Don’t let the young adult (YA) fiction marketing fool you, this autobiographical story is unforgettable (and much appreciated!) by those with some life experience. Daniel, the author and narrator, flees from Iran as a small child, detours through a refugee camp in Italy, then winds up in middle school in Oklahoma, where he puts on his best impression of legendary storyteller Scheherazade in the tradition of One Thousand and One Nights, attempting to convince his classmates of his true identity, even as he is trying to make sense of his patchwork memories and redefine himself.

“When I was a kid in Isfahan, I would tell my mother that someday, I would build her a castle at the top of Mount Sofeh. I could see it from my window. A castle in the sky. I didn’t know that life would make a liar out of me. I’m sorry, Mom. I didn’t forget. I just never managed it. I wrote you a book instead. I know it isn’t even close” – Daniel Nayeri, Everything Sad Is Untrue (A True Story)

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/45916267-everything-sad-is-untrue

YouTube: https://youtu.be/lLWOndGwXDc

Audio production by Graham Stephenson

Episode music: Caprese by Blue Dot Sessions