Five books on Iran that offer complex insights into the nation’s politics, culture, and people
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Since the Islamic Revolution of 1979, Iran has been condemned in the West as a repressive theocracy. But the history of this vast nation of more than 90 million people is long and complicated.
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In times of war, we can overlook complexities in search of simple certainties. We asked five experts on Iran to recommend books that offer complex insights into the nation’s politics, culture and people.
They explore the revolution through religion, politics, Iranian mythology and personal experience. There’s a classic graphic-novel memoir and a daring novel of addiction. And an astonishing memoir takes us inside Iran’s prisons.
Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi
Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi is a beautifully illustrated and compelling memoir of Iran’s 1979 revolution, told from the childlike perspective of the author as she comes of age amid uprising, crackdown and sudden, enforced Islamisation.
Persepolis is a graphic novel for people who don’t read graphic novels – its hand-drawn black-and-white illustrations enhance the story without taking away from its playful hilarity – and at times profound and confronting sadness.
This is a highly personal story, but also an account of how a proud and ancient people came to be ruled by a fanatical minority. Through the story of Satrapi and her family, we glimpse the...