Marjane Satrapi

Marjane Satrapi’s incredible work Persepolis focuses on the experiences of a young Marji and her family growing up during the Iranian Revolution. The Revolution caused many changes to the relatively peaceful Iran of Marji’s youth, including gender segregation, the abolition of secular education, and the strict enforcement of sharia law. In Persepolis, Marji becomes increasingly rebellious, wearing denim jackets emblazoned with “punk rock,” and going to the black market to buy illegal copies of popular music. It became illegal for women to dance in public, or for men and women to dance together; listening to Western popular music and getting her dance on was a way for Marji to rebel. We’ve put together a mixtape of musicians and songs mentioned in Persepolis to inspire you to celebrate life and rebel a little yourself.

Today is Inauguration Day, and Donald Trump is the 45th president of the United States. And really, it's obvious why he won. After eight years with one of the most qualified and accomplished presidents in generations, what America really needed was a vain, egotistical, thin-skinned braggart with a long history of bullying and abusive statements, absolutely no experience in public service, and a track record of astonishing failure. If you voted to Make America Great Again, here are some comics to dig into while you wait for all those manufacturing jobs to come back, and for those pesky SJWs to finally be put in their place.

We live in politically charged times, and it seems that more people are finding their voice and speaking out about the very many negative aspects of modern politics and politicians. If you have someone in your life that seeks to shake up the system and speak truth to power, we've assembled a holiday gift guide packed with comics perfect for the dissident in you life.

This year's Angouleme was the subject of controversy when the list of creators in contention for the Grand Prix was unveiled, and all 30 nominees were men. The longlist was eventually thrown out in favor of an open vote, which coalesced around three names; Hermann Huppen, Alan Moore, and Claire Wendling. Huppen, known professionally as Hermann, is rumored to have won, despite having said he would decline the award. The controversy prompted some debate about which women should have been in consideration, with the sort of career and longevity that a lifetime achievement award is meant to recognize. Some people have argued that few eligible women exist, but the reality is that women are undervalued, and the extent of their contributions have been overlooked. We've compiled a list of 12 women who deserve recognition for their lifetime of work in comics, but this is just scratching the surface.

The Angoulême Grand Prix is a prestigious lifetime achievement award for comic book creators; this week, the Festival d’ Angoulême announced the 30 nominees for 2016, the Grand Prix’s 43rd year, and already several have withdrawn their names from consideration. The reason? Of the thirty nominees, not one was a woman.

The American Library Association (ALA) announced their list of Most Challenged Books in 2014, and three comics were on the list: Marjane Satrapi's Persepolis, Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples' Saga, and Raina Telgemeier's Drama. These comics were challenged for a number of reasons, but many of the complaints had a basis in trying to limit what books children have access to. It's important to note that the ALA is made up of more than just school libraries; public and academic libraries are also part of the ALA.

Just as this year's comics-centric Banned Books Week was coming to a close, an Illinois school board has unanimously voted to keep Marjane Satrapi's graphic novel Persepolis on the reading list of a local high school. According to the State Journal-Register, a Glenwood High School parent complained to Principal Jim Lee (yes, that's his name) about the book, questioning why a teacher would ask students to read a book about Muslims on September 11. The parent also complained about a scene that shows a dismembered body and a man being tortured. Thankfully Lee just plain wasn't having it.

Chicago booksellers have reported increased sales of Persepolis following last week's controversy that saw the Marjane Satrapi 2003 graphic novel about the Iranian Revolution removed from some public schools over concerns of the depiction of torture...

The trailer for Chicken with Plums, the second collaboration between cartoonist (and Persepolis creator) Marjane Satrapi and co-direct Vincent Paronnaud, has made it online, and it looks amazing. Check it out past the jump. Chicken With Plums is adapted from Satrapi's 2004 graphic novel Poulet aux Prunes (released in America the following year by Pantheon), telling the story of the last week in t

TV: FX is reworking the Powers pilot, but co-creator Brian Michael Bendis has reassured fans on Twitter about the continued health of the project. Tech: Reviews for Wacom's delayed Inkling device are popping up around online. So far the outlook seems positive with some caveats...