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- I have had various experiences which were "close-calls"
- My father was involved in a severe earthquake in Nepal and was fortunate enough to survive in a safe location whilst he watched the city of Kathmandu around him collapse. He felt a sense of despair and helplessness whilst he witnessed the death of thousands of people and the devastation of a beautiful city when the landmarks were destroyed.
- I also was involved in a situation where I could have died yet I was fortunate enough to survive.
-This is connected to Marjane's experience of devastation caused by the war and her feelings of helplessness and fear.

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- Marjane believes in a God, and she talks to God frequently.
- Prayers
- The frequency in which God appears in the novel lessen as Marjane grew up.
- When I was little, I pray almost every night before I sleep. God is one of my best friends.
- As I grew up, this connection was reduced because of the different aspect added to my life (i.e. relationships, homework, social media, etc.). Sometimes, I also tend to not wanting to do my prayers when things go bad; maybe because I was blaming on God for what is happening.
- This happened to Marjane as well, she told God to "Go Away" when her grandfather was again arrested by the government.

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- So young and thinks that by connecting with God, it will fix everything
- As a child, we believed that our parents would be able to fix everything even down to our parents kissing our cuts better when we've hurt ourselves or a simple hug when you were crying
- Also having big ideas of what you want to be when you're older and being adamant on becoming it- Marjane as a young girl says- 'No, no, I will be a prophet but they mustn't know'
- She spoke to God-  a friend whom she kept secrets with and was able to connect with- (Every night I had a big discussion with God) 'God, give me some more time, I am not quite ready yet.'- planning something, being creative talking to God
- Us as children having imaginary friends who we were able to play with, talk to and be creative with

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- We can connect to the aspects when Marjane is growing up from a child to a teenager.
- From an innocent kid to a ragging teen
- Process of learning bad deeds:
For example, when she purposefully told the police that a particular man "said something indecent" to her which caused the man to be arrested. pg.287

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I can connect with the way that Marjane felt when she was geographically separate to her family, and their lives continued on without her. This is a relatable feeling for me as I have been separate geographically to half of my family since 2014. She sometimes would enjoy her newfound freedom but also may begin to worry about abusing it. We know that she enjoyed her freedom when she says, on page 176 "I loved that, at my parents house it was strictly forbidden." in relation to eating while watching TV. However when things became harder for Marjane and she began to do things that her parents would have been disappointed by, she felt ashamed. We know this because Marjane says that when she rang her parents she was "both happy to hear their voices and ashamed to talk to them"

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- I understand and can connect with the experience of losing a loved one.
- Marjane experienced the feeling of loss

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This image is relevant to Marjane's experience on the streets in Europe and how she felt excluded and ashamed. In my culture homeless people are treated disrespectfully too.

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This photo shows a connection to Marjane's experience with injustice and how she is surrounded by a world full of protesting much like our current time. Today we continue to fight for women's rights -

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-The Western world shift
the rise of dictators in society
-Political debates (Gay marriage and various elections)
- Polar opposite left and right wing views or conservative and liberal views today is similar to the socialist and protesting views of Marjanes parents in comparison to the extreme traditionalist views of the state, particularly toward the end of the book

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- Marjane's parents told her to take pride in her nationality
- This is something we can connect with as we each take pride in our own cultures and nationalities, especially in multicultural Australia where there is such a huge range of cultural backgrounds to be proud of

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-Teenage rebellion- family, society (her taking veil off or wearing it incorrectly)
- Going against what family and society want us to be
- Pushing the boundaries and limits to work out who we are and what we want to be
- Society, particularly in Australia, see women as having to wear make-up but then if women or young girls wear an extravagant amount of make-up they get judged- link to Marjane wearing her veil incorrectly or wearing it in Europe and being judged for where she is from because of what she wore

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- Studying in another country and travelling  = having to fit into a different culture. This meant that I can understand her experience of being unable to fit in. It allowed me to become more mature and develop because i studied overseas at the age of 14.

- I connect/agree with her teenage rebellion

- I didn't connect with the concept of growing up in a war-torn country and being surrounding in violence yet I have the experience of being in a world full of terrorism

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- Adapting to different country
- Assimilating into society and different culture
- I moved when I was younger than her (11 years old) and she moved when she was 14. Much of what she experienced or highlighted experiencing was different to my experience because I was less mature and wasn't particularly aware of the meaning of moving to a different country leaving everything I knew behind
- She moved from a war-torn country for a better life, I moved for my Dad's work (possibly for a better life)
- She moved to a country of a different language
- Austria and Europe's views on Iran and the people of Iran are different to people's views of England

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- Expectations on how we behave (what we wear, what we say, what we do)
- Expectation of being a wife and fitting with the housewife/perfect woman stereotype
- The expectations of growing up as a woman in society
In the book Marjane is forced to wear a veil at primary school, and the women around her as an adult are expected to be married, and stay virgins until marriage. I can relate to the first part of this as my experience at school also included dress codes that policed dress length, hair styles, jewellery, and makeup. I can also relate to the second part because, in western society, women are stuck in this gap of either being a prude or being a slut, which is similar to the harsh expectations surrounding marriage and sex in Iran for Marjane

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- I found connections with the issues that Marjane experienced as she moved to Austria.
- Learning the culture/ traditions
- Issue with making new friends: I felt quite isolated and lonely when I moved to Australia. I continue to feel this way even after I made new friends.
- Leaving all the friends and the things I am familiar with.
- The general feeling of moving to a strange new country is similar.
The differences
- I studied in New Zealand for primary school, so English wasn't a new language when I moved to Australia
- Marjane moved away from her country in order to stay away from war.
- Her family was not with her when she moved to France.
- She had no friends from the same nationality, so it was hard for her to find someone who truly understands her. I can imagine how this would feel like.