Darius the Great Is Not Okay

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While Oregon is in no way a hot spot for Iranian immigrants, between 10,000 and 15,000 Iranians live in the Portland Metro area, where Darius and his family live. But unlike the previous book, this novel is about Darius maturing and discovering new facets of himself in a space he knows well. Darius, or Darioush, depending on the day, suffers from clinical depression, subpar social skills, and self-esteem issues, making him an all-too-relatable character for anyone who has ever felt like an outsider in their own space. After dinner, Darius and Dad go to the living room for their evening ritual: watching one episode of Star Trek, which is the only time they can be a “real father and son.

Darius the Great Deserves Better - Common Sense Media Darius the Great Deserves Better - Common Sense Media

I’m so happy to have read it, and can’t wait for those who enjoyed the first book to get their hands on this one! His family visits multiple sights of Yazd and Iran throughout the book, including Persopolis, Tower of Silence, Jameh Mosque, and the Fire Temple of Yazd.He’s a Fractional Persian—half, his mom’s side—and his first-ever trip to Iran is about to change his life. All he ever said was that it happened when he was in college, and that his medication had kept him healthy for years, and that I shouldn’t worry about it. Sohrab introduces Darius to his favorite food: romaine lettuce leaves dipped in mint syrup, which Babou used to make until his brain tumor made that difficult. Families can talk about how the Kellner family in Darius the Great Deserves Better deals with a challenging time.

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Though I didn’t quite love this one as much as the first book, it was still such a solid sequel, written with the same heart that made me love Darius the Great is Not Okay. Overall, Darius the Great Deserves Better was a sequel I felt satisfied with, though I wouldn’t say no to another installment, especially with Sohrab! One day Iris receives a reply, which, along with other events, pushes her to make dramatic life decisions. Darius Kellner speaks better Klingon than Farsi, and he knows more about Hobbit social cues than Persian ones.The book has received various awards and has been translated into eight languages (Russian, Japanese, German, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Italian, and Dutch). There are tiny things that he mentions doing or thinking throughout the book, and they aren’t given much attention to but I instantly recognized those things with myself too.

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I found Darius’ boyfriend to be bland and didn’t see much chemistry between them, especially since they had gotten together before the book started. He’s mocked for his name and nerdy interests at Chapel Hill High School in Portland, Oregon, and doesn’t speak enough Farsi to communicate with his Iranian relatives either. Whether it'd be prose, the pacing, and especially the themes, Darius' personality permeates each and every aspect of this novel. Magic plays a quiet role in this story, and readers may for a time forget there is anything supernatural going on.This admission makes Dad seem more relatable and human, and after this conversation, Dad also seems to try harder to love and support the son he has. Darius is alone and mostly friendless in Portland, but in Iran, he meets his first real friend, Sohrab. First-time author Khorram’s coming-of-age novel brings to life the sight, sounds, smells, and tastes of [Iran] .

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Secretly, Darius believes that his parents decided to have Laleh so they had a second chance to raise a child who wasn’t such a disappointment as he believes he is (though he goes out of his way to not punish Laleh for this). When I looked at her, I felt the same way as when I stared into the ancient flame of the Atashkadeh. Babou, Darius feels, is disappointed in many family members: almost all have moved away from Yazd, Mom married an American and is raising non-Zoroastrian children, and Darius, in addition to not being Zoroastrian, has depression (which Babou erroneously blames Darius for) and speaks little Farsi.And I hope Iranian readers come away with a little warmth in their heart from seeing themselves on the page. Dad admits he fears the same thing happening to Darius, and he feels awful for passing depression on to his son. There are a lot of complicated factors that go into visiting Iran as an American citizen, and they’re compounded if you’re of Iranian extraction, and even more compounded for my family since they’re Bahá’í.