Another Birth

Forugh Farrokhzad is a beloved mainstay of the Iranian canon, but her influence on the literary and cinematic traditions of the nation has remained long overlooked by Western readers. Born in 1934 and heralded as the « Iranian Sylvia Plath, » Forugh created an immense poetic oeuvre alive with themes of passion and sensuality, grief and loneliness, and often animated by a profound desire for self-determination.

Known by first name alone, Forugh was branded both a pariah and a hero for her brazenly feminist politics and commitment to living free. In her twenties, she became a pioneer of first poetry, then film, shocking audiences with frank explorations of female desire and subjugation. But Forugh’s career was cut short in 1967 when, at just thirty-two, she died tragically in a car accident.

In the wake of the Islamic Revolution, only censored editions of Forugh’s work have been legally available in Iran. This landmark biography by renowned scholar Farzaneh Milani, first published in 2016, has been a staple on the bookshelves of Farsi-reading fans of the iconoclastic poet. Milani has dedicated her life to the study of Iranian literature and women’s place within the canon, and remains the preeminent expert on Forugh’s life. Finally available in English, in this edited edition with new material by both Milani and Mariam Rahmani, Another Birth celebrates a poet who―like Ferdowsi, Attar, and Rumi before her―forever altered the course of Iranian literature. Exquisitely translated and edited by Mariam Rahmani, Another Birth is an essential account of an artist whose impact will be felt worldwide for generations to come.