A Cup of Sin: Selected Poems

As a Muslim woman writing in Iran, Simin Behbahani's collections contain some of the seminal work of twentieth-century Persian literature.

Written over almost half a century, much of her work reflects the traumatic experiences that have shaped recent Iranian history: revolution and war. In a balance of artful inquiry and shocking realism, Behbahani's language and imagery probe the depths of political, cultural, and moral oppression. In the traditional verse of the qhazel, she improvises with...