I think books about American teens of Middle Eastern descent are much needed in YA literature, so I was thrilled to read an ARC of DARIUS THE GREAT IS NOT OKAY. Through fiction we can gain insight and understanding of other cultures, essential in working towards a peaceful world.
When his Persian mother gets word that her father is dying, high school sophomore Darius, his sister, Laleh, and their parents make the long journey from Portland, Oregon to Yzad in central Iran. Darius’s vision of Iran expands from his grandparent’s faces on the computer screen to a world where the houses and the trees aren’t so different from the ones in Portland. But he quickly realizes that while the kids at his high school perceive Darius as Iranian, to Persians he’s an American. And it turns out he’s not so great with social cues in either country. He speaks a bit of Farsi, but not enough to have a conversation, and he sometimes forgets to taarof, the custom of repeated saying no thank you, even when you might mean yes, please. His relationship with his grandfather mirrors the one Darius has with his American father. Darius is convinced they both see him as nothing but an awkward disappointment. Added to his problems is a struggle with depression that makes Darius question if his dad even loves him.
When his Persian mother gets word that her father is dying, high school sophomore Darius, his sister, Laleh, and their parents make the long journey from Portland, Oregon to Yzad in central Iran. Darius’s vision of Iran expands from his grandparent’s faces on the computer screen to a world where the houses and the trees aren’t so different from the ones in Portland. But he quickly realizes that while the kids at his high school perceive Darius as Iranian, to Persians he’s an American. And it turns out he’s not so great with social cues in either country. He speaks a bit of Farsi, but not enough to have a conversation, and he sometimes forgets to taarof, the custom of repeated saying no thank you, even when you might mean yes, please. His relationship with his grandfather mirrors the one Darius has with his American father. Darius is convinced they both see him as nothing but an awkward disappointment. Added to his problems is a struggle with depression that makes Darius question if his dad even loves him.