Through the sypathetic eyes of an impoverished orphan boy named Mohammad, The Blue Mosaic Vase explores the role of women bound by thousands of years of tradition in a land where sons are prized. Left with only the beautiful blue mosaic vase, a gift he once gave his mother, Mohammad begins his quest for identity, love and belonging. He first explores his world in the footsteps of his mother, Pargol, victim of the bazaar's harshness and disease; through his brother's child bride, Feredeh, bound by ancient religious tradition; by the suffering of the harlot, Leila, shackled by hunger into a life with few options. He experiences life within the dark eyes of his first love, Sherine, forced by the solemn promise of her father to marry another; through his wife, the beautiful Amira, driven by gold and lust for one she cannot have; from the little servant girl, Batool, imprisoned by her society and left with only one choice--to bury her disgrace in the murky waters of the jewb. Yet Mohammad overcomes the unfairness and cruelty that reign in his world when his journey finally leads him to the widowed village weaver, Najmeh, filled with love and compassion yet free and unbound as the shifting desert sands that surround her village.