Chapter 1: What’s to Admire About Iranian Women -- Chapter 2: Gender in the Language, the Folklore, the Landscape -- Chapter 3: The First Mothers of Iran -- Chapter 4: Women of Iran’s Pre-Islamic Empires -- Chapter 5: Persian Women Under Arab Muslim Conquerors -- Chapter 6: Islam as a Cult of Love -- Chapter 7: A History of the Veil -- Chapter 8: Female Heroes of Medieval Persia -- Chapter 9: The Mothers of Modern Iran -- Chapter 10: Women of the Constitutional Revolution -- Chapter 11: The Movement for Girls’ Education -- Chapter 12: Controlling the Raiders and Banning the Veil -- Chapter 13: Professional Women Redefine Good Work -- Chapter 14: Reformist Women Under the Pahlavi Shahs -- Chapter 15: Women in the Islamic Revolution -- Chapter 16: The Family Law Culture War -- Chapter 17: Sexuality in the Islamic Republic -- Chapter 18: Some Modern Heroes -- Chapter 19: Islam According to Women.

This book tells the story of Iranian women’s accomplishments and struggles over the course of history, spanning from ancient Elam to the present day. It explores the evolving conditions of women’s lives in each era, and how women’s choices and initiatives have shaped Persian civilization. In the process, it presents a cast of unique, often brilliant individuals, and refutes the traditional assumption that men were always the authors of Iranian culture, business, law, religion, art, education, literature, agriculture, science, architecture, philosophy, social mores, and the writing of history. It shows how Iranian women have always been creative, influential players in these fields, and how their contributions have enriched the world. Zhinia Noorian is a Postdoc Researcher at Utrecht University, The Netherlands. Brian Griffith is an independent historian living in Toronto, Canada.