Thoughts on "Persepolis"
Hey, so it looks like I'm the first one posting on this book... I have tons of work to do this week (and I was swamped with other activities this past weekend), but I had to return the book today, so I wanted to write a few quick thoughts before I forgot them...
Basically, I really liked Persepolis, it was kind of like "Maus-light" (and set in Iran). There were dark points, but not nearly as disturbing as "Maus" can get - though I can see why comparisons can be made between the two books.
Before I read this book, I knew next to nothing about the Iranian Cultural Revolution, so I don't know how skewed Marji's POV was... though I suspect it is very skewed since her family was very well-off (even to send her to Europe at the end of the book), and Marxist. I wonder what this story would've been like for people who weren't so educated or rich... Was the Iranian Cultural Revolution more like the Stalinist regime in the U.S.S.R, where the intellectuals (and pretty much anyone who could criticize the government) were executed?
Hmm... totalitarianism of any stripe (whether Russian Communist or Islamic Fundamentalist) looks pretty much the same, huh?
By the end of the book, I felt like the story is only half-written - though I might feel that way because I know that there is a sequel to this book (and I might read it, though I suspect it won't be as good as the original).
These are just very general observations... I'd be happy to talk more about specific characters/incidents if other people bring them up... I just didn't know where to start.
I have to say that reading this book has made me interested in reading Reading Lolita in Tehran... I think it was a book that was suggested to this reading group before... or another book about the "Cultural Revolution"... any ideas?
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On an entirely unrelated note: My copy of Tooth and Claw should be coming in the mail sometime this week... I know it's two (or three?) months late (I finally got some birthday book money to blow!), but maybe I'll post some comments about it (or just comment on what has already been written) after I read it...
Basically, I really liked Persepolis, it was kind of like "Maus-light" (and set in Iran). There were dark points, but not nearly as disturbing as "Maus" can get - though I can see why comparisons can be made between the two books.
Before I read this book, I knew next to nothing about the Iranian Cultural Revolution, so I don't know how skewed Marji's POV was... though I suspect it is very skewed since her family was very well-off (even to send her to Europe at the end of the book), and Marxist. I wonder what this story would've been like for people who weren't so educated or rich... Was the Iranian Cultural Revolution more like the Stalinist regime in the U.S.S.R, where the intellectuals (and pretty much anyone who could criticize the government) were executed?
Hmm... totalitarianism of any stripe (whether Russian Communist or Islamic Fundamentalist) looks pretty much the same, huh?
By the end of the book, I felt like the story is only half-written - though I might feel that way because I know that there is a sequel to this book (and I might read it, though I suspect it won't be as good as the original).
These are just very general observations... I'd be happy to talk more about specific characters/incidents if other people bring them up... I just didn't know where to start.
I have to say that reading this book has made me interested in reading Reading Lolita in Tehran... I think it was a book that was suggested to this reading group before... or another book about the "Cultural Revolution"... any ideas?
********
On an entirely unrelated note: My copy of Tooth and Claw should be coming in the mail sometime this week... I know it's two (or three?) months late (I finally got some birthday book money to blow!), but maybe I'll post some comments about it (or just comment on what has already been written) after I read it...