GENRE: Graphic Novel - Memoir
HONORS: 2001: Angoulême Coup de Coeur Award
REVIEW: Persepolis has given needed exposure to Iranian history that Americans do not often see or even too ignorant to learn about. The first volume is where Marjane Satrapi writes about her childhood growing up during the Islamic Revolution. This volume highlights the digression from a liberal culture to a strict, religious state. Reader's get to learn how the black robes and extreme Islamic domination are not a refection of Iran's citizens, but of their government. Before the war, Marjane lived a lavish life where her parents raised her to be educated and independent. In this graphic novel, she illustrates the transformation of the Iranian government, as well as the emotion of having to part with her lifestyle, her parents, and her identity because of the war.
OPINION: This book is as gripping and can be thought of as an equal predecessor of MAUS in terms of quality and content. Marjane has written something that is very relevant to our current political affairs, but in a light that can be understood from a Western standpoint. Her punk rock attitude and quirks of finding ways to express her individualism are a welcomed comic relief from such a heavy subject.
IDEAS: Notable curriculum for social studies or English class when focusing on war torn/ oil rich countries and how it has changed their culture.
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