Review of The Margaux Memory

[Ebele Ekelobi]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Margaux Memory" by Mohammed Reza Erfani [William Critchley].]

---

4 out of 5 stars

---

Share This Review

---

The Margaux Memory begins in Iran, formerly known as Persia, where Mohammad lives with his family. His life is one entrenched in religion and culture. When he is of university age, his uncle finances his education at a college in Oxford. Away from home, Mohammad struggles with the challenge of keeping to his Muslim customs, such as not drinking alcohol or engaging in any sort of relationship with the opposite sex. Although not a student of theology, Mohammad seems versed in other religions as he weighs the validity of each one and its customs. He tries to resist the temptations while at Oxford, but he is not very successful. After leaving school, his uncle sends him to Margaux to work for Lady Saintoissant, who owns a winery. He meets her daughter, Margot, and is entranced. Find out if their love can stand the test of time.

The plot of The Margaux Memory was straightforward enough when it wasn’t being interrupted by Mohammad’s thoughts on religion. Another point to note is that despite all the numerous religious monologues, the book does not have a definite conclusion on the position of the author on religion. We read of his struggle to accept the religion he was born into, but nothing worthwhile comes from the struggle. I loved that the book was that open-ended. The author painted a very descriptive picture of the Persian culture and landscape, allowing the reader to truly experience the story from his viewpoint.

This book is described as a ‘Persian love story’ by the author; however, a good percentage of it is filled with religious and philosophical musings. The author could have done a better job of giving a more appropriate description of the book. A reader who reads this book with the expectation of enjoying a romance story will be disappointed. The story is set mainly in France, Iran, and England but on the occasions where languages other than English were spoken, they were not always properly translated, and that could be a hindrance for the reader.

Overall, I rate The Margaux Memory by Mohammed Reza Erfani 4 out of 5 stars because the author did an outstanding job at conveying the emotion and culture in the story. I took out a star because of the issues I had with the book, which I already covered in previous paragraphs. I found this book to be exceptionally well edited.

I recommend this book to anyone who loves to explore different cultures through the pages of a book. Lovers of autobiographies would enjoy this book as well because the story is very much autobiographical, even if it was necessarily described as such.

******
The Margaux Memory
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon

[NutellaBanana]

This is an interesting and well thought of book. This is also an interesting and well-written review. This is also a book that I would definitely love to try out. Thank you for this wonderful review.

[Prosper2000]

I love to explore different cultures by reading about them, so I'm sure I'll enjoy this book. Great review, by the way.

[CrossK]

Authors that know how to perfectly cover the emotions in a story deserve all the credit. Kudos to Mohammed Reza Erfani on this one.

[Alexander C Schmoock]

I've never read a Persian love story before. This could be my first. I'll check this out when I find time between reviews.