Episode 258 with Porochista Khakpour, Author of Tehrangeles, Savvy and Skilled Chronicler of the Essence of Modern Life, and Writer of Varied, Hilarious, and Incisive Works

Show Notes and Links to Porochista Khanpour's Work

 

For Episode 258, Pete welcomes Porochista Khakpour, and the two discuss, among other topics, her harrowing departure from Iran to the US at a young age, her voracious reading and writing and storytelling, amazing life experiences that have fed her writing, her love of contemporary stan culture and KPop, how her latest book’s release is different, seeds for Tehrangeles, modern wellness and conspiracy theory cultures, her experiences with the real Tehrangeles, the role of the outsider as a writer, and so much about themes and topics related to her novel, like celebrity worship, assimilation, cancel culture, and racism.

 

   Porochista Khakpour was born in Tehran and raised in the greater Los Angeles area. She is the critically acclaimed author of two previous novels, Sons and Other Flammable Objects and The Last Illusion; a memoir, Sick; and a collection of essays, Brown Album. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, Bookforum, Elle, and many other publications. Her latest book is Tehrangeles. She lives in New York City.

 

Buy Tehrangeles 

Porochista’s Official Website

Porochista’s Wikipedia Page

“Writing Iranian America…”-2020 Interview from Columbia Journal

 

At about 1:45: Pete gets the wrong vegetable in remembering his first exposure to Porochista’s excellent work

 

At about 2:45, Porochista talks about the year in publishing and the ways in which this year’s tragedies have been in juxtaposition to careful and affectionate feedback for her novel

 

At about 7:30, Porochista and Pete discuss some politicians’ cowardice and Porochsta’s book as a “weird distraction”

 

At about 10:20, Pete asks Porochista about writing satire in an increasingly off-its-hinges world

 

At about 13:20, Porochista talks about the 1%, richest of the richest, and how “this sort of madness of wealthy people during the beginning of the pandemic”

 

At about 15:10, Porochsta gives background on the acquisition of her novel 

 

At about 17:25, The two highlight Danzy Senna’s great work

 

At about 18:20, Porochista cites examples of “dark humor” that at times run through Persian cultures 

 

At about 20:10, Porochista reflects on the idea of “perpetual outsiders” and the effect on writing

 

At about 21:40, Porochista details her family’s fleeing Iran and the traumas and memories that came with her odyssey to arriving in the US

 

At about 24:30, Porochista traces the way that Iran was often viewed by Americans at the time in which her family arrived in the US

 

At about 25:15, Porochista responds to Pete’s questions about her early reading and writing and language life, both in English and Persian 

 

At about 31:45, 

 

At about 32:50, Porochista talks about she’s been described as a “maximalist” and the connection to Persian as her first language

 

At about 34:35, Porochista talks about representation in the texts she read growing up and her early love of particular works that allowed her to learn about the Western canon in order to enjoy it and resist it

 

At about 37:30, Porochista charts her reading journey from Faulkner to Morrison to Sartre to the Beat Poets and describes her self-designed silent book reading “retreat”

 

At about 40:20, Porochista describes her reading and writing as responses to her life experiences and her identity revolving around writing

 

At about 41:35, Porochista describes transformative and formative texts and mentors and her time at Sarah Lawrence College and Oxford

 

At about 43:50, Porochista talks about the ways in which her reading was affected by how women writers are often limited, and how this connects to her seeking out adventure and life experience in living as a writer, including her going to William Faulkner Country

 

At about 49:45, The two make appreciations of James Joyce’s work 

 

At about 50:55, Porochista makes a case for contemporary writing as comprising a “golden era”

 

At about 52:00, Pete wonders if and how Porochsta has been influenced by Bret Easton Ellis and David Foster Wallace

 

At about 54:45, Porochista talks about ways in which Less than Zero and American Psycho and Donna Tartt’s work have affected the sensibility of Tehrangeles and especially its ending

 

At about 59:15, Porochista talks about “dream” casting in case the novel becomes a movie, including Tara Yummy

 

At about 1:01:00, Porochista talks about the “twisted logic” found on many of the chat rooms/forums she spent time in for book research 

 

At about 1:04:15, Porochista talks about how Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women and Alcott’s experience informed the writing of Tehrangeles

 

At about 1:07:55, The two discuss how Shahs of Sunset affected the novel

 

At about 1:10:00, Porochista explains her rationale in making the book’s reality show producers a collective

 

At about 1:10:45, Porochista responds to Pete’s question about the book’s epitaphs  

 

At about 1:13:55, Porochista talks about the book’s untranslated Persian section and “progress” in people’s understanding

 

At about 1:15:20, Pete cites and quotes the book’s opening litany and the exposition of Book I

 

At about 1:16:20, Porochista describes a raucous scene where Roxana, a main character, goes through a “zodiac reassignment”

 

At about 1:17:50, Porochista digs into Roxana’s “Secret”

 

At about 1:19:10, The two lament Kanye West’s horrible recent behavior and other misogynists and abusers, in connection with the setting of the book

 

At about 1:22:30, The two discuss the world of influencers and their effect on younger generations in line with the characters of the book

 

At about 1:24:20, Pete recounts the Milani family members and their views of the 

 

At about 1:26:00, Porochista recounts inspiration for Violet’s sweets diet from an interview with Momofuku’s Christina Tosi and Porochista’s time at Sarah Lawrence

 

At about 1:28:00, The two discuss Violet’s experience with a racist and demeaning model shoot that plays on her Iranian heritage 

 

At about 1:29:30, Porochista reflects on Tehrangeles culture and its connection to religion 

 

At about 1:30:35, Porochista discusses KPop and “stan culture” and how Mina “found her voice” through these online forums 

 

At about 1:34:20, Porochista talks about purposely focusing on realistic and empathetic portrayals of gender identity 

 

At about 1:38:30, The two discuss Hailey as representative of the intersections between Covid conspiracy theories and racism and “hidden” CA racism and wellness culture

 

At about 1:40:00, Porochista talks about her own experiences with the “dark wu wu” of the wellness cultures during her own fragile 

 

At about 1:44:00, The two discuss Ali (Al) and his leaving Iran behind and how he seeks Americanization and how he makes his fortune

 

At about 1:46:15, Porochista likens events of the book, “The World of Al” to the DJ Khaled song 

 

At about 1:48:05, The two discuss Roxana’s desire to have a blowout early Covid-era party and how the physical “wings” of the house connect to the sisters’ different growing pains and goals and ethics

 

At about 1:50:40, The two riff on some beautifully absurd scenes in the book, including a pet psychic’s appearance 

 

At about 1:51:50, Porochista gives background on deciding to do untranslated Persian in the book and about Homa and the ways she doesn't want to be part of Tehrangeles; also Editor Maria Goldberg Love

 

At about 1:55:10, Pete asks about the rationale and background for the book’s ending using stream of consciousness

 

At about 1:57:15, Porochista shouts out Golden Hour Books and City of Asylum Books, and other places to buy her book, including Shawnee, Kansas’ Seven Stories, run by 17 yr old Halley Vincent

 

At about 1:59:45, Porochista shouts out the stellar Deep Vellum and Verso and writers like

 

At about 2:01:05, Porochista talks about exciting upcoming projects 

 

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    Please tune in for Episode 259 with Jessica Whipple. Jessica writes for adults and children, and her poetry has been published recently in Funicular, Door Is a Jar, and many more. She has published two children's picture books in 2023: Enough Is… and I Think I Think a Lot. 

The episode will air on October 29.

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