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Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood
Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood | Marjane Satrapi
101 posts | 295 read | 97 to read
A New York Times Notable BookA Time Magazine Best Comix of the Year A San Francisco Chronicle and Los Angeles Times Best-seller Wise, funny, and heartbreaking, Persepolis is Marjane Satrapi s memoir of growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. In powerful black-and-white comic strip images, Satrapi tells the story of her life in Tehran from ages six to fourteen, years that saw the overthrow of the Shah s regime, the triumph of the Islamic Revolution, and the devastating effects of war with Iraq. The intelligent and outspoken only child of committed Marxists and the great-granddaughter of one of Iran s last emperors, Marjane bears witness to a childhood uniquely entwined with the history of her country. Persepolis paints an unforgettable portrait of daily life in Iran and of the bewildering contradictions between home life and public life. Marjane s child s-eye view of dethroned emperors, state-sanctioned whippings, and heroes of the revolution allows us to learn as she does the history of this fascinating country and of her own extraordinary family. Intensely personal, profoundly political, and wholly original, Persepolis is at once a story of growing up and a reminder of the human cost of war and political repression. It shows how we carry on, with laughter and tears, in the face of absurdity. And, finally, it introduces us to an irresistible little girl with whom we cannot help but fall in love."
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Zuhkeeyah
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Pickpick

Another read pulled from the #nonfiction2024 prompt list. I like her humor and honesty during a very turbulent time in Iran. I can‘t imagine how you make the mental shift from freedom of speech to restrictions everywhere. Her parents were great in that they made their home a safe place to speak out.

Anyone have another nonfiction recommendation that covers the rise of the Islamic State? I‘d like to know more.

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booklover3258
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Pickpick

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

https://youtu.be/jmVBqYzFNHo

Enjoy!

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IndoorDame
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Pickpick

Such a great read! This was a reread for me bc I want to refresh my memory before picking up vol 2 which I never got to. I found that this resonated more the 2nd time bc I know more about the Iranian revolution than I did 10 yrs ago when I first read this, & I also read many more graphic novels than I did back then (this was actually one of the first titles that got me into reading GNs) so I got more nuances from the format. #BBRCAdultSeeYouInAsia

LibrarianRyan I have this once again sitting on my desk awaiting time to read it. 2y
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Adventures_of_a_French_Reader
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Pickpick

A friend of mine left me this book ;) I'd already read Persepolis, but it was a pleasure to read the first book again. If you like the books, perhaps you should watch the animation film the author and Vincent Paronnaud directed. You won't be disappointed.

GondorGirl I hadn't heard about the film, so I'll have to check it out! 3y
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shortsarahrose
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Pickpick

Darkly comic and at times heartbreaking, Satrapi‘s memoir of her time as a teen in Iran during the Islamic Revolution is probably the best book I‘ve read this year so far. I finished it and the immediately wished I had the second volume, so I could continue reading. The illustrations are striking. The narrative is a bit episodic, but it works in how it expresses the experience of growing up. Book two for my #YA class finished.

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nanuska_153
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Pickpick

This was amazing. The childhood of the author,who was raised by her liberal parents in Iran, during, before and after the Islamic Revolution. There are parts that will break your heart, like her relationship with her uncle;others that will make you laugh out loud, like her conversations with God; and others that will make your blood boil, basically seeing the women stripped of freedom.Children everywhere are the same.

#20in4 Readathon @Andrew65

ReadingisMyPassion I loved this book. 3y
Andrew65 Brilliant 👏👏👏🙌 3y
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booksandsympathy

This book made me feel a lot of different emotions. I only knew a small amount about the Islamic Revolution and I definitely still don't understand a lot about it, but I feel like this book helped me understand more. That ending is probably the saddest cliffhanger I've ever read.

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booksandsympathy
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This panel actually made me laugh out loud. 😂

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booksandsympathy
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My third book for the #Asianreadathon is a book I've wanted to read for a while. It's a graphic novel (illustrated by the author) that tells the story of her childhood growing up in Tehran during the Islamic Revolution. The prompt for this one is to read a nonfiction book by an Asian author. The country represented is Iran.

Tanisha_A One of my favourites 4y
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kissmehardy
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Pickpick

It's been a while since I've read this, and I forgot how much of a gut punch this story is at the end. I appreciate how the art style is effective without being gratuitously gory. #memoir #graphicnovel

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sdbruening
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Pickpick

That was quite an education for me. I had no prior knowledge of the Islamic Revolution. They were prisoners in their own country, having religion and Islamic extremism forced on them, so scary. I thought the author was a bit spoiled, though. The art was done in a way where it was still terrifying and violent but not over the top since it‘s black and white and simple cartoon shapes.

TheBookHippie I enjoyed reading this whole series. 4y
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Crinoline_Laphroaig
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Pickpick

Yesterday's Books & Brews Club. Graphic Novel telling of a young Iranian girl coming of age during the Islamic Revolution. Powerful storytelling.

Imagine one day being told you're a whore if you don't cover your hair. You can't drink alcohol or play cards. Stark black and white illustrations really made you feel the story. It had me wanting to wear red lipstick and kickass boots. 💋 #becauseican

Zoes_Human Those boots though! 😍 4y
Deblovestoread Those are definitely kick ass boots! Love them. 4y
rabbitprincess Awesome boots!! 4y
KVanRead Such a great book and omg I love those boots 😍 4y
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madams421
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Experimenting with vegan meals and reading a beautiful graphic novel ❤️

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Creadnorthey
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Pickpick

A graphic masterpiece with the story to back it up.

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CoffeeK8
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A fascinating look into growing up in the 80‘s in Iran. #mtTBR

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Sarahreadstoomuch
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Pickpick

Finally read this graphic memoir about growing up in Tehran during the revolution & war with Iraq. Beautifully told and illustrated - I need to read book 2 now! #booked2020 #redwhiteblueletters #readmyowndamnbooks

BarbaraTheBibliophage I loved this one! 5y
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mcctrish
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Pickpick

This has been on my list FOREVER ❤️wow is all I can say of this graphic memoir of growing up in Iran during the Islamic revolution

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mcctrish
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Friday means margaritas and reading

Cathythoughts Yum ! Looks fun 💕💕💕 5y
mcctrish @Cathythoughts these are so yummy 😋 there were some nachos too 5y
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thebookhunter
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Pickpick

An amazing quick read about a tragic childhood. An interesting and important read. #graphicnovel #comics #iran #memoir

Watch my recent video: https://youtu.be/073_47Uy2EU #booktube

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Readerann
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Pickpick

For a graphic work, this packs a wallop. I‘m off to see what else she has written. Enjoying my reading weekend! #24in48

KendallHershey Yess! read the second one too!! 5y
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MissAimz_55
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Another library stop on the way home to pick up a hold and then of course I walked out with 2 more. I am going to try a graphic novel again, last time I didn‘t have good luck.

Professional_Book_Dragon I loved Persepolis. What graphic novel did you try that you didn‘t like? 5y
Kallik93 Recursion is awesome! I listened to it on audio. 5y
NeedsMoreBooks Love Persepolis and the sequel 💕 5y
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KendallHershey
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Pickpick

An intriguing autobiographical graphic novel about a young girl growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. A great perspective on the shifting landscape and packed with information.

NeedsMoreBooks This is one of my favorites ❤️ 5y
Sreckess Loved this 5y
Mirazzles This book is amazing. I am so glad you enjoyed it 💛📚 5y
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shaynarae
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Pickpick

My first graphic novel! I was at the library getting some comics for my husband to try (he does audiobooks, but is in a slump with physical books) and decided to try one myself too. I‘ve heard such great things about Persepolis, but didn‘t know much about it. A collection of vignettes from the author‘s childhood in Iran, I learned so much and whipped right through it. I‘ll be picking up the next volume for sure! #catsoflitsy

Amiable Sweet kitty! 😻 5y
shaynarae @Amiable Thanks 😸 5y
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Daliv
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Pickpick

Corky, funny, independent, and relatable... Amazing read...

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meagankc21
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I picked this up at the #miamibookfair in a previous year. I'll be attending again this weekend. Slowly catching up on all my purchases. I'm only a few pages in but so far its a compelling read #amreadingmemoir #amreadinggraphicnovel #diversereading

jmtrivera I liked this one too! 5y
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alisonrose
Pickpick

I‘ll say at the start that I‘m not a graphic novel reader, but I wanted to read this b/c of the subject & b/c I thought the format could work well with it. Which I think it did, for the most part! But it also ended up a bit lacking for me; I wanted more info/detail on some issues raised. It all has to be so condensed & limited to fit. But I did appreciate seeing this history from a young girl‘s POV & will pick up the second one soon. 3/5 ⭐️

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alisonrose
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Forgot to take a pic this morning so I grabbed a quick one at my desk before my lunch break 😜 #nowreading

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StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego
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Pickpick

My first graphic novel. A memoir of the author's childhood in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. Very eye opening and informative.

LibrarianRyan We had a local comiccon over the weekend, and I attended a panel on diversity in comics and it was a pretty lively give and take. I has me requesting old favorites like this one, and ones I never heard of for a new examination. 5y
StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego @LibrarianRyan That would have been a great panel & discussion. A very important topic. 5y
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pdever
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Pickpick

Finished this fantastic book on a plane tonight. It has been on my list since the movie came out. Can't recommend it highly enough.

rwmg I didn't know there was a film 5y
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kimmypete1
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It was my turn to pick for book club and this is my pick. It‘ll be my third time reading it, and I have no regrets.

StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego I just finished this book. That would be a great book club pick. 5y
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jmtrivera
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Pickpick

I found this difficult to engage in at first, possibly because I don't have a lot of background knowledge. But what stood out to me immediately was how enormous and confusing the war and politics were to a little girl (probably almost as confusing as they are to me). It's a really sad, but fascinating story to read. Looking forward to picking up Part 2 one of these days.

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Kendyl

@TamarackTrail just want to make sure you received your #feedareader I sent it late but a few months ago and I just wanted to verify it made it to you?

TamarackTrail Oh my goodness!!! I just remembered I forgot to post about it!!!!! Thank you so much @Kendyl !!! I have been itching to have some nice weather to try the outdoor cookbook you sent. Sorry about that! Life got busy... 6y
Kendyl No worries at all!! I usually forget to post mine too but I was worried about that one getting to you. The transaction at the post office with that package was a little concerning. 😂 Glad you got it, enjoy! 6y
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TheBookstorePodcast
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Continuing on with our project of reading books we already own, today we have a new mini episode discussing the illustrated memoir PERSEPOLIS by Marjane Satrapi. You can find it in your podcast feeds or wherever you listen to podcasts.

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msmckinney
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As a middle and high school SPED teacher, a lot of holiday break is spent making sure my students will have a wonderful semester with engaging lessons. Tomorrow will be spent rereading through these two gems to write and revise curriculum for the upcoming quarter! We‘re reading Hatchet for HS and Persepolis for MS. Also, super pumped about the essential question we‘ll be exploring this unit: What does it mean to survive?

mkinney10 What an amazing combination of books! Hope your students are enjoying them! 6y
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candority
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Pickpick

Day 8 of #adventrecommends

I just finished this powerful graphic memoir about growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. I knew nothing about the revolution prior to picking this up, and learning about it from a child‘s perspective (especially one that was so strong-willed) was very compelling. Please excuse me while I go start the second installment!

jmofo Have you read this one? It is lovely. (edited) 6y
candority @jmofo I haven‘t! It looks fantastic, thank you for recommending it! 😊 6y
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DGRachel
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Pickpick

About the only way I can enjoy memoirs and stories narrated by children is via graphic novel. This was a quick read, but full of insightful historical detail. I will definitely read the second volume soon. This is my 160th book read this year and the 49th for MountTBR. It also counts for graphic novel on The Reading Women 2018 challenge so I‘m at 16/25 for that challenge. (Gratuitous #Bailey picture just because. #dogsoflitsy #pitbullsoflitsy)

britt_brooke Great book and even cuter reading buddy! 💚🐾 6y
LeahBergen Sleepy girl. ❤️ 6y
LauraBeth Impressive! Also - Bitsy is jealous of Bailey‘s well-groomed nails! 😂 6y
DGRachel @LauraBeth They do look good in that shot, but it‘s just a trick of the light. I need to get her to the vet to get them cut back. 😱 6y
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chelreads
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Pickpick

After reading this graphic novel, I can‘t wait to finish out the series tomorrow with the second installment! #80in18

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Well-ReadNeck
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TheBookAddict
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Pickpick

Wow, intense! A #mustread! A glimpse into a world that is very misunderstood and unknown to most of us. We need to read more books like these and get to know people from different cultures, countries, and walks of life before we start assuming things and judging a group of people as a whole. A good format that gets to the point, yet still allows the reader to feel for the people involved and is engaging. #diversereads #GokuToles #TolesBrats

TheBookAddict Goku lost his collar at some point...maybe it was his form of revolution. 😔 #dogsoflitsy #dogmomproblems 6y
Quirkybookworm Your dog looks like a shadow! 6y
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kaylscampbell
Pickpick

Eye opening

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BlueStockingReviews
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A unique and enlightening coming-of-age graphic memoir set in Iran, and weighted with high-contrast illustrations that transport us to another time and place. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Marjane Satrapi is the great-granddaughter of one of Iran‘s last emperor‘s, and her parents are committed Marxist‘s. PERSEPOLIS is her... https://www.bluestockingreviews.com/blog/persepolis

ReadingisMyPassion Oh, I really liked this book. 6y
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BlueStockingReviews
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Pickpick

A unique and enlightening coming-of-age graphic memoir set in Iran, and weighted with high-contrast illustrations that transport us to another time and place.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Marjane Satrapi is the great-granddaughter of one of Iran‘s last emperor‘s, and her parents are committed Marxist‘s. PERSEPOLIS is her... https://www.bluestockingreviews.com/blog/persepolis

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Q84
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🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟5/5 stars
I really enjoyed this graphic novel. I will be continuing the next book. Oh this is such a good story. Definitely recommend this one!
#4in48Readathon @Syndelle777

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Bindrosbookshelf
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Squeezing in my graphic novel #book5 #readathon #teamanz2018

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Auntynanny
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Pickpick

This book was so beautifully written and illustrated. I'm so glad I finally read it and I can't wait to read the second instalment.

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JoyBlue
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Mehso-so

Graphic novels are not my favorite reading platform. I think I find them generally too busy. That being said, I'm seriously considering reading the second installment in order to see what happens next. We'll see. . . .

As for the content, I'm only a few years older than the author. It's interesting to read that history, as an adult (we were both children at the time of the story), from the perspective of an age-peer living there/at that time.

readinginthedark From the same area as well? How interesting! 7y
JoyBlue @readinginthedark No, I‘m not from there. We only (approximately) share age. 7y
readinginthedark Oh okay. That would be an interesting comparison, though! 7y
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BookaholicNatty
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Valentine Fun #5 - Found this graphic novel at the thrift store. I‘m enjoying it. I did see someone post that there is an entire hardback collection of this or is it a novel? Anyone know? I want to look into that. This story follows what a young girls life is like in Iran and how she grows up. I‘m not too far in so that‘s about all I know!

cobwebmoth There are two volumes. The book I have contains both of them in one book.☺ 7y
BookaholicNatty @cobwebmoth that‘s where I saw it!!!!!!! I knew I had just seen it somewhere! 😊 7y
elizabethlk Both of the books are well worth the read. Mask and Satrapi is a brilliant writer, and her story is well worth hearing. Her other work is pretty good stuff too. 7y
cornfedwellread It's a memoir and the second volume tells more about the author's adult life. I haven't seen a hardback version of the complete story, but I have it in paperback. There is also a movie, which I watched in my high school French class. That's where I first heard of this story. Embroderies by the same author is also good. 7y
BookaholicNatty @therealdealbeall That‘s awesome! Thank you for telling me about the movie and about Embroderies! ❤️ 7y
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rmaclean4
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Pickpick

I wish I had the next installment of this memoir, I would read it right away! I had only the most basic understanding of Iranian history. I found this book so compelling. Highly reccomend. It also checked off some categories for #readharderchallenge2018 and #readingwomenchallenge. I am 5.5 hours in to my first #24in48readathon. Time for a bit of a break :)

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rmaclean4
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Heading into hour three and time to dive into this memoir. #24in48 #readharder2018 #readingwomenchallange