Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood

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Average customer rating 5 (6 comments)

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I'm not a fan of graphic narratives, but this one is well worth attention. Witty, incisive, disturbing because of the material it deals with. Am trying to find a copy to give to a young refugee staying with us.

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I've been wanting to read this for years, and finally did with my book club. There are so many amazing, sad, wonderful parts of the novel that are ripe for club discussion.

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Satrapi's autobiography about growing up during Iran's Islamic revolution was one of the few books of the last decade that has haunted me, long after I had finished it. Like many stories about childhood, it manages to be funny, cruel, and innocent all at once; but through her graphic narrative Satrapi also shows how the revolution brutalized her educated, liberal family, who ironically opposed the rule of the Shah and supported the revolution. Persepolis also humanizes current events in Iran, which Americans tend to view through memories of the "Iranian hostage crisis," and media coverage of President Ahmadinejad's policies and statements. If it hasn't become clear through the present Green movement in Tehran, it should be known that Muslim extremism isn't the only voice of the Iranian people. I'm glad some colleges and schools are now assigning this book as a common reader: it offers a counterpoint to common U.S. stereotypes of Iran and its people.

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this book is amazing and i think all american kids should read it. we are lucky to have books like this, our parents didn't

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I read the whole book in two sittings, and the only reason I stopped reading in the middle was because it was 4 AM. A deeply engrossing and personal account of the Iranian revolution. Since the whole thing is told from a child's perspective, the politics of the situation are barely touched upon, leaving simply what life was like for people before and after an oppressive regime came to power. It ranks up there with Maus as proof that comic books can achieve the status of high art.

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The evocotive images found in Persepolis convey meaning that might have been lost in pure text. The story itself is informative and touching, but the way in which Satrapi uses the form of graphic novel so effectively is what really makes this book a work of art.