A Review of Marjane Satrapi's 'Persepolis' and 'Perseplis 2'

Marjane Satrapi, illustrator, writer and capturer of childhood's truths, displays her talent in her comic-book style novels, Persepolis and Persepolis 2.

The autobiographical story begins in 1980 Iran, the beginning of the Muslim Revolution. Don't be intimidated yet; Satrapi provides a brief historical introduction, but she has made the context of the events so apparent that it barely needs introduction. Marjane is a child, convinced that she is the last prophet. The revolution eclipses her dream, bringing with it "the veil," Satrapi's icon of oppression throughout the story. She manages to accurately and often humorously draw for us the mind of a child, struggling to wrap itself around concepts of violence, God, history and philosophy.

Satrapi illustrates what it was to be a fundamentalist and what it was to be a modern woman, noting, "You showed your opposition to the regime by letting a few strands of hair show." Perhaps her most haunting images are those of uniformity, the rows of massacred bodies or the class of school girls, all in veils, being taught to beat themselves.

Unlike most people, Satrapi remembers the moment her childhood ended. From her first cigarette on, Persepolis becomes a coming of age story that continues into Persepolis 2, much of which takes place abroad. We fear for our heroine in Europe, where she is on her own at only thirteen. Just when we think Marjane is becoming accustomed to her new life, her double-self is revealed in another of Satrapi's hectic and ingenious drawings. In this cell Marjane is split in two, and she looks as though she is trying to run away from herself in the panic of receiving the news that her mother is coming for a visit.

We fear for Marjane again when she returns to Iran, a westernized woman, only to have her friends ask, "What is the difference between you and a whore?" It is easy for the reader to be insulted by such a blow. With images and narration directly from the heroine (who is also the author), we are directly linked to Marjane and maintain empathy for her throughout the story.

Each of these books can be read in a day. They are entertaining and also extremely important works that inform us about events and places we just don't learn much about otherwise.