Bloom, A. (2005). Fiction in Review. The Yale Review, 93(4), 165-71. Retrieved December 1, 2009, from Article Citation database.

(2008). [Book Reviews]. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 47(7), 839-40. Retrieved December 1, 2009, from Article Citation database.

Plot Synopsis
Persepolis is the remembrances of a young girl growing up in Iran during the Revolution.

My Thoughts
The limitations placed on people and the struggle to free one's self from those limitations is a heartbreaking topic. Each story Marji relates and illustrates reminds me of how good I have it, and reminds me that those across the oceans are not so different.

Marji's Marxist parents allow her to be a freethinker, challenge her to question the Shah and the subsequent regime which attempt to impose ideology upon the country. Marji questions her teachers, revels in stories of revolutionary heroes, and rocks out to rock and roll in her Michael Jackson jacket and forbidden blue jeans. In the midst of cultural repression and the subjugation of women, Marji is all punk and sneakers.

In this graphic novel, the relationship between the images and text is symbiotic, each necessary to the other for the full story to be told. The images do not merely visualize the text, they add to the text, and sometimes do so in a dramatic fashion. Juxtaposing words of pride in the heroic men with images of the dead really highlights the ideas of a child with the reality of a war. I was impressed by the starkness of both the words and the images. ( )

A beautiful and complex memoir told in the form of a black-ink heavy graphic novel. ( )

(Reprinted from the Chicago Center for Literature and Photography [cclapcenter.com]. I am the original author of this essay, as well as the owner of CCLaP; it is not being reprinted here illegally.)

The farther we progress into the early 2000s, the more convinced I am of how in the future, this period of history will be seen as one where Americans finally started more and more understanding the Middle East in the same semi-complex way they currently understand, say, Europe; because make no mistake, international readers, even though the last ten years have mostly been marked by our glee in blowing sh-t up over there, in private there are more and more Americans each day right now eagerly learning just a little more and a little more about what makes up daily life in the areas once defined by the Arabic, Persian, Ottoman and Moghul empires, with the generalities of such terms as "Farsi" and "Shia" (to cite two random examples) becoming more and more known among the general populace for the first time in US history. (And in fact this is ironically a regular occurrence in American history, for wars to be the catalyst behind our population starting to understand a certain region in a more sophisticated way; look for example at how little most Americans knew about far-east Asia until our involvement in such places as Japan, Korea and Vietnam in the second half of the 20th century, how such basics as Chinese food and karaoke are now sincere staples of American life, when just 50 years ago they seemed impossibly exotic to most.) And thus do we arrive at Marjane Satrapi's thought-provoking and highly entertaining graphic novel Persepolis, which has an interesting history: essentially a memoir of her youth as a loudmouthed, chain-smoking punk-rocker in the midst of Iran's oppressive Islamic Republic years, the story was originally published in the early 2000s as four underground comics in France (where Satrapi now lives); which then became a cult hit in the UK when first translated into English and gathered into two bound books; which then brought about the opportunity to make a popular experimental animated film out of it; which then became a surprise hit in the US and garnered an Oscar nomination; which has just recently finally prompted a one-volume English trade paperback version here, which has quickly in the last year become the book to mention here in America at hipster intellectual cocktail parties, half a decade since the same was true in the EU.

And there's a reason this has become such a huge cult hit in the US, because Satrapi here in Petropolis breaks the entire complicated sequence of events that have happened in Iran in the last thirty years down into a whole series of easily relatable Western-style stories, allowing us to understand the complex, surprisingly diverse population of that country in a way many of us never have before: from the ongoing controversy there among women themselves over "taking the veil" (think of American women debating the relative merits versus embarrassments of chick-lit), to how their decade-long war with Iraq's Saddam Hussein allowed religious conservatives to slowly take over all aspects of the government in the first place (think Bush and the Patriot Act), to the ingeniously subtle ways that rebellious youth display their independence in such an environment anyway (by letting a bit of hair slip out from underneath their veil, by wearing brightly colored socks, by participating in highly codified Austenesque nonverbal flirting sessions in public squares and school stairways). And by Satrapi having the courage to add the details of her own unique, sometimes trainwreck of a life -- her habit of falling in love with gay men, her stint as a homeless gutter-punk in Vienna in the late '80s -- the book never even threatens to devolve into afterschool-special liberal homilies, but instead stands strongly as a solid piece of personal yet political literature, a great example of how powerful graphic novels can be when they're at their best, and why your snotty little slacker friends are always encouraging you to read more of them. Given the events that are going on right this moment in Iran (summer 2009, for those reading this in the future), and how similar they now seem to be in so many Americans' eyes to our own peaceful overthrow of George Bush and his "Christian Taliban" ilk just a year before, now is a better time than ever to tackle Persepolis yourself if you never have; and needless to say, the movie as well is now in my queue over at Netflix, and I will be getting a review of it up here too after I've finally gotten a chance to watch it.

Out of 10: 9.7 ( )

Reviewed on TiteWave
Library Journal starred 05/01/03
Publishers Weekly (July 14, 2003)
Library Journal (May 1, 2003)

LInk: http://www.flr.follett.com/search?SID...

Satrapi's childhood in Iran makes for a lovely and simply drawn graphic novel. It very nicely captures both the humor and sorrow of her coming of age. ( )

Even though this book is a graphic novel, it's not for little kids. It paints a very vivid picture of a young girls life during the Islamic revolution. It was presented in an interesting way and relatable to kids 13 or older. Did have some cursing and graphic violence, but a really important story that not a lot of young teens know about. ( )

Persepolis 2 by Marjane Satrapi is a graphic memoir detailing her high school years away from Iran and her eventual return to the country of her birth. This book is a follow up to her Persepolis and pretty much starts off where the first book left off.

Once again Satrapi uses the graphic style to tell her story and the visuals really add to her words and in a few places taking the place of words altogether giving weight to the phrase that a 'picture tells a thousand words.' In this part of her story Satrapi chronicles the isolation she felt while going to school in Austria. The uncertainty of never really fitting in to any one group and the search of trying to figure out just who she was. While in Austria she experienced so many freedoms that she never could have dreamed of while living in Iran. She also had to deal with peoples misperceptions of what it meant to be Iranian. In the end, once she graduated from high school she felt that the only way to learn who she was, was to return to the country of her birth.

Once back in Iran Satrapi faces a new struggle. The one of trying to fit back into a box that she no longer fit into. It was a hard reality for her to face when she realized that she had become so adjusted to the freedoms she had in Europe that she forgot what living in the repressive atmosphere in Iran was like. Satrapi had fled back to Iran looking for a place to belong and instead she found that even there she didn't have an identity. She was too westernised now to fit comfortably back into her old skin.

Satrapi does a wonderful job of telling her story and in conveying all the emotions and the struggles that she faced both at school in Austria and back home in Iran. Her search to find out her identity was at times tragic and at others times amazingly beautiful. Her style of writing and drawing really conveyed all the emotions that she must have been feeling at the time. I thoroughly enjoyed this additional glimpse into Satrapi's life and will be on the look out for any additional works that she might come out with. What can I say....sometimes I'm a horrible voyeur!

See my other reviews at tickettoanywhere.blogspot.com ( )

A simply marvelous book, recommended to all. If you've never read a graphic novel in your life, and can't see why you would ever want to, then you should still read this book. It's not your standard graphic novel, but it is such a beautiful story and so well done, you will be won over to the dark side.

I'd seen the movie when it came out, and absolutely loved it. While my memory of it is a bit hazy now, this seemed a remarkably faithful adaptation.

I found the plight of the family incredibly moving: their lives, work and family are all in Iran, but they can see this isn't a good place for Marjane to grow up. But to send their only daughter to Europe on her own was just heartbreaking. I did shed a tear or two while I read some of her adventures. And her honesty in retelling what she went through made this an exceptional book.

I am always affected by people who end up "between" countries. In Europe, she was an Iranian. But when she returns to Iran, she's seen as a decadent westerner.

And everyone deserves a Grandma like her Grandma. She rocked, and is now my role model for my twilight years. ( )

Like Art Spiegelman’s graphic novel Maus, Marjane Satrapi’s graphic memoir Persepolis tells the story of the horrific events during a time of war and political upheaval. Though not unfamiliar territory for the graphic novel, it is nonetheless unique in that the events in Persepolis are from Satrapi’s own life, ages 6-14, growing up in Tehran during the Islamic Revolution and the war with Iraq. Thus we witness the turmoil and tragedy through the eyes of a girl and then a teenager who recounts the stories of family and friends who are victims and fellow observers of the tyranny first of the Shah, and then of the Islamic Revolution. Satrapi’s voice, sardonic, poignant, and droll, parallels her increasing maturity as her account progresses. Though written for adults, this memoir is well suited for young adult readers who can certainly relate to the narrator’s perspective and would be enlightening in bringing a personal story to the political events in an increasing volatile region of our world today. ( )

This is the story of an Iranian girl growing up in the aftermath of the Islamic Revolution. It's honest and moving, and I really enjoyed it very much. ( )

This book was good. It was actually the first graphic novel that I read and it was a good way to introduce myself to graphic novels. It was a heavy topic: the Islamic Revolution and the Iran-Iraq war, but the author made the story so personal that I wanted to keep reading just to see how she would react to the next experience that she faced. ( )

If all graphic novels were this clever and well done, I might consider reading them more. A brilliant way to teach history, in my opinion. ( )

It is evidence of how high my "to-read" pile is that I have only now read this graphic novel, which generated so much well-deserved attention when it was first published in 2003. Marjane Satrapi's autobiographical graphic novel explores her Iranian childhood from the ages of eight to fourteen, during the period surrounding the 1979 revolution in which the Shah's government was overthrown and replaced with a theocracy, as well as the war with neighboring Iraq.

This is a terrific book that works on a number of levels. I am no expert in graphic novels, and so I will decline from any comparative analysis, however, what I can say is that the simplicity of the black and white illustrations reflect the world-view of the child narrator. She is often puzzled by the frequently violent and tragic events surrounding her, and so the merest shift of line in the illustration underscores the moment. During a number of poignant episodes it is a slight alteration of expression, or a small setting detail, such as a scratched-out face in a photograph, that set the horror in relief as stark as the illustrations themselves.

What is true for individual stories is true...
TO READ THE REST OF THE REVIEW, PLEASE GO TO:

In Praise of Books

Thank you. ( )

An autobiographical graphic novel about a rebellious little girl growing up amidst the Iranian cultural revolution and the rebellious woman she becomes. It's funny, sad and wonderful.

This memoir in the form of a graphic novel illustrates the story of a childhood lived in pre-and post-revolutionary Iran. The author details her family’s struggles in their new life under the Islamic regime that deposed the Shah. Since this is a graphic novel, the illustrations are one of the most important aspects of its power. Simple, cartoony, even cute black and white illustrations make identification with characters easy, even though these characters are living in a country on the other side of the world. The expressive pictures reveal complicated emotions; perhaps the most effective image is the last one, which shows a mother fainting with grief when she sends her daughter to Austria. The use of irony and humor to relate difficult ideas makes this work appealing to teenagers. This book also conveys important information, especially considering current events, but does so in a way that is accessible to less serious readers. ( )

this is awesome, saw the film first with subtitles, very amazingly funny and witty, learn things and cool style ( )

Read this in little over a day. Very quick and easy to read, especially after viewing the film which was not in English as the book. It’s such an amazing story that I’m disappointed I didn’t pick up the complete Persepolis instead to continue on reading, but now have to wait.

The story is about a young girl growing up during war and revolution, watching change in Iran during the 70s and 80s.

It was amazing to read and my first graphic novel. Highly recommend to anyone.

This book was about a girl growing up in a tough world. It was funny, but it was also serious at other times. Nonetheless, this was a good book. ( )

This book takes a while to get into--the story is told from one perspective only--that of Marji, the young female protagonist. The black and white drawings and simple text made it easy to read, yet overall, the book has a dark and dismal feel. The reader must look closely to find any humor or lightness to balance out the seriousness of the subject matter. The book's strengths include the authentic voice of Marji and her childlike way of looking at the strife and discord brought into her life by war and upheaval. The book's weaknesses may be that some readers may be turned off the by black and white format; this book will most likely not appeal to boys; readers in general may not understand or identify with the overlying concept of the Islamic Revolution and resulting war. ( )

We read "The Story of the Childhood" for a book group meeting that never happened due to bad weather on the day, and I then went on to read "The Story of a Return". I haven't read that many graphic novels and took some time to start actually looking at the detail of the pictures as well as reading the texts. I really enjoyed "The Story of the Childhood" but on the whole, it seemed that the story started losing steam towards the end of it, and never quite recovered it in "The Story of a Return". Overall, very readable. ( )

"Persepolis" is a brilliant film; the childish drawings makes the tragedies of war seem so much sadder. The author's teenage years are hilarious but still leave a bitter taste. It's a pretty sad movie overall but definitely worth watching at least once. ( )

Satrapi shares her own changing views as she grows up with fundamentalist teachers and communist parents. However, readers need to be aware that Persepolis is limited to Satrapi’s experiences and ideas (which is all one should expect of an autobiographical work). While it provides an introduction to the politics of the Iranian Revolution, it does not provide a complete picture. For that, readers will have to look elsewhere.

Read the rest of the review. ( )

An introductory note: I am not good with graphic novels. I find it very difficult to read them intelligently - I end up either reading the dialogue and not really looking at the panels, or vice versa. Nevertheless, I have a sort of unstated project to at least read some of the genre classics. Watchmen and Maus are next, but I started here.

Persepolis is, I suppose, not a graphic novel at all - it's a memoir, of sorts, chronicling a decade in the author's life, from 1980 to the early nineties. Her history, as she notes, is bound up with the history of her country, as she grows up in Iran and eventually, as the war, bloodshed and Guardians of the Revolution become too much, leaves for school in Vienna. That's the great strength of the book, the way she can easily justapose the details of everyday life with enormous facts of war and death - I particularly like an interlude where Satrapi's parents, on holiday in Turkey, smuggle "sacreligious" Iron Maiden posters back into Iran for her by lining her father's coat with them. ("They look like shoulder pads! It's stylish!")

And, indeed, very funny, and the whole creation is stylish and funny. But the subject matter isn't shirked away from - not only the horrors of the revolution and the war, but the very real effects it has on Satrapi, whose later breakdown is chronicled sparsely and devastatingly. The result is that it's hard to step away from this work - it's hard to make an objective judgement. It is very, very good. But give it time to settle. ( )

In Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi begins her story at the age of 10 and ends at the age of 14. She depicts the torment to her family and country through graphics by showing us the overthrowing of the Shah's regime, the Islamic Revolution and the war with Iraq. The graphic format clearly portrays the horrors of war, while at the same time educates its readers on the history of Iran. Marjane's preadolescent age contributes to this understanding by adding the innocence and intelligence of a child.

As this book settles in my mind, I'm "liking" it more and more. I felt a little out of sorts in the very beginning (looking back at it now - I have no clue why), but as it progressed I became immersed in Marjane's world. In the end, I have discovered that I learned a great deal from this story and look forward to Persepolis 2: The Story of a Return. (4.25/5)

Originally posted on: "Thoughts of Joy..." ( )