Summary of the book: Claris, an Armenian/Iranian woman, tells the story of her everyday life as a minority (an Armenian living in Iran), and also a “minority” within her own surroundings.  Fulfilling her daily tasks perfectly, she feels that something in her life is missing. When new neighbours arrive – a dwarf grand mother with an aristocratic background, her son and her grand daughter- the narrator’s teenage son falls in love with the neighbour’s teenage daughter and Claris finds herself in love with the neighbour’s son.  Her love remains untold until the end of the story.

Reasons for this choice:  I’ll Turn Off the Lights has received four awards.  Superb characterization, ingenious representation of the conflicting emotions of an Iranian woman, a language in perfect harmony with the theme and characters of the novel, a well hidden humour, recreation of the geographical location and historical facts of Abadan (a southern city in Iran, famous for its oil refinery) nearly forty years ago are of its strong points.

Rights holder: the publisher