In The Saffron Kitchen, Yasmin Crowther tells the story about Maryam Mazar, an Iranian mother who escaped the cultural limitations on women’s life to marry Brian, a British man, whom she had a daughter with named Sara. When Maryam’s twelve-year-old nephew comes from Iran to live with her family, it triggers her past trauma. Due to this, she decides to go back to her hometown in Iran to heal the pain and leave her family behind. Meanwhile Sara is confused about her mother’s leaving, she tries to find out what happened to Maryam by following her back to Iran.
The author uses juxtaposition by employing dual protagonists of a mother and a daughter to compare the different cultures between them and also highlighting the distinct settings between the remote rural Iranian village of Mazareh where Maryam grew up and the present modern life of Maryam’s family in London. Crowther also uses saffron as a symbol of Iranian identity, representing red gold (wealth), luxury, and cultural pride, which demonstrates to us readers that growing up, little Maryam was raised in a highly privileged, culturally rich environment and after she migrated to London, she still deeply bonds to Iranian traditions. In addition, the imagery connects the reader’s experiences to the text, for instance the line, “Sweet orange clementines and gaudy red pomegranates balanced on top of fat watermelons, striped dark and lime green, one sliced open so its pink flesh and black seeds winked juicily,” links the reader’s senses of taste, feel, and sight.
The character of Maryam Mazar is deeply complicated. As a reader, I tried to understand her character and why she is not satisfied with her new life in London but instead chooses to return to that place of trauma. Does she really want to heal her wound? Or is she choosing to keep the wound? I personally both like and don’t like this book. I enjoyed the writer’s beautiful language and learning about the culture from the story. However, the ending is not what I expected.
I personally found it significant that true love requires respecting a partner’s autonomy, even when their decisions bring pain or lead to separation. Maryam’s bad experience caused her to be a complicated and flawed character. By leaving her husband to go back to Iran, she acted selfishly towards her husband, and despite this, Brian accepted his wife’s departure with a broken heart. All stories we read often mirror the real, lived experiences of someone on the other side of the world, highlighting shared human emotions and struggles.
I recommend The Saffron Kitchen. The author uses ideas of real people and events as a foundation of the story and portrays the real-life journey of individuals who leave their home for a big city, highlighting the emotional, social, and practical challenges that come with immigration. When Maryam was feeling homesick and reminiscing about her childhood, I personally related to her at this point because I also moved from my hometown in Thailand to live in America, and know what it feels like to miss my childhood and where I grew up. I believe a lot of immigrants can relate to this feeling as well and would appreciate this story. I also recommend this story because you will be impressed by the vibrant atmosphere of London and the peaceful beauty of the remote areas in a way that allows you to vividly see and experience both settings. Finally, what makes the book most interesting is not its ending, but how it brings you back to the joy of your childhood memories.
Get the book! Check out The Saffron Kitchen by Yasmin Crowther at the Brooklyn Public Library or Queens Public Library.
About the author This review is by Aphantri M.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
