Shazdeh Ehtejab

• Author: Houshang Golshiri
• Publication date: 1969
• Available in other languages: Yes

Shazdeh Ehtejab (or Prince Ehtejab), Houshang Golshiri’s magnum opus first released in 1969, is an account of one of the last remaining heirs of the Qajar royal family who is suffering from tuberculosis – which he knows is fatal. He spends his last days alone in the magnificent rooms of his wintry palace, from where he recollects the glory days of his ancestors as well as days of degradation. Among the latter are the gruesome manner in which his cruel grandfather murdered his mother and brother, and the way that he himself caused the death of his wife. The novel was luckily made into a 93-min Farsi movie by Bahman Farmanara in 1974. The book has already been translated to English by James Buchan, and French.