Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood

The story of a young girl growing up in Iran in the 80s. "Forrest Gump" let me see history through a fresh innocent set of eyes and I found "Persepolis" much the same. No one should have to live in such an environment, much less a child, yet Satrapi has so much hope, so much fire and spirit in her. Such and enlightening and powerful story.

A must read for its humor and descriptive qualities. A corrective to be digested by warmongers and propagandists.

I was assigned this book in one of my college classes and i just enjoyed reading it. I really got into it that i decided to purchase the second one. I would recommend this to anyone.

So let me tell you about this amazing book called Persepolis. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll kiss your ignorance of the Iranian Islamic revolution on a personal level goodbye.

Number one. I found it relatable, being born in the same year as the author. I was alive in America when jean jackets, Nikes, and Michael Jackson buttons were very cool to have, not to mention Iron Maiden posters. And what makes the story so personal is how very much like me she is, yet she grew up on the other side of the world and lived through the middle of a terrifying revolution.

The story is terrifying. Her and her family waiting for the Iraqi scud missiles to drop knowing there was no sense waiting in the basement because they would die if a scud hit their home.

It was funny. Early in the story the author's convinced she is a prophet and has numerous discussions with God. Then later when her uncle is killed God tries to talk to her again and she wants nothing to do with Him and tells him to go away.

The emotions of the characters are so endearing, young girls wearing their veils with varying degrees of confusion, emotions of fear at every turn. The media of cartoon narration combined with her minimalistic style is perfect for communicating the absurdities and tradegies of her experience as told from her young yet very sharp mind. Her form has the ability to communicate the horror and absurdity of public beating, torture and severing limbs from the vantage point of a 9-14 year old girl. The form communicates the humorous nature of her emotions as she becomes smitten with her uncle because unlike her father the uncle had been imprisoned. And, it communicates the intelligence of this kid in how she recognizes that a trip wasn't a trip but jail and that her mother was lying to her when she said her uncle's wife sent for him because she knew the wife didn't love him.

And in the story she communicates so much of the tragedy, such as children used in war, the loss of a million people because the revolution need the war with Iraq to continue to stay in power. Tragedies range from her leaving her parents at 14 to the bombing of her neighbors and friend after she had become close to them.

It's wonderful that she could tell this story. I can imagine it's been very therapeutic for her. I couldn't imagine carrying all these things around with her amongst people who don't seem to have experience nearly this level of tragedy. It puts my life into perspective. My problems really don't seem so bad.

Marjane Satrapi was a headstrong, privileged Iranian pre-teen in the 1970s when the Shah was deposed and Islamic rule came to Iran. Her story, told in stark black-and-white graphic images, is told here. Satrapi captures the cocky fervor of her youth as well as her fervent, sometimes-misplaced idealism. When the Iran/Iraq war brings enemy bombers to Tehran, she is as bloodthirsty as anyone about revenge -- when she isn't terrified of losing her parents. But mostly, the tale is about her adolescent attempts to subvert the increasingly repressive religious extremists who took over the country in the time of the Ayatollahs. Her secular family tried as much as possible to continue their western lifestyle, with dance parties and smuggled rock posters. But they lived always under the prying eyes of neighbors who were more than willing to denounce state enemies to the regime. The story ends with the family fleeing Iran for the West.

"Persepolis" is part history lesson, part introduction to the Iranian perspective, and part memoir of a girlhood lived under frightful circumstances. The book is a quick read but imparts an enormous amount of information in its inked panels. I'm looking forward to picking up Persepolis II to see how things turned out for Satrapi and her family.