Persepolis

Persepolis is a graphic novel by Marjane Satrapi. The introduction gives the reader background information of Iranian history from the second millenium B.C. until today. The first chapter of this book opened with the 1980 'veil'. The year before was the "Islamic Revolution", and after the law made it mandatory for females to wear a veil. At this time, the author is ten years old. She flips back and forth between childish impressions and an omniscient view. It's actually very effective, giving us perspective while also giving us the big picture. It allows the reader to make comparisons of how what things happen to the country affect the author at the time.

One of the things I found the most interesting and confusing was the idea that at the age of six she wanted to be a prophet, and God visited her at bedtime. She created her own commandments and read them to her grandmother, who was the only one who would listen. She even told her teacher in school that she wanted to be a prophet. Since this caused some waves, she started saying she wanted to be a doctor. This makes her feel guilty to God, and eventually they become distant (I know, strange, but it's her story, not mine).