Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood (Pantheon Graphic Novels) Paperback by Marjane Satrapi (Pantheon)

This is part 1 of a 2 part story. Ms. Satrapi's masterpiece is one of my favorite works in all of comics. I read this when it came out and foisted it upon all of my comic reading friends. I gave a copy to a niece several years ago, and then recently bought another copy for another niece for her 11th birthday (I'll hold off on part 2 for her until she is 14). Because I had given it to both nieces, my 76 year old mother decided to read it. She is a retired English teacher, and she was floored at how good the story was and how powerful the medium of comics are in telling a story. Persepolis ended up jumpstarting my mother's interest in comics, and in the following weeks she read all three volumes of March, both volumes of Maus, the Story of My Tits, Chicken with Plums, and Two Brothers (this last one confused her, but she loved everything else).

So, there you have it. This floored my 11 year niece and my 76 year old mother. It's brilliant and timeless.

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.