While imprisoned, Narges Mohammadi read Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale. The activist was serving a 16-year sentence for challenging Iran’s system of gender apartheid—a regime of dress codes, sexual oppression, and coercive control enforced by men in power within a theocracy, mirroring Atwood’s fictional world.
Mohammadi, awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2023 while still incarcerated, was granted a three-week medical leave in December, returning home. During her release, the 52-year-old Mohammadi fulfilled commitments (including speaking and singing) to the Nobel committee, used social media from her previous location at Zanjan Central Prison, and connected with Atwood.
On December 18th, TIME facilitated a video call between the 85-year-old Canadian author and Mohammadi, with a translator present. One woman wrote a book; the other has lived its reality.
