Funny in Farsi

A Memoir of Growing Up Iranian in America

By: Firoozeh Dumas

Narrated by: Firoozeh Dumas

In 1972, when she was seven, Firoozeh Dumas and her family moved from Iran to Southern California, arriving with no firsthand knowledge of this country beyond her father's glowing memories of his graduate school years here.

In a series of deftly drawn scenes Funny in Farsi chronicles the American journey of Dumas' wonderfully engaging family: her engineer father, a sweetly quixotic dreamer who first sought riches on Bowling for Dollars and in Las Vegas; her elegant mother, who never fully mastered English (nor cared to); her uncle, who combated the effects of American fast food with an army of miraculous American weight-loss gadgets; and Firoozeh herself, who as a girl changed her name to Julie, and who encountered a second wave of culture shock when she met and married a Frenchman, becoming part of a one-couple melting pot.

An unforgettable story of identity, discovery, and the power of family love, Funny in Farsi will leave us all laughing without an accent.

©2003 Firoozeh Dumas (P)2004 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

• Audie Award Finalist, Biography/Memoir, 2005
• Thurber Prize Finalist, 2005

"Often hilarious, always interesting....Like the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding, this book describes with humor the intersection and overlapping of two cultures." (The Providence Journal)
"A humorous and introspective chronicle of a life filled with love, of family, country, and heritage." (Jimmy Carter)

An Interesting and Fun Look at Another Culture-

What made the experience of listening to Funny in Farsi the most enjoyable?

The authors reading

Who was your favorite character and why?

Firoozeh. She adapted her culture to the US with such aplomb.

What does Firoozeh Dumas bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I loved her voice inflection and obvious enjoyment of her material.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No

Any additional comments?

I listened to this book because I have a son in law who is half Iranian. I was quickly caught up in Firoozeh's story and enjoyed her honest, frank, depiction of her family's trying (or not) to adapt to the USA. It was very enjoyable. I recommended it to my son in law's family. I think it is definitely a women's book.

wonderful

This was a wonderful book. It allowed us to see an average Middle Eastern family. We so often think of Iranians as terrorists - and this family was so far from that. I enjoyed listening to the book because I could learn how to pronounce everyone's name correctly. I just heard the author speak in person and she was warm and funny and engaging.

Funny in Farsi is funny indeed!

I think Firoozeh has a special talent with language and she uses it to illustrate any situation in the funniest way. I could not stop laughing most of the time listening to her stories delivering them in her charming voice. I laughed until I cried when she was explaining how her name was mispronounced from Firoozeh Dumas to Fritzy Dumbass. Humor is not the only ingredient of the book. Firoozeh describes the beauties of the Persian culture and the strengths of Persian families very diligently. She even touches some significant points in Iran history and politics with her personal and family stories.

Fynny, no knowledge of Farsi required

There is no language barrier in the enjoyment of this book. i think everyone can relate because 1. English has its quirks 2. Americans do have strange habits and 3. Parents are funny. Enjoy!

Interesting

This was a fun book full of an amusing cast of characters. I love books like this that give a good insight to the immigrant experience.

Funny in Farsi

For any baby boomer this is a walk down memory lane, yet from a different perspective. Witty, and interesting the author shows us how all children have similar wants and needs, and even adults from different cultures are not so different afterall.

Everyone has a story

I’m so glad this one was told. Meaningful, engaging, and entertaining, I didn’t want it to end.

Funny, yet kind, an enjoyable book

I read Funny in Farsi after having first read Dumas's 2nd book Laughing without an accent. I really ejoyed both of them, the kind humour Dumas uses to highlight cultural differences, family disputes and personal traits of the family members. It reminds me of my own family and how we're all different, yet still the same.

Amusing and brutally honesty

Funny in Farsi is amusing with a brutal honesty in regards to both its characters and its social commentary.

truly funny

this is funny given when it takes place. it is much less funny given the anti-Muslem climate of today. a good read though to remind us all that we have so much in common regardless of our country of origin, politics or religion.