Chapter 30: Roya Shams — Summary and Analysis
⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.
Summary
The chapter opens inside a taxi in Tehran, where Roya Shams rides with Leila, who is chattering about astrology, British punk music, jungle cats, and Greek gods. Roya is less focused on the words than on Leila herself—her sunglasses, her short curls, her black slacks—and she reflects that language can only say what something was like, not what it was. The taxi driver keeps glancing at Leila in the rearview mirror, swerving slightly as he does. When he asks if she is famous, Leila deflects with a joke, puts her scarf back on, and lights two unfiltered cigarettes, handing one to Roya.
Leila abruptly asks Roya who has seen her cry naked as an adult. Roya is startled, but Leila explains that she cries often and hates it, comparing it to an involuntary laugh. Roya admits she knows the feeling and tells the story of babysitting her neighbor Nafiz's infant daughter. The baby would not stop crying, and Roya could not set her down anywhere because every surface was covered with clothes or dishes. Overwhelmed, Roya cried too, and Nafiz returned to find both of them sobbing. Leila laughs and says that anyone can see you cry, but being with someone while they cry naked is real intimacy—the top of the mountain.
The taxi arrives at a campground parking lot by a manmade lake. Leila pays the fare despite Roya's offer to help. Leila removes her headscarf and walks at night with her hair free, which terrifies Roya, who is afraid someone will notice. Leila looks, in Roya's eyes, like Bob Dylan. They walk a footpath around the water, and Leila greets passersby in a deep, gravelly man's voice, receiving salaams in return. One man even says, “Good night, brother.” Roya's fear begins to be eclipsed by fascination.
Leila stops at a three-meter-high brick wall and asks Roya to help her climb it. Roya hesitates, but Leila insists the view is worth it. Roya boosts her up, and Leila pulls Roya to the top. Roya's breasts ache as she climbs, reminding her of the pregnancy growing inside her—something she had not thought of all evening. At the top, they discover three massive giraffes in the zoo enclosure behind the wall. Leila explains it is the backside of the zoo. They sit and watch the giraffes chew sadly for several minutes.
A security guard arrives with a flashlight and orders them down. Leila shouts in her deep voice that she is a soldier and that she is with her girl. The guard is furious and threatens to call the police. Roya is terrified, imagining what the guard might do if he realized Leila was a young woman without a scarf, pretending to be a man. The guard stares at Roya for a long moment, then leaves, warning them not to be there when he returns. Leila gives a sarcastic double thumbs-up. She tells Roya she wants to sit with the giraffes for a few more minutes—and with Roya—and rests her head on Roya's shoulder.
Key Events
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Leila and Roya ride through Tehran in a taxi; Leila removes her scarf and the driver keeps staring at her.
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Leila asks Roya about crying naked as an adult; Roya tells the story of crying while babysitting Nafiz's baby.
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They arrive at a manmade lake; Leila walks with her hair uncovered at night, greeting strangers in a man's voice.
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Leila and Roya climb a wall and discover giraffes in the zoo enclosure behind it.
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A security guard confronts them; Leila claims to be a soldier.
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The guard threatens to call the police and leaves; Leila rests her head on Roya's shoulder.
Character Development
Roya Shams — Roya is deeply observant and self-aware, but also cautious and fearful. Her fear of Leila's uncovered hair and her hesitation about climbing the wall show her internalized caution about the regime's rules. Yet her fear is gradually replaced by fascination, and she allows herself to be pulled into Leila's world. The chapter also reveals her pregnancy—she feels her breasts ache while climbing and realizes she had not thought of the baby all evening, suggesting a complicated relationship with her own body and circumstances.
Leila — Leila is bold, playful, and transgressive. She removes her scarf, speaks in a man's voice, and climbs walls at night. She is also tender—she asks about crying, laughs at Roya's story, and ultimately rests her head on Roya's shoulder. Her claim to be a soldier is both a joke and a serious act of self-protection, showing how gender performance can be a survival strategy.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
Language's limits — Roya reflects that a photograph can say “this is what it was,” but language can only say “this is what it was like.” This frames the entire chapter as an attempt to capture something ineffable—Leila herself, the giraffes, the moment on the wall.
Paved-over mass graves — Roya notes that many of Tehran's new parks and plazas are converted cemeteries where the regime buried executed political prisoners. The manmade lake, by contrast, is old and not a cover-up. This motif connects the city's beauty to state violence and erasure.
The interrogation question — Roya recalls the regime's question: “When you were growing up, did your father pray, fast, and read the Holy Quran?” The correct answer was no, because saying yes meant you were responsible for your own delinquency. This question haunts Roya, surfacing in her mind at moments of fear.
Crying naked as intimacy — Leila's question reframes vulnerability as the ultimate form of closeness. Crying is common, but being seen crying while naked is, in her words, “the top of the mountain.”
Gender disguise — Leila's deep voice and manly posture allow her to move through public space safely. The disguise is both playful and necessary, a performance that protects her from the consequences of being a woman without a scarf at night.
Giraffes as displaced creatures — The giraffes are out of place in Tehran, just as Leila and Roya are out of place on the wall. Their sad chewing and long eyelashes suggest a melancholy awareness of not belonging.
Boundary transgression — Climbing the wall is a literal transgression of a boundary, but the chapter is full of smaller transgressions: removing the scarf, speaking in a man's voice, trespassing at night.
Headscarf removal danger — Roya is terrified when Leila walks with her hair free, and the danger is made explicit when the security guard arrives. The scarf is not just clothing but a marker of survival.
Pregnancy awareness — Roya's aching breasts remind her of the pregnancy she has been ignoring. The baby is a presence she carries but does not yet fully acknowledge.
Fear eclipsed by fascination — Roya's initial fear of Leila's behavior gives way to fascination, mirroring the reader's own journey through the chapter.
Why This Chapter Matters
Chapter 30 is a turning point in the relationship between Roya and Leila. It moves them from a taxi ride of small talk to a shared moment of intimacy and transgression on a wall above a zoo. The chapter also deepens the novel's exploration of state violence, gender performance, and the limits of language. Roya's pregnancy is revealed here, adding a new layer of stakes to her choices. The giraffes—displaced, sad, and beautiful—become a symbol of the characters' own displacement. The chapter ends with Leila resting her head on Roya's shoulder, a gesture of trust that suggests their bond is becoming something more than friendship.
Study Questions and Answers
1. Why does Leila ask Roya about crying naked, and what does her answer reveal about her view of intimacy?
Leila asks the question to test how close she and Roya can become. She believes that crying is common and not particularly meaningful, but being seen crying while naked is true intimacy—a stripping away of all pretense. Her answer reveals that she values vulnerability and authenticity over social performance.
2. How does the chapter use the giraffes as a symbol?
The giraffes are out of place in Tehran, just as Leila and Roya are out of place on the wall. Their sad chewing and long eyelashes suggest a melancholy awareness of not belonging. They are also a source of wonder and beauty, offering Roya and Leila a moment of escape from the dangers of the city.
3. What role does the security guard play in the chapter?
The security guard represents the state's surveillance and control. His arrival threatens to expose Leila's disguise and Roya's complicity. His threat to call the police is a reminder of the consequences of transgression. But Leila's bold performance as a soldier—and her sarcastic thumbs-up—shows that the state's power can be mocked, at least temporarily.
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