The Lonely War - Nazila Fatih

Subtitled "One Woman's Account of the Struggle for Modern Iran".
What makes this book so interesting is the contextualization of modern Iranian history and politics through Nazila Fatih's life as a reporter on Iran for the New York Times.
It provides insights into the social realities of Iran during the revolutionary period and also the shift in those realities with the passage of time.  It also shows the complexity of the political culture in Iran.  Contrary to Western images, it is not a monolithic dictatorial state structure; there are different branches in the government and they have their different agendas and different relationships to the modernizing movements in Iran.  These branches can be at cross purposes and even work against each other in the many surveillance and prosecutorial activities.
The recent unrest and violence in Iran has been caused by this type of conflict between different branches of the government with varying levels of support from the people of Iran.  The diehard conservative element is headed by Khamenei - this group traces its roots back to the early days of the revolution (though they no longer have much support from the clergy in Qom, who see the need to modernize Shia Islam practice in Iran).  Without support of the people and their "democratically" elected representatives, Khamenei has created an oppresssive force with the Revolutionary Guard and the Basij.  This is a client relationship in that Khamenei can use oil revenue to provide benefits and perks in exchange for their support.  On the other side are the main body of clergy, the reformists (both secular and religious, and some even tracing their roots back to Khomeni and the original revolution),  the democratically elected Parliament, and the majority of the people.

This situation is another example of the saying, "Absolute power corrupts absolutely". Khomein set up the system so that the absolute power of last word rests with the religious leader of the country.  This amount of power contains an invitation to abuse.  Khamenei is abusing this absolute power to keep himself and his small group in power against the will of the people.  The goal becomes, not just government for the good of the people (however you define it), but the maintenance and continuance of power for its own sake.

Children of the Stone - Sandy Tolan

This is the story of Ramzi Aburedwan, a Palestinian born in Ramallah during the occupation.  The book chronicles his development from a stone-throwing child to the director of a number of music schools in Ramallah and various refugee camps in Lebanon.  It is a story of how an encounter with music can transform someone, give hope and a life beyond the anger and frustration that people live with in situations of occupation and repression.  A complicated man.
The book inevitably touches on many issues related to the plight of Palestinians under occupation.  You get a picture of some of the elements of day-to-day life for Palestinians living in Israel.  As background, the book also touches on the various steps and failings of the peace process, the two Intifada's, and the current divestment campaign.
Worth the read in that it humanizes certain aspects of this troubling situation that seems to never get closer to being resolved.

Leeches - David Albahari

A very convoluted first person telling of a story.  One long tell in sentences but with no paragraphs.  Underneath, the book seems to be about the difficulties that arose with being Jewish in Serbia following the breakup of Jugoslavia.  Unfortunately, I find the telling too twisted and mired in the main characters obsessions and paranoia.  Couldn't finish it.

Learning Cyrillic - David Albahari

A Serbian author currently living in Calgary.  A collection of short stories, many of which focus on his experiences as an immigrant and his encounters with a new culture.  Not straightforward - a bit Kafkaesque at times.  His imagination can take off and soar with some strange ideas, premises or images that surprise.