The Complete Persepolis by Satrapi

The Complete Persepolis (Pantheon Graphic Library)

by Satrapi

Here, in one volume: Marjane Satrapi's best-selling, internationally acclaimed graphic memoir "of growing up as a girl in revolutionary Iran.... That Satrapi chose to tell her remarkable story as a gorgeous comic book makes it totally unique and indispensable" (Time).

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 school years in Vienna facing the trials of adolescence far from her family; of her homecoming—both sweet and terrible; and, finally, of her self-imposed exile from her beloved homeland. It is the chronicle of a girlhood and adolescence at once outrageous and familiar, a young life entwined with the history of her country yet filled with the universal trials and joys of growing up.

Edgy, searingly observant, and candid, often heartbreaking but threaded throughout with raw humor and hard-earned wisdom—Persepolis is a stunning work from one of the most highly regarded, singularly talented graphic artists at work today.

Reviewed by wyvernfriend on

4 of 5 stars

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This was an interesting look at a life in Iran told by the great-granddaughter of the last emperor, she grows up in a country full of turmoil, a country going through growing pains which are making everything very complicated and war allows fundamentalism take charge. She documents the changes, while being in a situation where she can escape it, for at least a while, until homesickness drags her home again. She points at the contradictions and the problems.

It's an interesting and doesn't spare herself from pointing at some of her foibles and failings. (

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  • Started reading
  • 1 May, 2012: Finished reading
  • 1 May, 2012: Reviewed