My Prison, My Home

Haleh Esfandiari is an Iranian-American academic and Director of the Middle East Programme at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington. Iranian politics and democratic developments in the Middle East are amongst her areas of expertise and she frequently lectures on these topics.

'Haleh Esfandiari's personal narrative begins with a horrific event, one that transformed her beloved country of birth into a prison, but it is also an account of that country's rich and complex history and culture, revealing not just the repressive and inflexible nature of the Islamic regime, but its failure to subdue the Iranian people's spirit of resistance, or their belief in their democratic aspirations.' Azar Nafisi, author of 'Reading Lolita in Tehran' 'From the threads of history and personal experience, Haleh Esfandiari has woven a masterful memoir!an intimate tale of bravery in the face of ignorance set against the larger tragedy of U.S.-Iran relations. Esfandiari's story -- timely, suspenseful and artfully told -- will fascinate experts and general readers alike.' Madeleine Albright 'I have long admired and respected Haleh Esfandiari, but never so much as after reading her memoir. The story of Iran's complex relationship with the United States mirrors the extraordinary and compelling events of her own life. She has beautifully interwoven autobiography and history in a testament to her fortitude and spirit.' Lee Hamilton, President, Woodrow Wilson Center 'History is full of unlikely heroes and heroines: ordinary people who show phenomenal courage when their lives take unexpected turns. Haleh Esfandiari is one of them. An Iranian-American scholar whose love for both her native and adopted countries led to her arrest and incarceration in Tehran's dreaded Evin prison, Haleh writes movingly of her ordeal with a lack of bitterness that is astonishing. Caught, as she notes, in the crossfire of a decades-long undeclared war between Washington and Tehran, she faces her accusers with dignity and emerges as an even more eloquent advocate for mutual understanding.' Barbara Slavin