About the Book
Iranian women have been writing Persian poetry for over a thousand years, and in the tumult of our contemporary moment, poetry has emerged once again as an outlet with a unique power to move and connect us, to inspire fury, tears, joy, laughter, and surprise.
In this bilingual anthology, encompassing both the most progressive and the most regressive eras for women in Iran, Mojdeh Bahar introduces readers to the poems of Iranian women during the past sixty years. Focusing mainly on poets writing today, Song of the Ground Jay engages with a diverse array of Iranian women’s voices that includes the full spectrum of aesthetic sensibilities-with varying styles, tones, and themes, painting a dynamic and cohesive portrait of modern Persian poetry by women.
For anyone who has wanted to try their hand at a conversation with contemporary Persian poetry by Iranian women but doesn’t know where to start, Song of the Ground Jay opens a door and invites you to walk in.
Contents/Excerpt
CONTENTS: THE POETS
Rira Abbasi
Mana Aghaee
Asieh Amini
Farinaz Aryanfar
Mina Assadi
Shabnam Azar
Nahid Bagheri Goldschmeid
Razieh Bahrami Khoshnood
Roja Chamankar
Sareh Dastaran
Sadaf Derakhshan
Maryam Eshaghi
Leila Farjami
Niki Firoozkoohi
Leili Galehdaran
Ghodsi Ghazinour
Sholeh Golrokhi
Elham Gordi
Taraneh Habib
Roya Hakakian
Farideh Hassanzadeh
Hengameh Hoveyda
Maryam Jafari Azarmani
Nahid Kabiri
Samaneh Kahrobaeian
Sheema Kalbasi
Mohaddaseh Kalhor
Guity Khoshdel
Leila Kordbacheh
Bita Malakuti
Mandana Mashayekhi
Shokooh Mirzadegi
Soheila Mirzaei
Sara Mohammadi Ardehali
Jila Mossaed
Granaz Moussavi
Sepideh Nikroo
Partow Nooriala
Maryam Raeesdana
Nazanin Rahimi
Nasrin Ranjbar Irani
Fatima Ranjbari
Mehrangiz Rassapoor (M. Pegah)
Fatemeh Salarvand
Hila Sedighi
Fariba Sedighim
Sarvenaz Seyedi
Nilofar Shidmehr
Azadeh Tahaei
Parvaneh Vahidmanesh
Pirayeh Yaghmaii
Mandana Zandian
About the Author
Mojdeh Bahar received her J.D. from University of Maryland Carey School of Law; her M.A. in French from NYU, and her B.S. in Chemistry and French from Dickinson College.
Milkvetch and Violets, (Mage, 2021); selected and translated poems by 52 Iranian women poets entitled Song of the Ground Jay: Poems by Iranian Women, 1960-2022, (Mage, 2023) and translated poems of Taraneh Habib, In the Mirror: Poems and Collages; and selected and translated the poetry of 104 contemporary Iranian women poets entitled, Song of the Ground Jay, Expanded Edition (Gordyeh Publishers, 2023 for both books). Her translations have also appeared in Lyrikline and Stepaway, online magazines.
Mojdeh works in the public sector. She is a patent attorney and technology transfer professional engaged in the formation of partnerships to advance research and development, enable and strengthen manufacturing, and to enhance organizational performance.
