the book is described by the publisher as “a deeply reported and character-driven work of narrative non-fiction about the recent revolutionary actions of women and men in Iran, and the country’s longer history of resistance since the 1979 Islamic revolution".
“It illuminates like no other”, the description continues, “how Iran reached its current boiling point of protest. [The] narrative follows ordinary Iranians as they have chipped away at the various ‘walls’ that the Islamic Republic built over the past 40 years to keep out foreign influence, trap internal dissent, block cultural change, limit internet access, and dam up financial resources for the benefit of a select few.
“With its subtle blend of novelistic storytelling combined with sharp analysis of Iran’s recent history, Woman, Life, Freedom makes for an incredibly compelling and intense reading experience; you can feel the tide of history turning in these pages.”
Clowes said: “Woman, Life, Freedom is the real thing: a sublime work of storytelling that weaves together a series of individual struggles against the Iranian state from 1979 to the revolutionary present. The result is a profoundly human and moving account of Iranians no longer willing to accept the reality dictated to them by the regime. This is a rare book – in its sheer depth of reporting, its moral urgency and its lyrical fire – which tells a new story about Iran in order to build towards a new future. I’m exceptionally pleased to be working with Yeganeh and Bozorgmehr and publishing their book at Viking.”
In a joint comment Torbati and Sharafedin said: “We are thrilled to be working with the incredible team at Viking to bring to light the stories of Iranians and illuminate the country’s recent history. By following Iranian women and men who at various times helped create, perpetuate, and resist the current system, our book will demonstrate how repeated efforts to reform the Iranian state have failed.”
