Song of the Ground Jay: Poems by Iranian Women, 1960–2023, Expanded Edition

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 expanded bilingual anthology encompassing both the most progressive and the most regressive eras for women in Iran, Mojdeh Bahar introduces readers to the poems of 104 Iranian women during the past sixty years. Focusing mainly on poets writing today, this expanded edition of Song of the Ground Jay engages with a very 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.