I liked reading this First Reader’s response because it was so honest. I remember first reading this novel last year and experiencing many of the same feelings towards Satrapi’s memoir. Falling in love with the unique storyline and simple artwork is easy. Looking deeper into the story, the reader shares in Satrapi’s inner battles of politics, religion, nationalism and her own personal beliefs much like what we all go through in life. The only difference is it is told from someone else’s point of view. But, what makes this a delicious read is that we are taken deep inside the emotions of younger Marji all the way through adolescense, the teen years and eventually young adulthood. The things that I enjoyed about the beginning of Marji’s story is watching her imagination as stories are told to her or the way she imagines how things in life should be. Then, we get to watch her dreams and fantasies progress as she ages and becomes more educated in the world. Her discussions between God and the other prophets are fantastic because of her devotion to her religion but its also an extreme confidence in herself that she is the one God has chosen to bring her people out of oppression. The realism of this book is one that would rival Maus but in a completely different way. With a girl’s constant struggle inside herself to be the best she can be and understand the world around her, the reader is drawn to the character of Marji Satrapi because of how relatable she really is.