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About the Book
The Book: Persepolis
A New York Times Notable Book
A Time Magazine “Best Comix of the Year”
A San Francisco Chronicle and Los Angeles Times Best-seller
Wise, funny, and heartbreaking, Persepolis is Marjane Satrapi’s memoir of growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. In powerful black-and-white comic strip images, Satrapi tells the story of her life in Tehran from ages 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 only child of committed Marxists and the great-granddaughter of one of Iran’s last emperors, Marjane 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. Marjane’s child’s-eye view of dethroned emperors, state-sanctioned whippings, and heroes of the revolution allows us to learn as she does the history of this fascinating country and of her own extraordinary family. Intensely personal, profoundly political, and wholly original, Persepolis is at once a story of growing up and a reminder of the human cost of war and political repression. It shows how we carry on, with laughter and tears, in the face of absurdity. And, finally, it introduces us to an irresistible little girl with whom we cannot help but fall in love.
The Author: Marjane Satrapi
Marjane Satrapi was born in 1969 in Rasht, on the edge of the Caspian Sea. Part Azerbaijani, part Turkmen, part Muslim, part Zoroastrian—Iranian, in other words—she grew up in Tehran, where she studied at the Lycée Français, before leaving for Vienna and, later, Strasbourg to study Decorative Arts.
In 1997, Satrapi moved to Paris, where she met Christophe Blain, who brought her into l’Atelier des Vosges, home to many of France’s celebrated “new wave” of comic book artists. There, she regaled her fellow artists with amazing stories of her family—stories of dethroned emperors, suicidal uncles, state-sanctioned whippings, and heroes of the revolution—in short, the details of daily life in contemporary Iran. After listening to her stories and seeing her drawings, they kept asking why she was waiting to put her life in the pages of a comic book.
Persepolis was published in four volumes in France, where it met with enormous critical acclaim, garnered comparisons to Art Spiegelman’s Maus, and won several prestigious comic book awards. The work is published as two volumes in the United States: Persepolis and Persepolis 2. Satrapi’s other books include Embroideries and her latest adult book, Chicken with Plums. Satrapi is also the author of several children’s books including Monsters are Afraid of the Moon.
Marjane Satrapi lives in Paris, where her illustrations appear regularly in newspapers and magazines. Her animated film adaptation of Persepolis, which won the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, is expected to be released in the US in December 2007.
Where to Borrow the Book
- Cape Fear Community College Learning Resource Center | Website
- Eugene Ashley High School | Website
- New Hanover County Public Library | Website
- UNCW Randall Library | Website | Catalog Link
Where to Buy the Book
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William Madison Randall Library, University of North Carolina at Wilmington
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Last updated:
30 August, 2007 17:27
Comments and Suggestions: Liza Palmer <palmerl@uncw.edu>