Persepolis

Marjane Satrapi

Persepolis is that rarest of birds, a graphic novel that has transcended the idea of the graphic novel and gained a strong foothold in the world of mainstream literature; not since Maus has a book with so much of its content devoted to illustration gotten such a huge following among those who'd never otherwise consider looking at a "comic book." Tack on any hopes that spring immediately to mind here; you're likely to have them dashed, just like we did with Maus. But still, maybe a handful will go on to discover David B. or Kyle Baker or Neil Gaiman's graphic work, and it will all have meant something.

Persepolis is the first piece of Marjane Satrapi's autobiography, and it deals with her childhood and youth first in the Shah's regime, then after the overthrow by Ayatollah Khomeini (though, oddly, Khomeini is never mentioned by name once in the book; I hesitate to offer, while hoping it's true, that perhaps Satrapi keeps him unnamed as a show of disdain). Her stated goal is to show the world that many Muslims living under oppressive regimes are not tower-bombing fanatics, a stance that does raise more questions than it answers (most importantly, why share a religion with such nutcases?, a question that should not, of course, be limited only to those who follow Islam). That aside, Satrapi does achieve her goal quite handily, and it may well be an eye-opener for those who did not previously realize that not everyone in Iran is, in fact, a dangerous zealot.

The artwork, not surprisingly, has that sort of L'Association feel about it that was also present in David B's award-winning Epileptic; everyone seems a bit rounder than one normally finds in comics, without many angles at all, seeming somewhat vague and unformed. The dialogue is subtly geared towards what a child/youth would hear, while the infrequent narration is imparted in an adult tone, giving the book a nice added touch of veracity. A very good start to the series.