My review of this book can be found on my YouTube Vlog at:

https://youtu.be/NNKIFf8siHI

Enjoy! ( )

Along the story's winding path it was not obvious how the heroine would find her way. She had to overcome loneliness and poverty in a foreign country; the clutch of the fundamentalist regime in her home country. Then came numerous dissapointments, dead ends and losses. How did she not give up completely? She had a rebelious resolve but that was often shaken and only gave her grief at times. She had her parents but sometimes they were far away or couldn't really help her. She didn't really have stable friends. It seems she had nothing constant in her life, nothing that permeated from childhood into adulthood that i could pinpoint as the reason she overcame all the trouble.
While reading this comics i was rooting for her while having no answers to her problems. It's weird because usually when i read fiction i feel like i know the solution that i'd like to shout at the hero. But not here. Here the heroine taught me how to deal with all this life stuff. Cool. ( )

When I read a memoir like this, I feel a sense of gratitude towards the author. It's easy enough to share your triumphs. It's not even that difficult to share your foibles. But to actually share your mistakes, the things that made you feel shame, that is an act of courage. Even to admit to such things to an individual is hard. How much more difficult to tell the world?

I not only have a greater insight into Iranian culture in the early 90s but feel more connected with my own humanity. ( )

I really enjoyed both of these books and found myself much more invested in the character and story than I ever would have thought I could be in a graphic novel. ( )

Satrapi's strength is the ability to write a book that is about her life that is meaningful in the context of the historic events occurring in Iran during her lifetime, but also about her inner narrative. There's a contrast between the parts that are nearly unimaginable for the average American -- a co-worker who is beaten by the police for a misinterpreted cartoon, worrying about holding hands, two men beaten for driving in a car together, inability to show one's hair and so forth -- and the feelings that are universal: the desire for belonging, fear of isolation and a spectrum of normal teenage emotions.

I found the parts set in Vienna less interesting -- I think the compelling nature of the narrative derives in part from Sartapi's self-insight either at the time or in retrospect, and while in Vienna it mostly feels like she wasn't herself. There's a detachment and a lack of emotionality that drives the parts of the narrative set in Iran. Additionally, the strongest parts of the book were when Sartapi had conflict between her mother, father and grandmother -- these relatives are so close to her and so fundamental to her being that the conflicts had a clear tension. Without these supporting characters in the narrative the stakes seemed much lower.

Satrapi's black and white illustrations are stark and sometimes simplistic, which I think allows the underlying narrative to shine through, although I frequently had trouble distinguishing between characters, especially men. ( )

Satrapi's purpose for writing Persepolis was to show that life in Iran is much more complex than the view from the west of a country of religious fanatics and oppressed women. Marji is sent to Austria for school in the first part of the book, causing her to experience the alienation of the expatriate and then the reverse culture shock of trying to make sense of her own country when she returns.

This memoir is a warts-and-all tribute to the people of Iran - there are many extremists, but there are also many people who are trying to lead thoughtful, ethical lives, even under an oppressive theocracy. Satrapi depicts herself as at times being shockingly selfish and callous -as when she has a man arrested to distract the Guardians of the Revolution from her own moral code violation. Her view of the events in Iran can often be myopic, and she marries and divorces her husband without a thought to the sacrifices he has made.

Ultimately, Marji leaves Iran again for France. Does she abandon her country for her personal benefit? How moral is this choice? ( )

Earlier this year, I read the first part of Marjane Satrapi’s memoirs, the graphic novel “Persepolis”. Now, I felt, was a good time to revisit her story that in this second part begins with her difficult years in Austria.

In Vienna, Marjane feels isolated: Her experiences living in Vienna as a young adult highlight the challenges of being a foreigner in a new and unfamiliar culture. Marjane's struggles with language, cultural norms, and social expectations make her feel like an outsider.

Her experiences in Vienna also highlight the cultural differences between Iran and the West, and the challenges of navigating those differences as a young person. Marjane’s rebellious streak and her desire to fit in with her Western peers often clash with her Iranian upbringing and cultural values, leading to feelings of confusion and isolation.

Considering she lived there during the early 80s, a time during which conservatism, xenophobia and intolerance really thrived again, it’s no wonder she had some horrible experiences and, ultimately, decided to return to Iran.

Hardly at what she considered home, though, Marjane has to face the challenges of returning to a familiar but changed culture: Her experiences living abroad had given her a new perspective on her Iranian upbringing, and she struggles to reconcile her Western-influenced worldview with the traditional values and expectations of Iranian society. Her experiences with romantic relationships, gender roles, and political activism all highlight the tensions between her personal beliefs and the expectations of Iranian society.

Marjane's candid and honest portrayal of her experiences also helps to demystify Iran and Iranian culture for readers - like myself - who are not familiar with it. By sharing her personal experiences and perspectives, Marjane allows us to see Iran as a complex and multifaceted society, rather than a monolithic or exoticized entity. This helps to bridge cultural divides and promote greater understanding and empathy between different cultures.

I also appreciate Satrapi's unflinching honesty in her storytelling. She doesn't shy away from difficult or uncomfortable subjects, and her willingness to share her personal experiences and emotions make the story all the more authentic and relatable. Her portrayal of the complexities of Iranian society and the impact of political upheaval on individuals and families is both nuanced and insightful.

Another of the strengths of "Persepolis 2" is Satrapi's unique graphic style, which is both simple and expressive. Her use of black and white illustrations adds to the starkness of the story, and the minimalism of the drawings allows the reader to focus on the emotions and experiences of the characters.

Overall, "Persepolis 2" is a powerful and moving graphic novel that offers a unique perspective on Iranian history and culture, while also exploring universal themes of identity, belonging, and resilience.

Five out of five stars.

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Ceterum censeo Putin esse delendam ( )

I liked it, but not nearly as much as the first volume. ( )

Even better than Persepolis. Satrapi recounts her growth from a teenager to a young adult. While one may not be able to relate directly with the situations, the issues she faces are issues many face. Drugs, relationships, friends, family, identity, politics, are just a few Satrapi discusses. This comic does an extraordinary job showcasing how her beliefs in herself, and in society change and most importantly how she fights for her rights as a woman, as a human.

Intertwined in this personal story of growth is the historical context of Iran. Told from the perspective of someone who has experienced different Irans and who ultimately has to decide how her country aligns with her path. The conflict between her longing for Iran and her idealogies plays throughout.

Wonderfully illustrated and written! Thank you for sharing your incredible journey Marjane! ( )

Both this book and its predecessor Persepolis led me somewhere I had never been. I was a young adult, not much older than Marjane, when the events of these books happened. And half a world away. Reading her story has shown me perspectives that I couldn't have imagined clearly when I was younger.

Although 40 years, give or take, have passed since the book's events, it is even more relevant today. ( )

The sequel lacked the charm of the original but still had enough momentum to earn 4 stars.

Marjane goes to Austria! She now has the freedom to take off her veil and unveil herself away from Iranian fundamentalist. But what will she do with it? ( )

The second half of Satrapi's memoir, about her life after she left Iran (and subsequently returned), is just as honest, powerful, hilarious, and heart-breaking as the first half. ( )

In short: everyone should read Persepolis.

Volume 1 had a charming, whimsical feel despite the backdrop of revolutionary Iran. Volume 2 is the natural extension of that, keeping its charming style but moving on to intense feelings of alienation and pain as Marjane finds herself stuck between worlds as she grows up. Even though I grew up under very different circumstances, I deeply relate to her search for herself in Austria and Iran and how she never quite fit in either culture, and the deep depression she fell into when she returned to her family. There’s so much I could say about the art style and the universality of the emotions but it would all fall short, so I can only say this: read it. Persepolis is incredible. ( )

2011 (my brief review can be found in the LibraryThing post linked)
http://www.librarything.com/topic/104839#2623268 ( )

Like its predecessor, I read this in one sitting. A part of me admits that I was not happy with some of the mistakes she made, yet I suppose one has to make the mistakes in order to learn. The story is as moving as ever; it is engaging. It just draws you in. The history lesson is there as well. Like other readers, I have wondered how people allow a totalitarian regime to rise. It often sneaks up on you, as it did in this memoir. A lesson to remain vigilant. The ending is bittersweet, but a good one as she finally finds her freedom. Definitely recommended. Though I borrowed them from the public library, these are books I would love to acquire for my collection. These are definitely must-reads. As I said before, a fine example of what can be done with the graphic novel format. ( )

I just adore Persepolis. The comics are funny and sad and political and overall incredibly interesting - I think I'm going to start shoving these into everyone's faces. ( )

I have been seeing a lot of good reviews of this book on Litsy, so I decided to check it out. I really started reading graphic novels in the past year, so this book was never on my radar before. Marji, the heroine, is just 5 years younger than me, so although I was alive during the time period this book covers, I really had no understanding or knowledge of what was happening in Iran or the Middle East at the time. As I neared my 20's, I became more aware of the conflict in Iran, but for me that region was always under conflict.

Reading what it was like coming of age in the Iran of the 70's and 80's was very enlightening. The story of how a nation goes from being fairly progressive to very repressive was a scary one. It is books like this that make me realize how stunted my worldview is, and makes me want to learn more about different cultures.

In this second book of the series, Marji is in Austria, having been sent away from Iran to avoid the conflict there. She is only 14 years old, and already on her own. She has a room in a boarding house, but for all other intents, is on her own. This boggles my mind, that a child in a foreign land is given so much independence. Marji's experiences are definitely much different from mine. ( )

the beginning of this section--her time and vienna and initial return to iran--is one of the most thrilling and engrossing parts of persepolis. satrapi's voice is engaging and her story is interesting, but unfortunately the end of the book falls a little flat. she tells u how she changed, but the voice and art does not show it

the overall impact i think is the same as if satrapi were to idly recount the same stories to u in person, in an ad-hoc and meandering fashion. its still engrossing, but its inscription as a graphic novel contains so much potential to transform the story into smthg more ( )

An Iranian girl goes to school in Vienna.

3/4 (Good).

This half of the story is nowhere near as strong as part 1. It's more of a straight-forward memoir. ( )

This is the second book in the Persepolis series. It was well done and engaging. I found it intriguing to read about Marjane and how she adjusted to life in Austria. I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as the first book.

Marjane is in Austria, when she arrives she finds herself immediately shipped off to a boarding school. At the boarding school she has trouble finding friends and a place for herself and ends up getting kicked out. Things get progressively worse for her until she finally decides to return to Iran and tries to find a place there.

It was interesting to watch how Marjane adjusted (or didn’t adjust) to life in Austria. The contrast between the war torn country of Iran and Marjane’s loving family to the peaceful country of Austria but an indifferent family was intriguing. This is kind of one of those car wreck scenarios...you just can’t help being engaged as Marjane’s struggles get more and more desperate.

The book just kind of ends without much closure. I guess since it’s an autobiography this kind of makes sense, but the ending still seemed very abrupt to me.

Overall I enjoyed reading the second half of Marjane’s autobiography. It was engaging and interesting to watch her try to adjust to a totally different country and type of life. My only complaint is that there is no closure here which leaves the reader feeling a bit at a loss at the end. I would recommend this series if you are interested in learning about life in the Middle East in a way that is easily accessible. ( )

The second volume focuses on Marji's unsuccessful student life in Vienna where she is unable to form an identity of her own, and her subsequent return to Teheran, where the regime has now eliminated all public opposition and established a repressive theocracy in which wearing a bit of lipstick can land you in jail.

Personally I found the Teheran parts more interesting than the teenage angst Vienna bit.

Read this in Slovene, titled Perzepolis: Zgodba o vrnitvi. ( )

I liked this a lot better than Persepolis 1. The previous book seemed less connected to the reader, whereas this one showed a full transformation. I found the focus of identity interesting, and the way in which the revolution affected the culture even moreso. The harsh differences between public identity and private were what I was hoping to see in the first book, so I was pleased that it got addressed. ( )

Since reading the first volume of Persepolis, I've wondered how the rest of Marjane's story would play out. This volume starts with her time in Vienna when she was just barely a teen. As an Iranian who doesn't speak German, she's an outsider. In fact, Marjane is an outsider through much of this graphic novel. I'm glad she persisted, found her way in the world, and was brave enough to tell her very vulnerable story. ( )

I enjoyed both Persepolis #1 and #2, not just for the actual content, but because Marjane Satrapi is just my age. Every time she mentioned what year it was when a particular event happened in her life, I could look back at my own life during the same year and contrast my life as a young American woman of the same age. It was fascinating.

The two things I liked most about this book were 1) the coming-of-age aspect, as Marjane goes from being a kid away from home, to becoming a young adult, figuring out how she wants to live her life; and 2) the theme of what life was like in Iran after the revolution and the war. It is hard to imagine life inside such a closed society. It is also interesting to me to be reminded that Iran was more than just a war zone on TV, that life did go on during and after the war, and to see how that was accomplished (at least for people with some education and money, like Marjane's family). ( )

1.5/5 stars (rounded down)

Well, it has been awhile since a book made me so angry.

This was such a drastic change from Persepolis 1, I couldn't believe I was reading about the same person!

- I really, really loved Persepolis 1. It was poignant, heartbreaking and educational. It had a smart, intelligent and strong heroine, who asked the right questions and had a heart in the right place.
- I don't know where that person went in Persepolis 2, for instead there was a girl who lost all of her morals and kept making horrible life decisions. Again, and again and again, And it would have been fine, we all are humans, but the thing is - in the book I didn't feel like she learned or took anything from her hardships at all. If I wanted to see people making bad choices and becoming vegetables due to their drug addictions, I'd just watch TV.

I can definitely applaud Marjane for her honesty, and for putting all of her flaws out there, but I also don't understand the point of it? What lesson was she trying to teach? Persepolis 1 contained history - I learned so much about Iranian people, the revolution, the oppression. But in this book, there was very little of that. It was mostly about her growing up and trying to fit in, which for her meant to do everything that everybody else did. And I just couldn't comprehend how a girl, who was raised to be so smart and educated, could make any of those decisions.

On the back cover of the book, there's a praise that says :
"Every revolution needs a chronicler like Satrapi
Well, if chronicling a revolution means describing how many drugs she used, how many cigarettes she smoked, how many parties she went to and how everybody else around her was horribly unfair to her and how she, and only she was the victim - then I don't want to know about that kind of revolution.

What made me the most angry was how she portrayed herself as a victim every single time. Sure, her life wasn't easy, or pretty - but it was because of her own bad decisions. She wanted everybody to pity her for her life, while she was the one of the few who escaped the war. She was sent to Europe to better her life, but instead she buried it.

I also couldn't stand how demeaning she was to other people - she criticized everybody - some she called fat behind their back (the first time she saw her new landlord she called her fat and a horse face, just because the woman was unattractive - sure, the woman turned out to be mean, but it doesn't give you right to judge and laugh at ones appearances), some she judged because of their lack of intelligence, some she judged because of their looks. And the worst part came, when she purposely lied and condemned that poor man on the street to save herself. I've never read about a most selfish person.

Also remarks like "if there were more fun things to do, I'd never have read as many books as I did" and "the first marriage is just a reversal before the second one" just didn't sit well with me. If you are writing a book, then don't say that books are the last resort, only if you have nothing else better to do - no self respecting bookworm will agree with you. And just because your marriage didn't work, doesn't mean that you have the right to come up with generalized statements like that.
Being progressive in ones thoughts doesn't mean that you have the right to be demeaning to other people's thoughts.

There were few things that I liked - I liked some of her views on the world and how she explained some of the ridiculous customs and rules that were, and still to this day burden the women of Iran.

I should have dnf'd it, I know, but it was slow at work and it was the only book I had with me so I just kept plowing through it.

I still absolutely recommend Persepolis 1, but this second edition didn't teach me anything. ( )