by Daniel Nayeri

_{publisher’s synopsis}

At the front of a middle school classroom in Oklahoma, a boy named Khosrou (whom everyone calls “Daniel”) stands, trying to tell a story. His story. But no one believes a word he says. To them he is a dark-skinned, hairy-armed boy with a big butt whose lunch smells funny; who makes things up and talks about poop too much.

But Khosrou’s stories, stretching back years, and decades, and centuries, are beautiful, and terrifying, from the moment he, his mother, and sister fled Iran in the middle of the night, stretching all the way back to family tales set in the jasmine-scented city of Isfahan, the palaces of semi-ancient kings, and even the land of stories.

We bounce between a school bus of kids armed with paper clip missiles and spitballs, to the heroines and heroes of Kosrou’s family’s past, who ate pastries that made them weep, and touched carpets woven with precious gems.

Like Scheherazade in a hostile classroom, author Daniel Nayeri weaves a tale of Khosrou trying to save his own life: to stake his claim to the truth. And it is (a true story).

It is Daniel’s.

It’s easy to see why this book has garnered so much acclaim.

It’s a story about a refugee, yes. But more so, it’s a story about life, both the beautiful and the ugly, the good and the bad. It’s about family, love, memory, faith, pain, friendship, and longing.

Nayeri’s prose is beautiful to read, and his storytelling is masterful. Rather than following the classic Western story structure, Everything Sad Is Untrue weaves stories from Daniel’s childhood and family in and out of each other. There are no chapters. But everything works together perfectly. The various memories complement each other.

Reading this book will make you wish you could be friends with young Daniel. You’ll get a craving for Persian food. You’ll wish you could see the house with the birds. Reading Everything Sad Is Untrue feels like sitting down with a friend while they tell you stories. And I love that.

Cautions: One blasphemy and two instances of bleeped-out swearing. There’s a phrase used several times that looks like a euphemism for swearing in English but is apparently not in Farsi (the language the characters are speaking at those times). Daniel’s stepfather is abusive and it’s clear to the reader that there’s domestic violence. It’s referenced a few times, though it only happens once briefly on page, non-graphic. A couple of stories involve injuries described with some description. (If you wince whenever someone tells a story involving a nail gun, you’ll probably wince and skim these parts.) Daniel recounts a couple of myths that involve affairs, non-detailed. There’s some rude humor due to several poop stories.

PS: You can currently read Everything Sad Is Untrue for free if you have an Amazon Prime account!