Doesn't pull any punches

The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi was the June book from the feminist book club on Goodreads called Our Shared Shelf started by Emma Watson. This was the first graphic novel we've read in the group so I was understandably quite excited. This is the true story of the author's experience growing up in Tehran (the capital of Iran). The book opens at the beginning of the Islamic revolution in 1979. The first chapter is called The Veil and describes the incredulity of all of the children in her school when they are told that they are now required to wear the veil. Marjane is  bounces between unbelievably horrific imagery of torture to the seemingly arbitrary rules and regulations thrust upon Iranians. It's at times quite humorous but mostly it's appalling. The graphic depictions of torture, death, and oppression are raw and I felt gave our main character more depth than did the descriptions of her relationships and drug experimentation. It can be difficult to review a memoir (as I mentioned with Blankets) because it feels somewhat odd to say "I'm not a huge fan of the main character". However, it's the truth. I didn't really care for Marjane and I didn't really connect with her. I did connect with the plights of the people in her country. When she wrote about the unfairness of the law and the subterfuge that everyone committed just to have some semblance of humanity I felt deeply moved. The art style is not my favorite but neither is it terrible. I'd say this would be a good read for someone who wants to learn more about the people of Iran and their struggles but for me it's not one I'd reread and I don't think I'd read any more of her works. :-/ 5/10

A few examples of her art and some truly gut-punching dialogue.

**If you're interested in buying this book or any books really, you can click here or here. The first will re-direct you to AbeBooks and the second will re-direct you to The Book Depository. These are great websites for purchasing books (AbeBooks carries inexpensive used and out-of-print books and The Book Depository ships free everywhere in the world). Full disclosure: I will receive a commission on all sales made by following either of these links. I wouldn't recommend a site that I didn't use and you are under no obligation to purchase anything. :-) **