LSSL 5385 PERSEPOLIS

Satrapi, M. (2008). Persepolis: The story of a childhood. London: Vintage Books.

Persepolis is Marjane Satrapi’s memoir, written in graphic novel format, about growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. She is the only child of a wealthy, progressive family, and she is outspoken and witty. Marjane’s autobiography gives us a peak into her childhood and the history of Iran during a time when personal freedom took a step backward, and religious extremists revolutionized the lifestyle in Iran. Her family protests the changes, while still maintaining normalcy at home, and we watch this shape Marjane to be strong, opinionated, and literally, rebellious. It’s a very interesting book about a young girl in the midst of wartime- and while it isn’t a history lesson, the reader gets a realistic perspective of her childhood during the revolution.

My connection to the textbook was simple- this is a great example of genres and formats, as typically when I think of a graphic novel, I think of fiction. Persepolis, on the other hand, is in graphic novel format, but it is a non fiction autobiography. That's a great teaching lesson for the classroom as well! I think this would be a fabulous read for 9^th or 10^th grade students in conjunction with a history class during their discussions of the Islamic Revolution. It gives so much insight that I, even as an adult, never knew at all. Another similar book to consider is Epileptic by David B. It’s also an autobiography and written in graphic novel format. Watchmen by Alan Moore is a Hugo Award-winning graphic novel about super-heroes plagued by their all-too-human failings.