Tehran, Lipstick and Loopholes

A fascinating and funny portrait of daily life in Tehran , with all its complexities and contradictions, as seen through the eyes of a woman returned to her native country from France, trying to renew her passport In a wry and humorous account of Nahal Tajadod's week-long quest to get her Iranian passport renewed, she embarks on a bizarre and circuitous journey, meeting a colorful cast of characters along the two photographers who specialize in Islamic portraits, a forensic surgeon who trades in human organs, and a grandmother who offers a live chicken to an implacable official. This is a fascinating look at the constraints and contradictions of contemporary life in Tehran from the author's unique standpoint of being both a native of Iran and a foreigner.