About two books

"Virtuous Pilot (Khalaban-e Varasteh)" and "Sound of Oars (Seda-ye Parooha)"

Mohammad Ali Fatemi
Translated by Ruhollah Golmoradi

2019-7-16

Iranian Oral History Website: this time we again introduce you two memory books produced in the Hozeh Honari's Office of Culture and Studies of Resistance of provincial centers as follows. These books have been published by Sooreh Mehr Publication in 1398 (2019).
 

Memories of Released Pilot
The book, "Virtuous Pilot: Memories of the Liberated Pilot, Second Brigadier General Mohammad Jafar Varasteh", was compiled in 302 pages by Ahmad Mehrnia. He writes in introduction of the book: "Mohammad Jafar Varasteh... in addition to numerous fighting flights with F-5 fighter was also several years in captivity... After a two-hour interview, I concluded that he had a fresh mind and his memories are capable of becoming a book. So I asked him to write his memories as much as possible. During three months I succeeded in completing the memoir with consecutive guides and removing ambiguity of some parts through in person and on the phone conversations. A phone interview with his sister also completes final part of the book. It was my duty to organize the memories temporally, and as far as it doesn't blemish originality of the issues, to compile memories in form of a book, and to complete things that he did not remember exactly through reviewing files and complementary interviews with colleagues involved in the subject and gathered information."
As it is fashioned in these days in production and compilation of the holy defense's book memoirs, the book "Virtuous Pilot" also begins with narrating the narrator's birth: "I was born in Tehran, Khaniabad on September 1, 1949..." Until page 68 he talks about his training courses in Iran and abroad, as well as about his missions. In marginal notes, he also mentioned his personal life and marriage, and that: "The biggest catastrophe of my life happened. I lost my wife, and from then on I was responsible for raising my little son, Behnam."

In the continuance and to page 151, the narrator's memoirs are narrated from the first day of the imposed war of Saddam Hussein against Islamic Republic of Iran until February 2, 1987, his captivity day; memories of air battles and pilots of Artesh (Iran's army) and events that were in the marginal of missions. In these pages, many pilots are named and spoken about.
The narrator captivity lasts until September 15, 1990, and to page 264, he tells memories about the days and nights he had spent in prison and camp, along with pilot and non-pilot captives. The common feature of these memories is expressing adventures of enduring in the siege of the enemy and helping of captives to each other to resist harassment of the enemy.
 

Write in Persian and read in Mazanderani
The book, "Sound of Oars: Memories of Seyyed Qasem Hashemi", has been compiled by Sadegh Kiannejad Amiri in 654 pages and twenty chapters. In the introduction, he reminded that the narrator said his memories in 45 hours and "to convincing him, I even offered him to narrate all his memories in language of Mazanderani. So, in order not to be omitted some point, he also wrote all his memories in Farsi and read them in Mazanderani to me ... If he had any doubts about details of the memories, he would eliminate the doubts through asking his companions before getting ready to interview. As well as during the compilation, if he remembered a memory and had omitted it, he would write it and send it to me."
To page 46 of the book, the narrator tells about himself and his family and his life environment. From then on and since July 1982, with his first deployment to the holy defense fronts, memories of the war enter the book; memories which are from fronts and rears and also sometimes in Mazanderani language. Therefore, titles of chapters are also signs of the sacred defense years, including areas and commands and operations ... such as Labbayk Ya Khomeini, Defensive, Imam Hussein Battalion, Hoor al-Hoveizeh, Qods 1, Haft Tapeh, Bahmanshir, Valfajr-8, Salt Factory, Karbala-4, Karbala-5, Karbala-10, Fatimah Zahra Battalion, Valfajr-10 and Resolution.
The 556-page volume of text of "Sounds of Oars" shows that the narrator has stated his memories in detail and memory-writer has recorded almost all of them. It is natural that in such a detail, many adventures and people are mentioned there. The memories show that the narrator has necessary ability in remembering, and memory-writer has also made necessary effort to develop his memories. The detailed description is also seen in the final parts of the book (photos, documents, letters), which are about 100 pages.

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