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When I read the first volume of PERSEPOLIS, people told me that I had to explore this author's other work. Luckily, I bought volumes one and two of PERSEPOLIS together, so I could immediately jump from one to the other. While the first book primarily takes place in Iran during the Islamic Revolution and then, a few years later, during the Iraqi Invasion, the second book is about Marjane's coming of age in Austria: the place her parents decided to send her, where she would be safer from the war.



Marjane ends up in several places: friends' homes, a church (although she was thrown out for talking back to the nuns), hostels, even homeless on the streets. She writes about what it was like seeing a full grocery store after the scarcities in Iran, and the difficulty in living in a place where she didn't speak the language. She also writes about some of the racism she experienced, and her first feelings of shame for being Iranian because everyone saw them as "terrorists" because of the news.



I really enjoyed this book, because Marjane is so straightforward about her experiences. I think in memoirs there is a tendency to portray yourself as selfless, but Marjane portrays herself as honestly as possible, even at the cost of likability. One moment that particularly stuck out at me was when she accuses an innocent man of making lewd advances towards her in order to avoid getting in trouble with the Guardians for meeting a boy. She and her boyfriend laugh over the story but when she tells it to her grandmother, she yells at her for the first time in her life and says she's shaming her uncle's memory (the uncle who died for seditious activities that were against the Islamic Revolution). It was a relatable moment, because I think we have all done things as teens that we thought were humorous or fun that ended up bringing us shame later because of how they disappointed our families.



I didn't cry while reading PERSEPOLIS 2, although I came close at the end of the book, when she talks about seeing her grandmother for the last time. However, that doesn't mean that PERSEPOLIS 2 is any less touching. I liked how she described living as an expatriate, her encounters with her friends (and her enemies), and her experience with sex, intimacy, marriage, and divorce from both a Western and an Iranian perspective (and how the two frequently came into conflict). At one point she says something like "To the Westerners, I was an Iranian; but to the Iranians, I was a Westerner" which I thought was a great way to describe the feelings that many people with dual citizenship or people who are multiracial have of belonging to a group that is separate from those singular identities.



This is such a great series. It's easy to see why it was made into a film: the style, the narration, the content - it's all so compelling. As I said in the first book, if you're interested in learning more about Iran and enjoy memoirs written by interesting women, PERSEPOLIS is definitely a must-read.



4.5 stars

Average

had to read this for german and my german teacher convinced me to give this book 4 instead of 3 stars. this graphic novel wasn't as good as the first one for sure, but it did have a lot of meaningful and relatable elements in it which i dearly appreciated.

Wow, this second part blew me away. I thought the first part was strong, but this one made it clear that this series is a must-read for everyone. Not just to educate, but to get inspired by the strength of this young woman. This book will stick with me for a long time.

As if the Iranian Revolution hadn´t already been bad enough, growing up in a Western country has its flaws too

Because in both worlds, she´s an outsider
But at least she has a group of friends that aren´t integrated too that help her to settle down in a very strange, foreign place (I´m from Austria and have f world privileges). The problem is, it would take much more than just good friends to deal with such a traumatizing past she can´t leave behind alone in a foreign country. So she decides to

Give it another try
This could be seen as a second attempt of fighting the system but, as the first time, it just can´t work. One human against a system mostly just wins in fairytales. Still, this novel is one of the

Most important works showing women suffering under fundamentalism
Because no matter under which flag, symbol, or ideology, discrimination, exploitation, torture, and killing is always the same. Maybe a bit more sophisticated to give it a civilized touch, but the totalitarian approach always stays the same. While other books dealing with certain issues are interesting for relatively small groups of people of a certain age, sexual orientation, political ideology, etc., this one is written for hundreds of millions of women that are suffering. It´s the

Real life Handmaid's tale
If states in Africa and the Middle East were democratized, they would look in shock at a description of a possible, dystopic alternative future, a uchronia of theocratic hardliners smashing progressive emancipation.

Tropes show how literature is conceptualized and created and which mixture of elements makes works and genres unique:
https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.ph...

The comics format, the dry humor, the frankness, the child / adolescent / young woman point of view - all of them lessen a little the tragic history of Iran and its population.

4.5
:( :( :( :( I don't even know how to talk about this

"I should say that at the time, Iran was the epitome of evil and to be Iranian was a heavy burden to bear. It was easier to lie than to assume that burden." :(

"The more time passed, the more I became conscious of the contrast between the official representation of my country and the real life of the people, the one that went on behind the walls."

"And then, there wasn't any more opposition. The protesters had been executed. Or had fled the country any way possible."

Persepolis is the Greek name for the ancient city of Parsa, located seventy miles northeast of Shiraz in present-day Iran.
...because I had been wondering about that.



Alright, the second half of this story (#3 & #4) is less about the revolution, and more about a young woman growing up, and discovering herself along the way. Yes, it's a fish-out-water story, but most stories are when you're talking about that period of time between teenager and adult.

Satrapi has an extra layer of awkwardness, because she's alone in a foreign country during this time. Plus, the upheaval that happened in her country during her childhood gave her a different outlook on things than most of the children teenagers in her boarding school.
Bottom line, though? Everyone wants to fit in at that age.


So, she does what we all did during that time of our life.
She experiments, she rebels, falls in love, gets her heart broken, gets her pride crushed, loses herself, and then makes her way home.
Unfortunately, Iran wasn't exactly the kind country that made it particularly easy to explore who you are or find yourself. The blending of religious values with laws made it hard for her, and other young adults, to do the normal things that most of us take for granted as rites of passage.



And I'm not saying the men in her country had it easy, but being a woman in such a repressed society? Wow. It's hard to believe that there are still places like this in the world.









Ok, while this was a really good story, it didn't quite move me as much as the first book. Still, it's definitely worth reading. And there were several things that surprised me about this one.
The biggest shock was that this was not a sad story.
I thought it would end with bloodshed or something! Nope. There's no Happily Ever After, but it leaves you satisfied.
Also, Marjane's parents were pretty awesome. I don't want to spoil anything for those of you who haven't read this, but when I grow up, I want to be like those guys. I hope I have the guts to let my kids be themselves and make their own mistakes.
I don't think you need to be a woman to get this book, either. I think anyone can read this and find something of themselves in Satrapi's story, because it's about finding out who you are, and then being true to yourself.
Even when it's not easy.

Εδώ και καιρό ανυπομονούσα να διαβάσω το δεύτερο μέρος του Περσέπολις, μιας και το πρώτο βιβλίο με ενθουσίασε.Η στιγμή έφτασε επιτέλους αλλά δυστυχώς δεν ήταν ακριβώς αυτό που περίμενα, χωρίς αυτό να σημαίνει πως δεν πρόκειται για μια πολύ ενδιαφέρουσα και ανθρώπινη ιστορία.
Η συγγραφέας Μαργιάν Σατραπί συνεχίζει να μας εξιστορεί μέσα από τα σκίτσα της, την ζωή της, εδώ πλέον ως μετανάστρια στην Αυστρία.Η μικρή Μαργιάν καλείται να αντιμετωπίσει διάφορες δυσκολίες αλλάζοντας σπίτια και σχολεία και προσπαθώντας να προσαρμοστεί σε ένα τρόπο ζωής πολύ διαφορετικό από τον δικό της.Όλη αυτή η κατάσταση μαζί με την δύσκολο περίοδο της εφηβείας, την οδηγούν σε επικίνδυνα μονοπάτια όπως αυτό των ναρκωτικών και στην επιστροφή της στο Ιράν οπού και εκεί πλέον αισθάνεται μια ξένη.
Η ιστορία σε αυτό το δεύτερο μέρος θα έλεγα πως γίνεται πιο ενήλικη, καθώς η Μαργιάν μεγαλώνει και καλείται να αντιμετωπίσει δύσκολες καταστάσεις χωρίς τη βοήθεια κανενός. Ομολογώ πως όσο αγάπησα την μικρή Μάρτζι, άλλο τόσο την αντιπάθησα καθώς μεγάλωνε.Αντιλαμβάνομαι ότι αυτά που κλήθηκε να περάσει δεν είναι εύκολα και κανείς δεν θα έβγαινε αλώβητος στην θέση, αλλά συνεχώς μα συνεχώς κάνει τις λάθος επιλογές και το χειρότερο δεν είναι αυτό αλλά το γεγονός ότι δεν φαίνεται να αισθάνεται άσχημα για καμία απόφαση της, ακόμη και αν αυτή είχε ως αποτέλεσμα να πληγωθούν άλλοι άνθρωποι.Με ενοχλεί ο τρόπος που αντιμετωπίζει τους γύρω της, ειδικότερα τις φίλες της στο Ιράν οι όποιες είναι πολύ πιο συντηρητικές από αυτήν και δεν λέω ότι αυτό είναι καλό, αλλά δεν μπορείς να κατακρίνεις κάποιον όταν έχεις μπλέξει με ναρκωτικά,τα έχεις μάλιστα διακινήσει, έχεις ξεμείνει στο δρόμο για πολλές μέρες, έχεις κάνει σχέση με κάθε ηλίθιο αγόρι και δεν έχεις ουσιαστικά καταστρέψει τα πάντα.
Ωστόσο δεν είναι η Μάρτζι αυτή που ακριβώς κατηγορώ, αλλά τους γονείς της που την έστειλαν εκεί για ένα καλύτερο μέλλον ενώ το αποτέλεσμα ήταν εντελώς διαφορετικό. Καλύτερα κατά τη γνώμη μου να την κρατούσαν στο Ιράν με αυτή τη συντηρητική κουλτούρα παρά να περάσει όλη αυτή τη δυστυχία.Μου κάνει εντύπωση πως σε όλο το βιβλίο η Μαργιάν επιβιώνει ουσιαστικά μόνη της από την ηλικία των δεκατεσσάρων και οι γονείς τις φαίνεται να αγνοούν σχεδόν τα πάντα, ούτε καν γνωρίζουν πόσα λεφτά έχει. Ειλικρινά ποιοι γονείς που αγαπάνε το παιδί τους όσο δύσκολα και αν περνούσαν θα φέρονταν έτσι;Δεν φαίνεται ούτε στιγμή να αισθάνονται άσχημα για όσα ουσιαστικά περνά η Μαργιάν και αυτό πραγματικά με έκανε να τους αντιπαθήσω εντελώς.
Ίσως φαίνομαι υπερβολική με όλα αυτά που αναφέρω, άλλωστε θα μου πει κανείς είναι μόνο μια ιστορία, γνωρίζω όμως πως η ιστορία της συγγραφέως είναι αληθινή και γι αυτό εξοργίζομαι και παίρνω τόσο στα σοβαρά κάποια πράγματα.Επειδή λοιπόν διαφωνώ με αυτές τις καταστάσεις, δεν σημαίνει πως δεν απόλαυσα για ακόμη μια φορά τα εξαιρετικά σκίτσα και την γρήγορη πλοκή της ιστορίας που δεν με άφησε λεπτό να βαρεθώ.
Το Περσέπολις συνολικά είναι μια δραματική ιστορία επιβίωσης ενός κοριτσιού που βρίσκεται διχασμένο ανάμεσα στα προοδευτικά πρότυπα της Δύσης και στα συντηρητικά της Ανατολής.Ο διχασμός αυτός την οδηγεί σε περίεργα μονοπάτια που καταφέρνει ευτυχώς με πολύ τύχη να ξεφύγει.Όσα προβλήματα και να έχω με την συγκεκριμένη ιστορία χάρηκα που τελικά την διάβασα και έμαθα λίγα περισσότερα πράγματα για το τι έχουν αντιμετωπίσει οι άνθρωποι αυτών των χωρών και τις θυσίες που έχουν αναγκαστεί να κάνουν.

3.5 Este me ha gustado mucho más que el primero, que fue bastante introductorio.
Esperaba más feminismo, pero aún así la parte política está en primerísimo plano y es muy interesante.
Muy duras algunas escenas.

El dibujo no me gusta, eso sí, es demasiado simple. Entiendo que lo importante es la historia pero un dibujo más elaborado ayudaría a disfrutar más el conjunto.

Since reading the first volume of Persepolis, I've wondered how the rest of Marjane's story would play out. This volume starts with her time in Vienna when she was just barely a teen. As an Iranian who doesn't speak German, she's an outsider. In fact, Marjane is an outsider through much of this graphic novel. I'm glad she persisted, found her way in the world, and was brave enough to tell her very vulnerable story.

Really loved how the author dealt with the theme of belonging and feeling rootless.