Persepolis I and II

This combined edition gathers the first two volumes of Marjane Satrapi's autobiographical graphic novel, chronicling her childhood in Tehran as the 1979 Islamic Revolution and the subsequent war with Iraq upend the country around her.

The daughter of progressive, politically active parents, young Marji is old enough to sense the scale of what is happening but still filters it through games, faith, and childhood certainties. As the new regime tightens its grip, she witnesses arrests and disappearances, idolises rebellious relatives, argues with teachers, and loses her innocence to a reality of bombings and repression. By its end, her parents make the wrenching decision to send her abroad for her own safety.

Rendered in bold black-and-white artwork, it balances humour and horror through a child's eyes, standing as a landmark memoir of growing up amid revolution.