.توپ <> Tup (The Cannon)

The Cannon is the first and best of Gholam-Hossein Saedi’s novels. It has an unwavering focus on a single character, the independent iterant Mullah Mir Hashem who is clever and manipulative. Based on historical events, the novel is set in northwestern Iran in the early twentieth century. It features tribal supporters of the Constitutional Revolution; Russian Cossacks who are backing the status quo; and Mullah Mir Hashem. The novel gives a glimpse into the tensions and machinations of the revolution, where each party is attempting to outwit, out-maneuver and otherwise deceive the other. For most of the narrative Mir Hashem seems to have outsmarted the others. The story comes to an intriguing and unpredictable end. GHOLAM-

HOSSEIN SAEDI (1936-1986) is the most important dramatist of twentieth century Iran. He was also a prolific ethnographer, editor and fiction writer. A psychiatrist by training, his psychological insights are evident in his writings. The 1968 film, Cow, based on Saedi’s film script became a critical success both in Iran and abroad and brought him popular recognition. FARIDOUN

FARROKH was born in Iran and educated in Iran and the United States. He is a professor of English at Texas A&M International University. His previous book was a translation of Goli Taraghi’s short stories, A Mansion in the Sky.