Persepolis: The Story of an Iranian Childhood - Hardcover

Satrapi, Marjane

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0224064401 ISBN 13: 9780224064408

Publisher: Jonathan Cape, 2003

Synopsis

Wise, often funny, sometimes heartbreaking, Persepolis tells the story of Marjane Satrapi's life in Tehran from the ages of six to fourteen, years that saw the overthrow of the Shah's regime, the triumph of the Islamic Revolution and the devastating effects of war with Iraq.

The intelligent and outspoken child of radical Marxists, and the great-grandaughter of Iran's last emperor, Satrapi bears witness to a childhood uniquely entwined with the history of her country. Persepolis paints an unforgettable portrait of daily life in Iran and of the bewildering contradictions between home life and public life.

Amidst the tragedy, Marjane's child's eye view adds immediacy and humour, and her story of a childhood at once outrageous and ordinary, beset by the unthinkable and yet buffered by an extraordinary and loving family, is immensely moving. It is also very beautiful; Satrapi's drawings have the power of the very best woodcuts.

'The magic of Marjane Satrapi's work is that it can condense a whole country's tragedy into one poignant, funny scene after another' Independent on Sunday

**ONE OF THE GUARDIAN'S 100 BEST BOOKS OF THE 21st CENTURY**

About this title

Review

Marjane Satrapi's Persepolis is an exemplary autobiographical graphic novel, in the tradition of Art Spiegelman's classic Maus. Set in Iran during the Islamic Revolution, it follows the young Satrapi, the six-year-old daughter of two committed and well-to-do Marxists. As she grows up, she witness first-hand the effects that the revolution and the war with Iraq have on her home, family and school.

The main strength of Persepolis is its ability to make the political personal. Told through the eyes of a child (as reflected in Satrapi's simplistic yet expressive black-and-white artwork), the story shows how young Marjane learns about her family history and how it is entwined with the history of Iran, and watches her liberal parents cope with a fundamentalist regime that gets increasingly rigid as it gains more power. Outspoken and intelligent, Marjane chafes at Iran's increasingly conservative interpretation of Islamic law, especially as she grows into a bright and independent teenager. Throughout she remains a hugely likeable young woman.

Persepolis gives the reader a snapshot of daily life in a country struggling with an internal cultural revolution and a bloody war, but within an intensely personal context. It's a very human history, beautifully and sympathetically told. --Robert Burrow

Review

"Telling the story of Satrapi’s childhood in Iran, this is funny, wise and sad." (Stylist)

"Persepolis...has an outward simplicity that utterly beguiles: her black and white drawings resemble old-fashioned woodcuts; her narrative is almost breezily concise" (Rachel Cooke Royal Academy Magazine)

"This touching, funny, illuminating memoir deserves a much wider audience." (Kate Figes Guardian)

"The magic of Marjane Satrapi's work is that it can condense a whole country's tragedy into one poignant, funny scene after another." (Natasha Walter Independent on Sunday)

"Persepolis is a stylish, clever and moving weapon of mass destruction." (David Jenkins Sunday Telegraph)

About this edition

• Publisher: Jonathan Cape
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0224064401
• ISBN 13: 9780224064408
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 160