Persepolis:  The Story of a Childhood
By Marjane Satrapi

The book selected for 2006 is Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood(Pantheon, 2004). The book is available from book retailers nationwide as well as in paperback at the La Roche College Book Store. For telephone orders, call 412-536-1140.

Persepolis is a “graphic novel” that tells the story of a young girl coming of age in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. It was just a few years ago that Art Spiegelman’s graphic novel depicting his family’s history and ordeal through the Holocaust, Maus, received a Pulitzer Prize and brought the graphic novel form to full-fledged literary and artistic recognition. Persepolis is the most recent arrival in this groundbreaking genre. To learn more about graphic novels, click on the link on this page.

Marjane Satrapi writes about her childhood and the struggles of one human being to understand a complex world and her role within it. Through stark black and white images, Satrapi portrays the human cost of war through a child’s eyes.

Why should you care about Iran?

While it occurred before most of you were born, the Islamic Revolution in Iran affects us all. The actions and policies of the fundamentalist Islamic government – political repression, ethnic cleansing, and religious intolerance – have had significant impact on our world and will continue to do so. Would it surprise you to learn that West Point requires its freshman cadets to read Persepolis? As you read Persepolis, think about why what appears to be a “comic book” could be considered so significant.

Perhaps part of the reason why West Point cadets read this extraordinary book is because they are being trained to think “globally.” You have probably heard that term before, but have you thought about what it means? It means that none of us live in isolation. Social and political events in one country impact all countries. You may have come to La Roche to study computers, management or biology but how you view world events and the many ways in which those events impact you will affect your career and your future. As we say on the Reading Program Home Page, “The heart of the college experience is the exploration of new ideas.” Exploring your world will transform your life.

If you listen to the world news or read newspapers, you have also heard a lot about the “axis of evil.” It is a phrase that has been used to describe terrorism and the countries that support it. Our fears since September 11th have caused us to see all Muslims as fanatics. Media images of suicide bombings and kidnappings perpetuate that myth. When you read Persepolis, however, you will discover that Marjane Satrapi’s childhood was not that much different from your own. Through her unforgettable story, Satrapi dispels the myth that all Muslims are evil. This is a funny, touching and heartbreaking story that will change the way you think.

Discussion Questions

Before reading Persepolis, click on the Discussion Questions link. We have prepared these questions to help you to think critically about the book, Satrapi’s reasons for writing it, and why we consider Persepolis to be an important part of your freshman year experience.

Finally, by the time you arrive on campus for Freshman Orientation, the link to Fall Workshop Series will spotlight the interactive workshops we will hold in the Fall Semester. Your attendance at the workshops will complete your exploration of Persepolis but will be just the beginning of your exploration of new ideas.

Web Links

To Learn More About Iran

Books by Marjane Satrapi