Prepare yourself for Darius the Great is Not Okay.
You are about to fall in love with Dairouish, aka, Darius, a bullied, depressed, tea-making- obsessed, Lord-of-the-Rings and Star-Trek: The-Next-Generation-nerd who doesn’t feel like he fits in at school, his family, or the world at large. He refers to himself as a Fractional Persian, his mother is Iranian and his father, Steven Kellner, is a blond-haired, blue-eyed white American. His adorable and precocious little sister, Laleh, is fluent in Farsi, and unlike him, converses easily with their Iranian grandparents over Skype.
After a particularly humiliating bullying incident in which his bike seat was stolen and replaced with a pair of truck nuts, i.e., blue rubber testicles, Darius learns that the family is going to Iran to meet his grandparents in person. His grandfather is terminally ill.
This story tackles chronic depression, body image, antidepressants, bullying, identity formation, cross-cultural issues, loneliness, and the emotional turmoil of growing up.
First time author, Adhib Khorram, captures Darisus’s sensitivity, confusion, and self-doubt with honesty and humor. He reframes sudden mood swings as Mood Slingshot Maneuvers, crying as Containment Breaches, and bullies as Soulless Minions of Orthodoxy.
On finding the right medication:
“That was before Dr. Howell switched me off Prozac, which gave me mood swings so extreme, they were more like Mood Slingshot Maneuvers, powerful enough to fling me around the sun and accelerate me into a time warp.” (33)
Darius is surprised at the depth of his grandparents love for him and his love for them. He discovers the true motivation behind his father’s “disappointment” in him.
He experiences real friendship for the first time with a boy named Sohrab, a boy who laughs and loves as easily as Darius anguishes and controls. Although the relationship with Sohrab remains platonic, Darius allows himself fleeting moments of examining his sexual orientation.
This is not your average angsty, teenage dramedy with a Disney-esque ending. The voice is genuine and unique; the characters are powerful and nuanced. The depictions of Iran opened up an entirely new world for me.
This is a stand alone book, but I would love to see how Darius continues to explore his romantic feelings as a college student and young adult.
After reading the book, I knew that I had to hear the correct pronunciations, accents, and inflections. Michel Levi Harris‘s narration showcases the gorgeous Farsi language and captures the nuanced emotions of the characters.
Darius the Great is Not Okay is rich, complex, authentic, and informative.
Read it. Listen to it. Or both.
Audio Book: Darius the Great is Not Okay
