Leila's Secret

Born in a slum, Kooshyar Karimi transformed himself into an award-winning writer as well as a successful doctor, whose conscience won't let him turn away the unmarried women who beg him to save their lives by ending pregnancies that would see them stoned to death. One of those women is Leila. She yearns to go to university, but her family forbids it. Kooshyar has rescued countless women, but Leila seeks his help for a different reason, one that will haunt him for years afterwards. Leila's Secret shows us everyday life for women in a country where it can be a crime to fall in love. For all its tragedy, this book is paradoxically uplifting, told from the heart of Kooshyar's immense sympathy.

Kooshyar Karimi is the author of several books on Iranian, Chinese, and Assyrian myths and history, one of which was banned from publication by the Iranian government. He is also the author of a memoir, I Confess: Revelations in Exile, and is an award-winning translator of Gore Vidal, Kahlil Gibran, and Adrian Berry, among others.