The powerful, moving story of a California teenager from an immigrant family who, finding himself in an increasingly hostile world, is turned from a carefree surfer’s life towards a culture of fear and fanaticism 

Laguna Beach, California, 2009. Alireza Courdee, a fourteen-year-old, straight-A student and chemistry whiz, takes his first hit of pot. In that moment, he is transformed from the high-achieving son of Iranian immigrants into a happy-go-lucky stoner. He loses his virginity, takes up surfing, cuts classes and lies to his father. For the first time, Reza – now Rez – feels like an all-American teen. 

Then the Boston bombings happen, and fears of terrorism abound. His newfound friends and their families begin to withdraw from Rez and he finds himself in an increasingly isolated state, where his skin colour, name and parents’ background make him an object of suspicion. The only people he can relate to now are beautiful Fatima, who starts covering her hair with a hijab and going to the local mosque, and Arash – until he disappears one day. Little by little, Reza is drawn into a frightening new world…

A Good Country is a powerful meditation on modern life and on how international events can transform young lives. Insightful, nuanced and emotionally forceful, it is an important book for our times.