© 2026 WRVO Public Media
NPR News for Central New York
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Books Reveal The Mystery Of Modern Iran

"Three Books. . ." is a series in which we invite writers to recommend three great reads on a single theme.

My Iran Air flight touched down after midnight, and we stepped up a ramp into Imam Khomeini International Airport.

As a foreigner, I didn't know if my bags would be searched or if my three books about the county were allowed. So I'd left them behind — one at home, the other two on the table of a coffee shop in Dubai, my last stop before Tehran.

Now, I could only try to remember them as I waited to have my passport stamped. Maybe that's why I so vividly recalled what all three books reported about free speech or expression.

Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Steve Inskeep is a host of NPR's Morning Edition and Up First.
Recent cuts to federal funding are challenging our mission to serve central and upstate New York with trusted journalism, vital local coverage, and the diverse programming that informs and connects our communities. This is the moment to join our community of supporters and help keep journalists on the ground, asking hard questions that matter to our region.

Stand with public media and make your gift today—not just for yourself, but for all who depend on WRVO as a trusted resource and civic cornerstone in central and upstate New York.