Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood

EAN:9780375714573 Label:Pantheon Author:Marjane Satrapi Binding:Paperback

At first when I opened this book I was completely skeptical A Female Perspective . The first thought that crossed my mind was, "Really? A GRAPHIC novel?!" Still, it came highly recommended, so I gave it a go2009-03-08 Rating 5. This book is a necessary female voice on the Muslim history and experience in Iran. It is witty, whole-hearted, and sincere. This book is great for bookclubs, ungrateful teenagers, women, friends, anyone wishing to understand Iran, etc. Makes a great gift. I found it to be more compelling than the film. . I absolutely loved this graphic novel Incredible and educational story. It is told in a tone I can't quite describe, but it's innocent yet heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time2009-03-03 Rating 5. What an incredible lady Ms. Satrapi is. It gave me insights into a society and a people I would have not otherwise had. This is in my favorites list. I have seen many reviews of this graphic autobiography/memoir on various blogs, but it wasn't until I read one that suggested that Persepolis was similar to the Maus books by Art Spiegelman, that I finally decided to check it out from the local library Persepolis. I read both Maus I and Maus II in college, where they were assigned reading for one of my husband's English Lit classes, and I borrowed them from him2008-11-24 Rating 5. From the moment I started reading them I couldn't put them down. They were both horrifying and entrancing at the same time in their detail of World War II and it's long-term effects on a Jewish father and his relationship with his son. Persepolis, while not about the Holocaust, is similar in that it is set during the time of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, and part of the Iraq - Iran war. Marjane, called Marji, is 10 years old at the beginning of the story. Her family is at first enthusiastic about the changes taking place with the revolution, until they realize that the government is being taken over by fundamentalists who quickly enforce their strict religious rules. Marji has an innocent enthusiasm for the heroics of her relatives and friends of her parents who have been imprisoned and tortured. She wants to hear all of the gruesome and exciting details about their imprisonment so that she can brag to her friends about what great heroes they are. Marji and her innocent antics had me laughing at one moment, and then my gaze would shift to the next panel and my heart would sink as I saw images of torture juxtaposed with images of Marji listening to the story with rapt attention. Marjane Satrapi's account of life under the new regime is compelling, and her dry wit creates a story that will make you laugh and cry at the same time. I highly recommend this graphic memoir to anyone who is interested in memoirs, war biographies, graphic literature, or stories of how children deal with war. I would also say about Persepolis and Maus I & II, that if you liked one of them then you will like the others as well. . This book provides an interesting look at a relatively dark and largely misunderstood period of time Persepolis: An intriguing look at this period. Told from an interesting point-of-view - that of a child - and in a unique way - as a graphic novel, this book brings new insight to this time in history2008-11-23 Rating 5. As the story begins, the young girls are being forced to wear head coverings, yet the young ones do not understand why. As the story progresses, the reader begins to understand the vast difference between what is portrayed in popular media and what actually occurs. The reader also begins to understand that the thoughts and beliefs of the people are not always reflected in their government. The book tells the story of the rebellion of the Iranian people against their government. What makes it more interesting is that the book is told from the perspective of the child of revolutionaries. We see her parents participate in protests, her parents' friends arrested and tortured, the vast class differences that exist in that culture and their real implications on the people who live in that society, and finally, we watch as her parents send her away to receive a better education and "better life" in France. The other aspect of this book that makes it so intriguing is that it is a graphic novel. The drawings are all black and white two dimensional drawings with short dialogue, much like you would find in a comic book only without the color. These drawings actually help the author treat the violence very clinically. The drawings evoke a lot of emotion and convey a lot of information and feelings without any of the gore or graphic images. This book would be well suited for a history classroom, especially side-by-side with a true historical text or textbook. Using this book this way helps provide students with multiple perspectives on a series of historical events. It could also be used as a primary source, because the woman writing this book is doing so from her first-hand account of the events. A word of caution. . this book should be used with high school students or older. Younger students may not be mature enough to fully understand the content. I read this book, and I was very unimpressed with the amount of opinion Satrapi put out as fact Biased. The story is clearly biased against the Islamic Republic, which is fine, but is overly so2008-10-31 Rating 2. Satrapi never gives explanations on events that are critical to the entire picture. She never gives the reasons for why so many of her family members were harassed, and even killed. From what I read, I understand that her family were communists, and at the time, communists were trying to seize power in the revolution. Many of the groups against the existing government including communists spread havoc, and provoked terrorism, but Satrapi never says these things. She just names who were killed. She claims things like Iran rejected an offer of peace in the Iran-Iraq war from Iraq and Saudi Arabia, but doesn't go on and say that the conditions to that "peace" would devastate the economy. Besides these faults, I enjoyed some parts of the book. It portrayed many parts of Iranian culture in a bad light, but was written and drawn powerfully. I would say it is propaganda, but I think it is written too well to have been motivated for propaganda. A New York Times Notable Book A Time Magazine “Best Comix of the Year” A San Francisco Chronicle and Los Angeles Times Best-seller Wise, funny, and heartbreaking, Persepolis is Marjane Satrapi’s memoir of growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution In powerful black-and-white comic strip images, Satrapi tells the story of her life in Tehran from ages six to fourteen, years that saw the overthrow of the Shah’s regime, the triumph of the Islamic Revolution, and the devastating effects of war with Iraq. The intelligent and outspoken only child of committed Marxists and the great-granddaughter of one of Iran’s last emperors, Marjane bears witness to a childhood uniquely entwined with the history of her country