Reviews with content warning for Terminal illness - Darius the Great Is Not Okay

Homecoming. That's what I would describe this book. It's coming home to a place you've never been in and finding your seat at the table. I resonate so much with Darius and a lot of the family dynamics here I've experienced first hand. I hold this book close to my heart.

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ashylibrarian's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

This is a beautifully written story about friendship, mental health, and self-discovery. I cannot wait to pick up the second and soon-to-be-published third books in the series.

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farbooksventure's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

The emotional rollercoaster that I experience while reading this book.

Things that I love:

I appreciate the in-depth exploration of mental health issues in the story. This particular book talks about depression. Darius's story really showcases how one life side by side with mental illness. It also shows how people around them dealing with this fact.
The exploration of male platonic friendship! I would love to see this more often on fiction in general.
The short chapters! No wonder this book can be read fast.
I also adore how the story explores various family dynamics.

Things that I wish to see more:

Sohrab background story! Even though Sohrab is so vital in Darius's character development, I feel like I don't really know him? It almost feels like he's there but not really? I'm aware that this is a Darius story, but it would be lovely to read an in-depth look at Sohrab's character too.

Darius the Great Is Not Okay is a book for readers who are looking for a story that is centered around male friendship, mental health exploration, and dealing with one identity.

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dhrish's review against another edition

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emotional informative reflective medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

This review is going to be an incoherent mess. But the long story made short: if you are looking for a book about: with great mental health representation and conversation, family and the struggles of a first-generation diaspora kid going back home for the first time, I cannot recommend "Darius the Great Is Not Okay" more to you.

I think this review is going to focus on three things that caught my eye while reading:

1) Darius, before going to Iran does stereotype Iran and Persian's a lot. I love how Adib showed that although Darius knew that Iran couldn't just amount to stereotypes still defaulted to them in the beginning because although he is diaspora he had never been to Iran. Darius isn't immune to stereotyping. He isn't a perfect Persian boy and that's ok, he is learning what it means to him to be Iranian.

2) Mental health is important and the journey to managing it is a marathon, not a sprint. I can't tell you how great mental health conversations are in this book. Both Darius and his father have diagnosed clinical depression and it looks different for both of them, from the medication they take to how they manage it. The side effects of medication are also discussed from rapid weight-gain to tranquilising effects of some medication. Darius and his dad don't automatically get along because of this aspect they share either but rather find common ground because of their love of "Star Wars'.

3) No one can fill the place that is yours. Darius doesn't have a lot of friends and Sohrab is his first friend. Throughout this book, Darius feels like an outsider in a place that is supposed to be "home" although his grandparents and extended family do love him their love comes off in the form of invasive questions or comments not understanding why he needs depression medication. He questions whether he does belong. His friendship with Sohrab so brilliantly highlights this point. His friendship with Sohrab also shows the diversity that exists within Iran both religious and ethnic.

Although I have so much to say about "Darius the Great Is Not Okay" none of the sentences I wrote make any sense.

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bertieward's review against another edition

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inspiring lighthearted reflective fast-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

i really wanted to enjoy this book but i can’t help but feel i was a little let down by it. while the characters were well fleshed out, the plot and relationships were lacking depth. i kept waiting for something to happen but it never came. i didn’t feel as if i was being taken on a journey. the entire book felt like one big beginning with no climax or ending. i wanted to see more of darius and sohrab’s friendship. darius claims sohrab is his best friend, but it just didnt feel like it. sohrab laughs at him and makes fun of him and darius forgives him right away. when sohrab points out all of darius’ insecurities, darius forgives him pretty much immediately, but i couldn’t bring myself to forgive him. it felt like the story moved on without me. i loved the relationship between darius and his dad and the development between them. i feel like the book needed to be longer in order to do the characters justice. on top of all of this, while this isn’t an issue with the book or the author itself but i was led to believe that this book had lgbtq+ content, which it doesn’t in any way. although i didn’t pick up this book because i thought it had a queer main character, it was something that made me want to read it more as a queer person so i was rather disappointed when there wasn’t any mention of lgbtq+ and i absolutely feel queerbaited. at the end it also seems like darius is about to become friends with the guy that bullies him at the beginning which is a trope i really hate, especially when the only interaction they’ve had was darius being bullied by him. overall, i don’t think i’ll be reading the sequel and i won’t be recommending this book to anybody, which is really disappointing because of the incredible representation and the potential this story had

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jamierose's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful sad medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

This was so good, I can't believe it took me this long to get to it! The depression rep was so very real, how it permeated Darius' view of himself and others, and his relationships, even while it wasn't the focus of his life or the book. I did get very teary at times. The Persian/ Persian-American rep I obviously can't speak to but I did really feel immersed in it along with Darius, and all the little jarring notes where he wondered if he'd ever be Persian enough for his extended family. His growing friendship with Sohrab (I audiobooked, so I hope I've spelt that right!) was just beautiful.

Darius is a huge nerd, so almost every scene was peppered with Star Trek and Lord of the Rings references, and honestly, that just made me love him even more. Both he and Sohrab are too precious for this world. I also now have a very strong urge to call people soulless minions of orthodoxy.

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valereads's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This book snuck up on me, punched me in the gut then stroked my head and told me everything's gonna be okay.

That is to say it was beautiful and I loved it.

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mmmmmm's review against another edition

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emotional informative lighthearted sad medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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