Only Sound Remains
**Shortlisted, Miles Franklin Literary Award 2024**
Saeed has not returned to Iran after publishing his novel The Imaginary Narrative of a Real Murder for fear of political persecution. He is surprised when Ismael, his father who has never left Iran, announces that he is travelling to Adelaide to visit him. During his short stay, Ismael tells Saeed the story of his unrequited love for Forugh Farrokhzad—the most controversial poet of modern Iran. The story makes Saeed see his father in a new light, and leaves him with the haunting question: had his father, unwittingly, played a role in Forugh’s death?
'A significant contribution to Australian literature and to literature as a whole … A novel which matters—deeply.' – Arnold Zable
Born in Iran, Hossein Asgari lived and worked in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia as a physicist before moving to Adelaide where he undertook a Ph.D. in Creative Writing. His short stories have appeared in The Saltbush Review and Overland. Only Sound Remains is his first novel.
