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The Complete Persepolis (Persepolis #1-2)

by Marjane Satrapi

4.27 · rating details · 18,028 ratings · 1,623 reviews

Here, in one volume: Marjane Satrapi's best-selling, internationally acclaimed memoir-in-comic-strips.

Persepolis is the story of Satrapi's unforgettable childhood and coming of age within a large and loving family in Tehran during the Islamic Revolution; of the contradictions between private life and public life in a country plagued by political upheaval; of her high schoo...more

Paperback, 352 pages

Published December 18th 2008 by Pantheon (first published July 2005)

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Community Reviews

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Mar 02, 2008

Adrianne Mathiowetz rated it

Recommended to Adrianne by: Book club

A question I heard a lot while I was reading this book was "how does it compare with Maus?" -- and if I were to answer that question, I would say, I suppose, that I thought that Maus was more compelling, with more classically heroic characters, detailed, careful artwork (and-I-mean-come-ON it was about the holocaust, haven't we all agreed that's the official trump card?) -- but I'm not sure that it actually makes much sense to compare this book with Maus. Sure, they're both graphic nov...moreA question I heard a lot while I was reading this book was "how does it compare with Maus?" -- and if I were to answer that question, I would say, I suppose, that I thought that Maus was more compelling, with more classically heroic characters, detailed, careful artwork (and-I-mean-come-ON it was about the holocaust, haven't we all agreed that's the official trump card?) -- but I'm not sure that it actually makes much sense to compare this book with Maus. Sure, they're both graphic novels whose subject is generally similar. They're at once historical, tragic, and personal. But other than that, they're just two very different books, written by two very different authors regarding two different conflicts. It would be as if you were reading Red Badge of Courage, and people kept asking "so, how does it compare with War and Peace?"

Aaaaaannyway. So! About Persepolis.

I went into this novel knowing essentially nothing about the war(s) in Iran, and to my surprise I left this book knowing essentially nothing about the war(s) in Iran. Just when the narrator reaches an age when she could really perceive what is happening in her country and act out against it or submit and meld into it, her parents wisely ship her off to Austria, and once there she specifically avoids watching the news and connecting with political developments back at home. Thus, for a large portion of the story we're led through her various musical tastes, hair styles and relationship developments (can you beliiieeeve that first boyfriend and the croissants?). There are no post scripts, tangents, or musical bridges conveying basic information to the reader, no "meanwhile, back at the ranch, lots of people went to jail for silly things, and also there were deaths or something". The narrator was divorced from these concerns at the time, and so are we the readers.

Primarily, this novel is an autobiography: the details of her homeland function mostly to describe the main character, not the country or turmoil therein. Egotistical? It seemed that way, sometimes, but maybe it depends what you expected from the book.

That said, Marjane Satrapi's character is a well-developed one: never the perfect angel, not always striving to even just be good, but continually just trying to figure things out and attain the same, elusive happiness everyone else seems to have. She's likable, interesting, self-deprecating and ever-changing, and for what it's worth I found it really difficult to put the book down. (To me, actually, that's worth quite a lot. I weep for a lost childhood in which I could never, ever seem to put a book down: I finished one and then desperately started another, consuming them like cocaine. Why aren't books like cocaine anymore? Maybe I should just give up on literature and try harder drugs. Or more graphical novels by Marjane Satrapi.)

Thoroughly enjoyable, with artwork that really grew on me with time, and definitely recommended. Just don't expect to want to start a revolution afterwards.(less)

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Jan 25, 2008

Sara rated it

Recommends it for: fans of memoir

Shelves: memoir-biography, nonfiction, highly-recommended, book-club, graphic-novel

One of the things I loved about this book was Marjane's very individual voice and how it transformed from the start of the book when she is 10 to the end, when she is 22. Ten-year-old Marjane, by the way, is about the most awesome kid I have encountered in print. She reminded me of Harper Lee's Scout, except Marjane was cuter and more hilarious. Also, more political.

Most readers are unlikely to be really conversant in 20th Iranian political history and it is absolutely fascinating...more

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Jul 18, 2008

Shannon rated it

Shelves: memoir, graphic-novel, 2008, comics

Originally published in France in four separate volumes, and later in the US in two, The Complete Persepolis brings them all together for the first time. It is the story of the author's youth, growing up in revolutionary Iran before moving to Austria at 14, and then later returning to Iran before escaping again, this time to France, where she still lives.

Her story is both familiar and alien - a story of being a child enjoying her childhood during the revolution of '79, and how it imp...moreOriginally published in France in four separate volumes, and later in the US in two, The Complete Persepolis brings them all together for the first time. It is the story of the author's youth, growing up in revolutionary Iran before moving to Austria at 14, and then later returning to Iran before escaping again, this time to France, where she still lives.

Her story is both familiar and alien - a story of being a child enjoying her childhood during the revolution of '79, and how it impacted on her life; learning about the history of her country, the religious hypocrisy, the regime; being a teenager in the 80s in Europe, delving into pot and nihilism, trying to find a place in the world but never really fitting in.

The story is often funny, and the method of telling it in comic-strip style suits it perfectly. There's not a wasted panel, and the illustrations add layers to the dialogue and exposition captions. While it's also a very controlling method - in that, because graphics are supplied, you're not really able to imagine it freely on your own - there's so much in the details, and so much feeling in the illustrations, that I'm reminded of that saying, "a picture speaks a thousand words".

It was fascinating to learn about what Iran's been through from someone who's lived through it - I used to read a lot of those books written by women in Iran and Saudi Arabia, but they lacked a broader scope of understanding, and exposure to foreign political ideology and perspective. Satrapi read a lot of philosophers etc., and while some of her youthful ideologies are captured with a degree of irony, she still had a clear understanding of the situation - aided by her free-thinking parents and her wonderful grandmother.

While I had trouble in the beginning keeping up with the history of Iran's political leaders, which I found confusing, the story is easy to follow and is a great way to introduce people to the reality of Iran - up to the mid-1990s anyway. The hypocrisies, contrasts, day-to-day living, life-style, dreams and ambitions are all rendered in clear, distinctive black-and-white illustrations and laced with irony. There were many moments were I laughed myself silly, and other moments that were poignant and sad, but always, always, Satrapi is brutally honest with herself and her readers. Highly recommended.
(less)

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Oct 10, 2007

James rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: Anyone

Shelves: graphic-novel

This is a graphic story that is worthy of all the hype attributed to it. Persepolis is an autobiography of Iranian artist Marjane Satrapi, and accounts her childhood into womanhood which takes her from Iran to Europe to Iran and ultimately back to Europe to the eventual present day. Many aspects of the work aid in pushing this work far beyond other autobiographies, and its not just the illustrations that accompany it which, though at first glance seem simple and childish, are actually complex ...more

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Dec 24, 2007

Tom rated it

There are few testaments more accordant with the underdevelopment of our species than the sad and bewildering ubiquity of dogmatism and, in the case of Persepolis, the dogma in question is (ho-hum?) religion. It may be fashionable, though still dangerous, to speak out against one's own misogynistic theocracy these days but such was not the case in the years immediately following Iran's 1979 Islamic revolution. When undaunted women like Marjane Satrapi chose to spit upon their hands and play agai...more

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Jul 22, 2008

Melissa rated it

I enjoyed this book immensely. It's fantastic. I like the combination of autobiography and history. One thing that turns me off to history most of the time is its authors tendency to generalize--individuals are jumbled together into a single composite being. Marjane Satrapi, however, discusses Iran's revolution in the '80s as she experienced it. It's incredibly personal, which I appreciate.
I also appreciate Satrapi's lighthearted, jesting tone with which she refers to herself. ...more

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Aug 22, 2008

John rated it

Recommends it for: Everyone

Shelves: memoir, graphic-novel

I read this after listening to Marjane Satrapi speak in Portland.
http://johnwsmarvin.blogspot.com/2008/04...
This is one powerful story. Marjane is a very intelligent person and a great storyteller who lived through the Iranian revolution and watched it turn against her and her family. When war with Iraq breaks out her parents send her to she study abroad in Austria where she becomes unhinged, lost in a culture she can't relate to. Back in Iran the war grinds to a halt, as she becomes...more

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Apr 11, 2008

mathilda_craft rated it

Recommends it for: those interested in culture and politics, especially politics

Shelves: comics, non-fiction, books-i-own

Eye opening. A little confusing in the beginning. I had a hard time telling when they were talking in the past tense versus present tense, but I think I understood it for the most part.

I loved it.

It was very open and honest. How she saw things as a girl growing up in a country where it was so hard to tell who was telling her the truth. She believed her parents, and yet, at once, also believed her school and what they taught her. Such conflicts were inner as well as o...more

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May 06, 2011

Jen rated it

Shelves: graphic-novel, the-real-stuff, translated, 5201

I don't know what to call Persepolis. It's a graphic novel, of course, but it's also an autobiography and a history and a social commentary. Marjane Satrapi takes an honest and sometimes severe look at her childhood, teenage years, and early 20s. Her graphics are striking and tell as much of the story as her words. Sometimes I became so engrossed that I had to force myself to step back a bit and remember that I was reading someone's history -- that Satrapi had lived and survived the heartbreakin...moreI don't know what to call Persepolis. It's a graphic novel, of course, but it's also an autobiography and a history and a social commentary. Marjane Satrapi takes an honest and sometimes severe look at her childhood, teenage years, and early 20s. Her graphics are striking and tell as much of the story as her words. Sometimes I became so engrossed that I had to force myself to step back a bit and remember that I was reading someone's history -- that Satrapi had lived and survived the heartbreaking situations she was depicting.

In her introduction, Satrapi explains that one of the reasons she wrote her story was to give outsiders a different view of Iran and its citizens. "I believe an entire nation should not be judged by the wrongdoings of a few extremists. I also don't want those Iranians who lost their lives in prisons defending freedom, who died in the war against Iraq, who suffered under various repressive regimes, or who were forced to leave their families and flee their homeland to be forgotten."

It is all too easy to judge a country by its most extreme or outspoken citizens, but the story of Satrapi, her family, and many of her friends gives a glimpse into some of the ways people try to retain their beliefs in the midst of persecution.

I was struck by Satrapi's repeated loss of identity and the various ways in which she tried to form and reform herself. I also appreciated her honest self-assessment and her observations of the Iranian people. In describing a moment of calm in Iran, she says, "The regime had absolute power and most people, in search of a cloud of happiness, had forgotten their political conscience." These themes keep recurring in the books I've been reading -- questions of how much we'll sacrifice for happiness and the effect prolonged periods of fear will have upon a people.

I'm reminded once again how important it is to make every effort to see the world around you and to hear/read/tell people's stories. As Satrapi reminds us, "One can forgive but one must never forget."(less)

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May 02, 2011

Karla Butler rated it

Shelves: favorites

Persepolis is a heart-wrenching story about a girl growing up in war-torn Iran. Marjane Satrapi's autobiographical tale covers the tumulteous history of Iran from its emperors to the modern day Islamic Revolution. If you need to get some perspective on what is happening today in Iran and indeed the Middle East, please read this book. Satrapi's description of a loving family trying to survive under a despotic regime forces you to understand what it is like to live in a country that imposes its...more

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Oct 24, 2010

Cecilia rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: biografias, comics

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Aunque el libro está en su idioma original, he decido hacer la crítica en castellano dado que no sé hasta que punto podría hacer una en francés de forma correcta.
Hace ya unos años tuve la suerte de ver la película de este libro, en ese momento, la película me resultó tan interesante, que decidí tratar de conseguir el libro. Casi dos años después pude conseguir un volúmen con la historia completa en una librería francesa.
Debo admitir que leí el libro con mucho entusiasmo y, que fue ta...more

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Jul 10, 2009

Jason Pettus rated it

Shelves: contemporary, comics, dark, funny, nonfiction, memoir, middle-east, hipster, personal-favorite

(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 m...more(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 (less)

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Apr 26, 2009

new_user rated it

Shelves: graphic-novel

I think this is will be more response than review. Satrapi's Persepolis fulfills its purpose as a memoir, but I will tell you right from the start, that it is indeed overhyped, particularly if you have read the rave critical reviews. Perhaps, since the field of graphic novels as memoirs is relatively new, a work like this could be called ground-breaking. Persepolis as a memoir is an interesting read. I say this only as a result of having read Part Two of this book, The Story of a Return. If I ha...moreI think this is will be more response than review. Satrapi's Persepolis fulfills its purpose as a memoir, but I will tell you right from the start, that it is indeed overhyped, particularly if you have read the rave critical reviews. Perhaps, since the field of graphic novels as memoirs is relatively new, a work like this could be called ground-breaking. Persepolis as a memoir is an interesting read. I say this only as a result of having read Part Two of this book, The Story of a Return. If I had read The Story of a Childhood alone, I probably would not have liked this book at all.

As a memoir, her account of her childhood is biased politically. I'm speaking of Iranian politics and social affairs -even history- rather than any foreign policy. Satrapi would like to paint herself as an educated, superior specimen of progressive thought, but to be frank, one can embody all of her views in two words: westernism and nationalism. She worships "punk" and calls her family "avant-garde." She considers herself the very spirit of Iranian society, the last bastion of reason in her country, but she goes to a French school and adopts Western, dress and idols. She does not seem very avant-garde to me. She seems to be the typical Eastern child who envies the Western one. I questioned at times whether she could truly be proud of her heritage-- or simply what she thought to be her heritage. I didn't see that adopting European principles or dress was any more or less admirable than adopting Arab ones. Even when she reads, she reads only foreign philosophers. Her patriotism seems a shell.

This is precisely why I was skeptical-- because any book praised by a mass of American critics generally affirms American values, American superiority (the rest of the world is backwards) and/or American-approved values. Such a work will generally portray a one-sided view of the culture in question, i.e. the approved view, as this one does. In fact, I'm finding there is a slew of Iranian authors jumping on the bandwagon of vilifying Iran (to an all too receptive audience) and glorifying everything Western.

In the introduction, she writes "...this old and great civilization," and I have to wonder which civilization she means since she laments that so much culture has been imposed on Iranians. What is essentially Iranian? Zoroastrianism? She doesn't strike me as Zoroastrian. Satrapi fails to consider the dynamics and nature of culture, to adopt, borrow, and grow. That is progress. Satrapi writes of Iran, it "...has been discussed mostly in connection with fundamentalism, fanaticism, and terrorism. As an Iranian who has lived more than half my life in Iran, I know that this image is far from the truth."

In fact, Satrapi does nothing to negate this view. She simply replaces it with a new paradigm, all religious Iranians are fanatics. The rest adopt Western customs; they're civilized. This is not debunking misperceptions, it's only espousing the latest Western policy: non-religious Easterners are acceptable. She does nothing to help her people here. The book speaks only in the briefest way (a line or two) about American relations, so do not be concerned about any bias in that regard.

So if we call the first part Politics, the second part -the book is really not complete without it- is more honest. In The Story of a Return, she speaks of her experiences as an immigrant in Europe, and these strike me as less politicized and more genuine. As for her return, we know that Satrapi returned only to say goodbye. She is an expatriate in Paris, living the culture that she so worshiped as a child.

That said, as a memoir, this book is pretty interesting and does indeed describe the forces that shaped this woman. The iconic, stylized, almost childlike art cushions the narrative, so that the political content is less threatening. It's cute. And it suits the tone of the book, which is fanciful and ostensibly a protest against a black and white world (though Satrapi is a little rigid herself).

It's worth a read if you have some spare time. It was better than I expected after reading the first half, but it won't be on my Best Of list anytime soon. (less)

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Apr 17, 2009

Shivering William rated it

www.theincompletes.com

The Dime-Store Education

Comics for Smart People

I left Persepolis as a tip for a cute hairstylist once. I’m not sure if it was the comic, my hilarious jokes, or the way my hair sounded between scissors, but we dated for about three months. I’m not suggesting you can use comics as a tool to pick up women. I’m telling you. It’s a fact.

Every once in a while a comic comes along, grabs you by the belt and shakes you out of any p...morewww.theincompletes.com

The Dime-Store Education

Comics for Smart People

I left Persepolis as a tip for a cute hairstylist once. I’m not sure if it was the comic, my hilarious jokes, or the way my hair sounded between scissors, but we dated for about three months. I’m not suggesting you can use comics as a tool to pick up women. I’m telling you. It’s a fact.

Every once in a while a comic comes along, grabs you by the belt and shakes you out of any preconceived notions you have about sequential art. This is a nice in for the skeptics.

Marjane Satrapi grew up in Iran during the 80’s in the middle of a war with Iraq. Her story is beautifully human, illustrating the complexities of being a young girl - starting to date, growing in imbalanced ways, alternating role models between revolutionists and god - while trying to survive in a country where the buildings disintegrate in the blink of a dictator’s eye. And yet, the story is still funny, because even when the world is crashing down, so long as you’re not caught in the blast, life still goes on. Eventually, Satrapi moved to France (this won’t be the last time you hear me say this, but some of the best comics these days come from France) to escape her volatile life. She broke the chains of modesty expected of Iranian women in order to write this comic.

This brings us to the interesting space where cartoonish figures cross are thrown into real-life tragedies. It’s strange to see, especially if you aren’t used to it. Satrapi’s drawings are plain B&W, round exploring eyes and swooping noses. These simple faces that seem best suited for Saturday mornings with cereal and pajamas are quickly deranged by war. If you take a closer look, after the heartache, you’ll notice all the expressions of a real human face cut down to the basics: the swooping lines are the wrinkles eyes exhausted, breasts sagging, the hands desperate.

I tell people this is a book about sexuality in Iran to pique interest, even though that’s only a small part of what Satrapi discusses. It’s interesting to look at a country that blurs images of musical instruments like we might blur a nipple, because they’re considered to be too sexual.

After you’ve read the comic, check out the movie of the same name. It’s one of the rare delights where the author/artist had complete creative control over the content. The characters move with a beautiful elasticity and calls back to the old thirties cartoons while maintaining a new cinematic sheen.

Recommended to: history buffs, political types, and hair-stylists named Vanessa

-CMH(less)

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May 21, 2008

Kirstie rated it

Recommends it for: people interested in Iranian and Middle East politics

Shelves: graphic-novels

I think the history of Iran from the 1970s to present is one of the most muddled of all histories...it's very difficult to figure out what things were perpetrated by Iraq and what was a government oppressing and even killing its own people. What you end up having is an accumulation of anecdotes about the experience of survival which feels wrong in the context of history because they will, by nature, be subjective....However, this still seems more reliable than believing any of the propaganda put...moreI think the history of Iran from the 1970s to present is one of the most muddled of all histories...it's very difficult to figure out what things were perpetrated by Iraq and what was a government oppressing and even killing its own people. What you end up having is an accumulation of anecdotes about the experience of survival which feels wrong in the context of history because they will, by nature, be subjective....However, this still seems more reliable than believing any of the propaganda put out by the government of Iran or our own. It's not uncommon that you can't put your trust with the political leaders to tell you the truth but I feel it even more so when it comes to Iran,

In some ways, the more books I read on the subject, the more confused I feel. Persepolis is about a girl growing up in Iran who takes some refuge in Austria and then returns for some time as an adult. It has to do with her sense of revolution and political fairness as well as her personal story of being a woman growing up in these times and under this oppressive rule. It shares some characteristics with Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi as both refer to the West for comparison points, take place for some portion at a university, and are from a female perspective about living in this area. Instead of addressing specifically literature, Persepolis dabbles more in the area of art, which is of course reinforced by the format of it being a graphic novel.

I should also say that there are some times in the book when I feel like Satrapi really struggles to gain a sense of what it means to be an Iranian and that makes for a more interesting novel. In some ways, this is about her coming of age and becoming more aware of how Iran fits in the world around her and what it means to be an Iranian. I also felt very conflicted trying to understand what the most common Iranian feels. For example, she makes a point while in Iran to have secret parties, attend protests, and try to show herself the way she is as best as she can get away with. Yet, the people around her seem as shunning as members of the military and gov't even though they are just common citizens. She makes a statement that she doesn't want Iran to be known as a country of fascists but it seems like she is in the definite minority in terms of still daring to express herself. It's very troubling though I suppose it should be as it goes along with the political turmoil but again, it's difficult to wrap your head around completely as what makes up a typical Iranian citizen.

Last, though I think the book is great to have on hand to refer to, I would recommend seeing the film over reading the book if you have to choose one...the film follows the book exactly and the illustrations on a grand scale are very beautiful and can be appreciated more.(less)

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Mar 18, 2008

Justin Lee rated it

Shelves: favorites

I received this book as a Christmas gift from my brother. Yes, I had to tell him what I wanted, but it was worth it. I was intrigued by this book when I saw a preview for the film. After that, I would pass by it in the bookstores wanting to read it, but always passing by it. Finally, I get my chance to read it.

I must say I was enamored with this book. It caught me by surprise how wonderful it was. It totally changed my opinion of the graphic novel format. I was impressed wit...more

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Mar 11, 2008

laura rated it

Recommends it for: everyone

Recommended to laura by: Bust Magazine

Persepolis is a memoir in graphic novel form, which describes the childhood and young adulthood of the author in Iran. Her story starts with the revolution that started when Satrapi was a young girl, and chronicles the drastic and now infamous changes that took hold of the country.

Satrapi was the daughter of a progressive, upper-middle-class, urban couple in Tehran, so this story is not the Story of All Iranians. However, I think readers can be transormed by a story that highlights...more

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Jul 28, 2008

Maggie rated it

If you've read Art Spiegelman's brilliant, Pulitzer Prize-winning Maus: A Survivor's Tale, then you should easily be able to wrap your head around Persepolis - a memoir in the form of a graphic novel. (Or, rather, several graphic novels, since both Spiegelman and Satrapi chose to release their stories in multiple volumes. I am reviewing The Complete Persepolis, which is actually two graphic novels: The Story of a Childhood and The Story of a Return.) Like Maus, Persepolis uses art to tell a pers...moreIf you've read Art Spiegelman's brilliant, Pulitzer Prize-winning Maus: A Survivor's Tale, then you should easily be able to wrap your head around Persepolis - a memoir in the form of a graphic novel. (Or, rather, several graphic novels, since both Spiegelman and Satrapi chose to release their stories in multiple volumes. I am reviewing The Complete Persepolis, which is actually two graphic novels: The Story of a Childhood and The Story of a Return.) Like Maus, Persepolis uses art to tell a personal story while also educating its reader on a particular history and culture. Also like Maus, it's brilliant and wholly worth your time, even if you, like me, claim that comic books aren't really your thing.

Persepolis is the coming-of-age story of Marjane Satrapi, an Iranian woman who is both the author as well as the protagonist. Her story begins in 1980 when Marjane was 10 years old. The Iranian Revolution had just taken place the previous year, and thanks to it, Marjane and her educated, liberal mother are both forced to wear the traditional Islamic veil. Coming from a very free-thinking household, the Satrapis have a difficult time adhering to the new regime, and Marjane's childhood is full of rebellion. She loves punk music, refuses to wear her veil properly, delights in pointing out the hypocrisy of her teachers, and follows her parents on political demonstrations. Eventually, her parents recognize that Marjane's outspokenness is putting her in increasing danger, so at age fourteen she is sent to live in Vienna where she experiences freedom and liberation, but also learns what it's like to be a Iranian immigrant in Western society. After spending four years in Vienna, Marjane returns home to Iran and discovers that while her Iranian heritage made her an outsider in Europe, her Western life has made her an outsider in her own homeland.

For a simply drawn, black-and-white graphic novel, Persepolis is a complex little thing. It's a breeze to read, yet incredibly thought-provoking. I think I learned more about the history of modern Iran from this book than I had from reading any number of newspaper and magazine articles on the subject. Furthermore, I gained an empathy for the Iranian people that one can't truly get from a newspaper or a magazine. While it's easy to dismiss the majority of Iranians as religious and political extremists, Marjane's story suggests that many Iranians are more like her - scared, rebellious and frustrated with the regime - than like the extremists the media tends to focus on. It's easy to see a veil rather than a individual, however Marjane's story reveals that although our politics may be different, we really have more things in common than we have differences to separate us.

All-in-all, I may not love comic books, but I loved Persepolis. It's smart, edgy, funny and sad, and I would recommend it to absolutely anyone.

(less)

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Apr 15, 2008

Julia rated it

Clever and captivating and other things that start with C. The moments of life it covers would be memorable without the pictures, but the pictures... It's a really good use of the comicy format (graphic memoir, not graphic novel) to really be something more than just a story with pictures. Integrated well, I guess, but also that the art is powerful. And good as memoir qua memoir too; an interestingly-told life story that also gives readers a real sense of the world(s) it's part of. (Perhaps ...more

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Jan 21, 2008

Hilda rated it

I read these books consecutively - in fact I bought them as a box set - and I really enjoyed them. It gives us a genuinely intimate portrait of what life was like growing up in Iran, first under the Shah's right-wing dictatorship, then during the Islamic revolution which led to a clerical state and through the war with Iraq. The two-part memoir takes us from 1980 when Marjane was 10 years old through the 1990s when she's become a woman who had endured exile at a young age and a return to her cou...more

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Oct 13, 2011

Caleb rated it

Shelves: favorites

so last night i finished persepolis by marjane satrapi, a graphic novel-style memoir about growing in iran to free-thinking parents in the 70's, 80's and 90's. i've seen it around at work without ever really giving it much attention, but since it is being made into a movie (limited release in the states on christmas), it's getting a lot of buzz. i read about it in some publication (i forget which, but no doubt a lesbian and/or feminist magazine) and it looked pretty interesting and like a quick ...moreso last night i finished persepolis by marjane satrapi, a graphic novel-style memoir about growing in iran to free-thinking parents in the 70's, 80's and 90's. i've seen it around at work without ever really giving it much attention, but since it is being made into a movie (limited release in the states on christmas), it's getting a lot of buzz. i read about it in some publication (i forget which, but no doubt a lesbian and/or feminist magazine) and it looked pretty interesting and like a quick read, so i picked it up. also: the frequency with which i am reading books right before they're released as movies is scaring me, but that is mildly irrelevant.
the book talks about how satripi copes with iran's transition from a tyrannical king to a fundamentalist muslim pseudo-democracy following a revolution in the late 70's, as well as its war with iraq in the early 80's. it's so interesting because it deals largely with how satrapi and her parents cope with a government who oppresses the people and kills the revolutionaries, some of whom are satripi's own family members. when she is a child, the family maid babysits her while her parents demonstrate at protests and as an early teenager she is sent to a boarding school in europe when her parents start to fear for her life after a combination of her mouth, intelligence and rebellious nature make it clear she could be a target for the governments' "guardians of the revolution", to whom many people disappear and never return. while in europe, on her own as a young adult, satripi tries to manage the seemingly difficult task of fitting in at her new german catholic boarding school while maintaining her identity and pride as an iranian. upon her return to iran, she finds her childhood friends attempting to appear as strong, young, westernized women but shun her when they learn of her own truly westernized ideas.
it's really just so fascinating to read about a culture that is so different on the streets than it is in the home, the way the characters (er, people) humor the government enough to get by while keeping a sense of self and quietly resisting what they know to be wrong. i have been tricked into believing that everyone in muslim countries is a radical fundamentalist who warmly welcomes their oppression hiding behind religion and culture, and now i know that that is not the case. i know that that is not the way things have always been. i know that there was a way to balance god and religion, and i am overjoyed to know that athiests, anarchists, feminists, liberals and so many other subversive peoples manage to exist in a situation that seems so helpless. it's just so refreshing to learn. it's a true testament to the human spirit.(less)

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Jan 22, 2009

Michael Scott rated it

Shelves: fiction, memoir, politics, graphic-novels, anthropology

I read this book in just a few hours. It was my first 'serious' comics book, so it took me a while to adapt to its story-telling style, and perhaps this is why I glided over more than enjoying its beginning. Maybe it is that with comics there is little space for text, many things are fixed by being draw rather then described (I guess these are common critiques comic books receive when compared with text-only lit). Or perhaps it was just the fact that the style changes as the main character grows...more

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Jul 10, 2008

Casey rated it

Shelves: children-or-young-adult, adults, 2008

Ugh. I am deeply ambivalent. First, I found the political side fascinating. If you're interested in Iran's history, the graphic novel format is really accessible. However, I really disliked Marjane. I feel a little guilty about this, as she's a real person. While she and her family were proud that she was outspoken, I found her rude and obnoxious. They believed she was raised to be "free." I certainly appreciate their hugely liberal views in such a repressive environment, but t...more

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Sep 25, 2008

Cynthia rated it

Recommends it for: Tony Boisvert

I actually read this one in French, in a weekend. It's a great story in terms of the history it gives a voice to, that of women during the Iranian Revolution. The story also covers themes of alienation, cross-cultural struggles, religious differences, the list goes on and on. I gave it just four stars because there are parts of the story for which the graphic novel format works less well than others. I would still highly recommend this book. I would also suggest using at least parts of it i...more

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Jan 19, 2009

Omzi rated it

I really liked this book, and the idea of introducing all this info about the life in Iran through a comic book is amazing!
It also aroused lots of questions in my mind about how Persians see the Arabs; how they see what is called in Egypt for example (which isn’t originally an Arab country) an Islamic fath (opening) and a blessing, as an invasion. I’m also now more curious to know about the average Iranians, especially that the only two books I read by Iranians about their lives in Iran in...more

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Feb 20, 2011

Marija rated it

Shelves: middle-eastern-literature-rll528

I was very enlightened after reading this book. The abilty to tell such a complex story using the graphic novel format is ingenious. The pictures depicted so much emotion and they were visually appealling and relevant to the story. I really appreciated Satrapi's honest and uncut story of her childhood in Iran. It was also interesting to read a child's perspective on war and societal changes. Her adolescent years in Austria were also compelling and heartbreaking. She really captured the essence ...more

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Feb 01, 2010

kari rated it

Shelves: 2009

This is the first graphic novel I've read and while it won't ever be my favorite format, I feel that for this book, it worked really well. The author is able to give a lot of information in a few drawings and captions that would take many pages to write out. The pictures tell the story as much as the words do. It's brilliantly done.
It's hard to say I enjoyed the story because it is sad, about war and the religious revolution, when the females have to start going about veiled and how her fa...more

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Jul 07, 2009

Cat rated it

I love Satrapi's wry voice and the way she captures the confusion, sadism, wonder, vulnerability, and perspicacity of the child's point of view. I found the graphics particularly wrenching in their simplicity when they depict death and destruction in patterned or evocative ways rather than literal ones. She does a great job of taking advantage of the explanatory power of her illustrations to communicate the narrative of Iranian history and then using the irony, comedy, and perspective of the g...more

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Feb 05, 2008

Andrew R rated it

Persepolis is a brilliant comic strip chronicling a young woman's life in pre- and post-revolutionary Iran. I believe it's now a now a movie from Sony. I read the whole thing in a day.

My friend's stepmother, who is Iranian of the same generation, said the book is a spot on account of what it was like growing up in Tehran during that period.

The comics themselves are clean and perceptive and witty. This book was good enough to inspire me to find and read "All th...more

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May 02, 2011

La Stamberga dei Lettori added it · review of another edition

Shelves: daniele

"Andavo a poco a poco acquisendo coscienza del contrasto esistente tra l'ufficialità del mio paese e la vita reale della gente, quella che si svolgeva dentro le mura di casa. La nostra condotta pubblica e la nostra condotta privata erano agli antipodi. Questa disparità ci rendeva schizofreniche. Per trovare una forma d'equilibrio facevamo una festa quasi ogni sera, ma neanche in casa ci lasciavano tranquilli." (cit. da pagg. 317-319)

Innanzitutto una precisazione: "Persepolis"...more

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About Marjane Satrapi

Marjane Satrapi (Persian: مرجان ساتراپی) is an Iranian-born French contemporary graphic novellist, illustrator, animated film director, and children's book author. Apart from her native tongue Farsi, she speaks English, Swedish, German, French and Italian.

Satrapi grew up in Tehran in a family which was involved with communist and socialist movements in Iran prior to the Iranian Revolut...moreMarjane Satrapi (Persian: مرجان ساتراپی) is an Iranian-born French contemporary graphic novellist, illustrator, animated film director, and children's book author. Apart from her native tongue Farsi, she speaks English, Swedish, German, French and Italian.

Satrapi grew up in Tehran in a family which was involved with communist and socialist movements in Iran prior to the Iranian Revolution. She attended the Lycée Français there and witnessed, as a child, the growing suppression of civil liberties and the everyday-life consequences of Iranian politics, including the fall of the Shah, the early regime of Ruhollah Khomeini, and the first years of the Iran-Iraq War. She experienced an Iraqi air raid and Scud missile attacks on Tehran. According to Persepolis, one Scud hit the house next to hers, killing her friend and entire family.
Satrapi attended the Lycée Français de Vienne

Satrapi's family are of distant Iranian Azeri ancestry and are descendants of Nasser al-Din Shah, Shah of Persia from 1848 until 1896. Satrapi said that "But you have to know the kings of the Qajar dynasty, they had hundreds of wives. They made thousands of kids. If you multiply these kids by generation you have, I don't know, 10-15,000 princes [and princesses]. There's nothing extremely special about that." She added that due to this detail, most Iranian families would be, in the words of Simon Hattenstone of The Guardian, "blue blooded."

In 1983, at the age of 14 Satrapi was sent to Vienna, Austria by her parents in order to flee the Iranian regime. There she attended the Lycée Français de Vienne. According to her autobiographical graphic novel, Persepolis, she stayed in Vienna through her high school years, staying in friends' homes, but spent three months living on the streets. After an almost deadly bout of pneumonia, she returned to Iran. She studied Visual Communication, eventually obtaining a Master's Degree from Islamic Azad University in Tehran.

During this time, Satrapi went to numerous illegal parties hosted by her friends, where she met a man named Reza, a veteran of the Iran-Iraq War. She married him at the age of 21, but divorced roughly three years later. Satrapi then moved to Strasbourg, France.(less)

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Quotes from Persepolis

“It's fear that makes us lose our conscience. It's also what transforms us into cowards.” — 46 people liked it

“The regime had understood that one person leaving her house while asking herself:
Are my trousers long enough?'
Is my veil in place?'
Can my make-up be seen?'
Are they going to whip me?'

No longer asks herself:

Where is my freedom of thought?'
Where is my freedom of speech?'
My life, is it livable?'
What's going on in the political prisons?” — 23 people liked it

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