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Persepolis was immediately very jarring for me.  How could murder, oppression, rape be shaped into a form that I am used to laughing at?  And how is it feminist to present atrocities in a way that challenges conventions?  And then I wondered why I became so hooked, so quickly.

 The graphic novel brought to mind Art Spiegelman's Maus series, detailing a Jew's story Nazi Germany.  Again we are met with a juxtaposition of jest (the art) and tragedy (the words).  And so to respond to skumar, somehow, in both cases, the personal story and the political/historical atrocities gained meaning when put alongside the drawings.  In Persepolis's case, we are lucky enough to gain access to the imagination of a kid.  If we were handed just the words, I think something would be missing in this regard.  With just the pictures, I think we would lose something in the seriousness of it all.