Tehran does not welcome pedestrians. It is eight o’clock on a July evening and the sun has plunged out of the air with alarming speed; the sky is the colour of wine, and the air is thick with the scent of heat and petrol. I have long forgotten where we are going.
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The Shiva Naipaul Memorial Prize is awarded annually to the entrant best able, like the late writer, to describe a visit to a ‘foreign’ place or people. The judges were Robert Macfarlane, Miranda France, Jenny Naipaul, Mark Amory, Mary Wakefield, Lucy Vickery and Clarissa Tan. There were 126 entries from 21 countries. Six were shortlisted, including Anne Jolis, Steven McGregor, Will Nicoll and Gordon Hector; the runner-up was Misti Traya.
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