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pacifickat's review against another edition
3.0
I don't always love young adult Marjane, even if her overall story is worth the time to read. (Her father, however, is an absolute gem.) I often perceive her as quite selfish, although she had to live alone in a foreign country starting at age 14 so her self-centeredness may be fueled by survival instict. There is one particularly disturbing scene
Furthermore, her family's relative wealth helps her get out of a lot of situations without physical harm, and she seems unaware of the privilege this is. Then she judges her friends and peers when they make choices to 'play it safe' rather than fighting the oppressive government, attending covert parties as a form of protest, or pushing back against gender norms and expectations. She doesn't seem to fully grasp how much others around her stand to lose if they hold on too hard to their idealism.
I also found the internalized sexism of the women the author portrayed to be really sad and disturbing. There are lots of scenes of women glaring at each other when one is receiving a man's attention seemingly out of jealousy or disapproval. Plus, Marjane's internal dialogue often calls other women names like 'fat cow' when she finds them interacting with a man she is interested in, or she doesn't like the same things they do. I found her pretty mean and catty much of the time. However, while she is a very flawed character, she still suffers as a victim of racism, mysogeny, abusive laws, and police brutality. Her plight and suffering should still matter to the reader. This type of representation is actually a bit refreshing to see, even if it is challenging or uncomfortable to spend time in that narrator's shoes.
These books have faced recent bans in the US, so even more reason to check them out in my opinion. I don't see any reason why Part 1 would be inappropriate for age 13+, and Part 2 for age 15+.
Graphic: Religious bigotry, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Gun violence, Islamophobia, Misogyny, Xenophobia, Sexism, Suicide attempt, Violence, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, War, Mental illness, Police brutality, Death, Self harm, Racism, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Fatphobia, Homophobia, and Rape
Minor: Infidelity and Pregnancy
Pressure to become pregnant, pressure to conform to religious ideology, restrictions on freedom of thought, restrictions on bodily autonomy, false imprisonment, homelessness, internalized sexismlizzie24601's review against another edition
5.0
Moderate: Drug use, Police brutality, Violence, Drug abuse, Sexism, Suicide attempt, Physical abuse, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Death, Torture, Xenophobia, War, and Alcohol
gin_and_books's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Police brutality, Racism, Violence, Addiction, Racial slurs, Abandonment, Alcohol, Deportation, Hate crime, Domestic abuse, Grief, and Islamophobia
taliatalksbooks's review against another edition
3.5
Graphic: Police brutality, War, Sexism, Genocide, and Misogyny
cozy_academic's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Misogyny, Suicide attempt, War, Gun violence, Alcohol, Police brutality, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Death, and Drug use
lanid's review against another edition
Moderate: Drug use, Drug abuse, Racism, Religious bigotry, Misogyny, Police brutality, Body shaming, and Homophobia
lindsayerin's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Sexism and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Police brutality and Drug use
Minor: Suicide attempt
marissasa's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: War, Drug use, Grief, Infidelity, Torture, Alcohol, Bullying, Death, Mental illness, Violence, Cursing, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicide attempt, Blood, Police brutality, and Racism
ninahuynh's review against another edition
5.0
Read more in my blog: https://niansworld.wordpress.com/2022/02/20/persepolis-the-story-of-a-return-3-4-marjane-satrapi/
Graphic: Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Death, Drug abuse, Misogyny, Police brutality, and War
Moderate: Sexual harassment
thalassaio's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: War, Xenophobia, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Police brutality, Drug use, and Drug abuse
Minor: Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, and Islamophobia