Biography
Mina Assadi is a poet, author, journalist and musician born in Northern Iran in 1943. Her debut collection of poems, Minas Gift, (Armanghane Mina), was published when she was 18. The author of fourteen poetry and essay collections, she was exiled during the Iranian revolution in 1979, and settled in Sweden. Assadi is known for vigorous opposition to Iranian censorship and despotism, and for controversial writings: in 2007’s “Pimps,” (Djakesha), she rebukes those who live in Iran and in exile who have forgotten the struggle. Belonging: New Poetry by Iranians Around the World, features Assadi’s elegant, lyrical poems in English. “Yearning for Saari” is an ode to her birthplace by the river. The “Sketches” series explores love, freedom and living a conscious life. In the “Waking Dreams” series, she considers lost almond trees, rain, loneliness, nightmares, and enduring winter. In her wonderfully weary “Because of Boredom,” Assadi satirizes the patriarchal state of literature.