Young Adult

Darius the Great Is Not Okay

Darius the Great Is Not Okay

  • Downloads：2163
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-04-03 15:00:15
  • Update Date：2025-09-09
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Adib Khorram
  • ISBN：0525552979
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Summary

Darius doesn't think he'll ever be enough， in America or in Iran。 Hilarious and heartbreaking， this unforgettable debut introduces a brilliant new voice in contemporary YA。

Winner of the William C。 Morris Debut Award

"Heartfelt， tender， and so utterly real。 I'd live in this book forever if I could。"
- Becky Albertalli， award-winning author of Simon vs。 the Homo Sapiens Agenda

Darius Kellner speaks better Klingon than Farsi， and he knows more about Hobbit social cues than Persian ones。 He's a Fractional Persian - half， his mom's side - and his first-ever trip to Iran is about to change his life。

Darius has never really fit in at home， and he's sure things are going to be the same in Iran。 His clinical depression doesn't exactly help matters， and trying to explain his medication to his grandparents only makes things harder。 Then Darius meets Sohrab， the boy next door， and everything changes。 Soon， they're spending their days together， playing soccer， eating faludeh， and talking for hours on a secret rooftop overlooking the city's skyline。 Sohrab calls him Darioush - the original Persian version of his name - and Darius has never felt more like himself than he does now that he's Darioush to Sohrab。

Adib Khorram's brilliant debut is for anyone who's ever felt not good enough - then met a friend who makes them feel so much better than okay。

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Reviews

Reenah ，

Just a perfect book。 Highly recommended。

Amelia ，

A really fascinating and emotional and real look into a culture I know nothing about。 An incredible book all in all

Kimberly Johnson ，

Great diverse YA。 Love Darius as a narrator。 Good look at mental health， parental relationships， learned things about Persian culture and food I didn't know before。 Can't wait to read #2。 Great diverse YA。 Love Darius as a narrator。 Good look at mental health， parental relationships， learned things about Persian culture and food I didn't know before。 Can't wait to read #2。 。。。more

Martha ，

Darius feels disconnected from his Persian heritage - his mother never spoke Farsi to him growing up， unlike with his sister， and he's never been to Iran。 Though with news of his grandfather's deteriorating health， his family books a trip to Iran， filling Darius with both apprehension and longing。 The book captured what it is like to be a teenager: the uncertainty， the insecurities and the confusion of where you fit into the world。 Darius never feels like he belongs anywhere， not in America and， Darius feels disconnected from his Persian heritage - his mother never spoke Farsi to him growing up， unlike with his sister， and he's never been to Iran。 Though with news of his grandfather's deteriorating health， his family books a trip to Iran， filling Darius with both apprehension and longing。 The book captured what it is like to be a teenager: the uncertainty， the insecurities and the confusion of where you fit into the world。 Darius never feels like he belongs anywhere， not in America and， at first， not in Iran。 He has trouble communicating with his grandfather， who he has only previously spoken to on Facetime calls， his depression and weight-gain cause some insensitive comments from his relations and he feels the awkwardness of not being able to communicate in Farsi。 Things change， however， when he meets the boy next door， Sohrab。 For the first time， Darius feels like he has a friend who accepts him for who he is entirely。 Their friendship is so sweet to read about。 Another great strength of the book was how it dealt with the topic of mental health and how its discussion differs between cultures。 Darius and his father both have depression。 It was interested to see how they coped with that。 A lot of the book focuses on the miscommunication between Darius and his father。 Darius thinks that he is a constant failure and let down to his father and the gap between them only seems to be growing wider。 This was tackled in a realistic way， and tugged on the heartstrings。It was just a beautifully written， heartfelt book， and I felt connected to Darius as soon as I began to read from his perspective。 It's a book that focuses on the emotions of life and character growth。 I think everyone will root for Darius with all their heart。 I'm excited to read the sequel。 。。。more

Jeff ，

So very good。 This book manages all the sad-boy issues with a strange lightness of touch， for as sad as it is。 Very little happens， but so much happens as regards family， love， death， and identity for Darius。 It was occasionally hard to be with Darius for how desperately sad he is， but there is enough self-awareness in the voice that it keeps it from dipping too far into the well。 And the deep investment in ST:TNG as a referential touchpoint does a lot of buying of the mood。 High recommendations So very good。 This book manages all the sad-boy issues with a strange lightness of touch， for as sad as it is。 Very little happens， but so much happens as regards family， love， death， and identity for Darius。 It was occasionally hard to be with Darius for how desperately sad he is， but there is enough self-awareness in the voice that it keeps it from dipping too far into the well。 And the deep investment in ST:TNG as a referential touchpoint does a lot of buying of the mood。 High recommendations。 。。。more

Jack Cheatham ，

Darius the Great is about a teenager named Darius who， after his grandfather gets sick， travels to Iran for the first time to meet him and his family。 There Darius starts hanging out with Sohrab， a neighbor of Darius's grandpa and they become good friends。 Darius also begins to connect with his roots and family all well dealing with mental health issues。This was an addicting read and read it all in one sitting。 Darius is a great protagonist and overall the book was well written。 I thought the w Darius the Great is about a teenager named Darius who， after his grandfather gets sick， travels to Iran for the first time to meet him and his family。 There Darius starts hanging out with Sohrab， a neighbor of Darius's grandpa and they become good friends。 Darius also begins to connect with his roots and family all well dealing with mental health issues。This was an addicting read and read it all in one sitting。 Darius is a great protagonist and overall the book was well written。 I thought the way depression was handled was well done and it led to some gut-wrenching moments。 There were some elements I wasn't the biggest fan of， particularly some of the dialogue and Darius and Sohrabs relationship， which kinda surprised me。 Overall I'd probably give this book a 7/10。 。。。more

Marc ，

It’s been a bit since I’d read a YA novel， and this one gives me confidence that important， well-told stories are reaching a younger audience。Cultural and familial connections， friendships， and the FOOD。 A great read。

Brian Kinsella ，

"Your place was empty before。" The best thing I can say about this book without giving too much away is that I began its sequel as soon as I finished this one。 This book was fun and emotional and handled all of its topics with care and respect。 "Your place was empty before。" The best thing I can say about this book without giving too much away is that I began its sequel as soon as I finished this one。 This book was fun and emotional and handled all of its topics with care and respect。 。。。more

Amanda ☕ Steeping Stories ☕ ，

This book has been on my radar for a while。 I'd heard the praises about it， but honestly， I didn't really believe them because I tend not to be satisfied with contemporary novels。 I am ready to eat all my words。 Darius the Great Is Not Okay is a quick and delightful read， but it also has so much heart。 I legit cried reading this y'all。Darius is a Fractional Persian， which means that he's only half-Persian （on his mother's side）。 He's also part of the Persian diaspora。 He can't speak Farsi fluent This book has been on my radar for a while。 I'd heard the praises about it， but honestly， I didn't really believe them because I tend not to be satisfied with contemporary novels。 I am ready to eat all my words。 Darius the Great Is Not Okay is a quick and delightful read， but it also has so much heart。 I legit cried reading this y'all。Darius is a Fractional Persian， which means that he's only half-Persian （on his mother's side）。 He's also part of the Persian diaspora。 He can't speak Farsi fluently。 He doesn't fit in among his American classmates。 But he also doesn't feel very Persian。 I related so much to his confusion about his identity， and I fully appreciated how complexly identity and culture was represented。 I'm the child of Indian migrants， but the cultural group my family belongs to—Anglo-Indians （Indians who speak English as their first language， are Catholic， and have British-Indian and other ancestry）—is also a minority in India。 Khorram touches on the different cultural groups within Iran， rather than taking a generalist view of all Persians as homogenous。I've never visited India， but I dearly want to， and I hope that my experience of going there will be as meaningful as Darius's visit to his mother's home。 We listened to the voice in the speakers chant， and I imagined everyone in the Jameh Mosque kneeling to pray， and all the people in Yazd heeding the call， and even farther out， a neural network spread throughout the entire country and to the Iranian diaspora across the whole planet。I felt very Persian just then， even though I didn't understand the chanting。 Even though I wasn't Muslim。 I was one tiny pulsar in a swirling， luminous galaxy of Iranians， held together by the gravity of thousands of years of culture and heritage。 Khorram has poured so much love into this novel。 It's clear in the way he brings to life Yazd and its community， Darius's relatives and their love for him， and all the Persian food and cultural traditions。Darius is a perfect narrator。 His internal monologue is so unique and hilarious。 I can't imagine a better way for this story to be narrated than how Khorram wrote it。The familial love and complex bonds that Darius is a part of felt very real and familiar。 I loved seeing his gentle， brotherly love for his younger sister。 It broke my heart to feel how cut-off and misunderstood Darius felt by his father。 The father-son relationship was probably the most nuanced， because it encapsulated what it means to live with depression and what it means to love someone who has depression。 While still being enjoyable and light， the novel managed to capture these complex human experiences。I can't talk about relationships， though， without delving into Darius and Sohrab's friendship。 It was so pure and affectionate and full of understanding。 I freaking loved that this platonic friendship was the heart of the novel。 No one ever threw their arm over my shoulder the way Sohrab did。 Like it was perfectly fine to do that sort of thing to another guy。 Like that was a thing friends did to each other。Sohrab had no walls inside。I loved that about him。 My only critique of the book is that the arc of their relationship felt very short。 I wanted to know more about Sohrab， and I wanted to see their friendship develop more slowly and fully over time。 （But I'm sure this relationship will be explored more in the sequel。）The ending was very emotionally satisfying。 Despite how short the plot felt to me， it wrapped up very naturally。 I was wondering how Khorram would fit in some character growth for Darius—but I needn't have worried。 Darius the Great Is Not Okay is a book I would recommend to anyone searching for a YA contemporary read that will actually make you both laugh and cry。The Good: So much heart。 Darius's unique， hilarious narration。 Representation of diaspora。 Persian culture brought to life with love and care。 Familial love and its complexities。 Friendship taking centre stage。 Serious exploration of depression。 Emotionally satisfying ending。The Bad: The friendship arc felt rushed。Book Blog | Writer Website | Twitter | Instagram 。。。more

Chaitra ，

I think ultimately it boils down to whether or not you buy Darius and Sohrab's friendship。 I did not。 It's not just the insta-friendship part， although that did rub me the wrong way。 And I know the book about Darius， not about Sohrab， but the whole thing about friendship is that it goes both ways。 I knew nothing much about Sohrab， other than the fact that he seems to go out of his way to befriend and be nice to Darius and that he had a father in prison because he is a religious minority in Iran* I think ultimately it boils down to whether or not you buy Darius and Sohrab's friendship。 I did not。 It's not just the insta-friendship part， although that did rub me the wrong way。 And I know the book about Darius， not about Sohrab， but the whole thing about friendship is that it goes both ways。 I knew nothing much about Sohrab， other than the fact that he seems to go out of his way to befriend and be nice to Darius and that he had a father in prison because he is a religious minority in Iran*。 Even when something catastrophic happens to him， the end result is he says something cutting to Darius which makes him sad， and leads to catharsis between Darius and his dad。 What is this really。 There is also Darius' outsider perspective， which sometimes can illuminate things about a culture you're not really familiar with。 But Darius is so wrapped up in himself and his feelings of being persecuted that he's not really suited for this job。 He doesn't understand， or he misunderstands - is the society on the whole think it's fair game to make fun of things like being overweight and your body parts？ Or are there nuances？ Was babou always nasty towards maman？ It's implied that it's the tumor， but I honestly have no idea how women are treated even within the family。 Mom didn't want to teach Darius Farsi， for a perfectly logical reason**， but she taught Laleh。 If Darius was that keen on learning， he could have bribed his sister into teaching him， if not mom。 You can't blame depression for everything， and if you can， maybe those pills you're taking aren't working。 Eh。 I was expecting something else。 I'd been on the fence about the second book， but I think I'm going to pass。 * Why was he in prison though？ There had to be some reason， however trumped up， but if it was mentioned it was gone before I even caught it。 Or maybe there was so much me-me-me in Darius that all I did catch was that he was feeling guilty about whining about his own very present dad when his friend's father was in prison。 There was a conversation to be had， I guess， about Iran and its religious persecution， but it didn't personally affect Darius I guess。** Honestly， he got along better in Iran than in the US。 So I wonder why it was even necessary for him to know Farsi other than to pile on mom a bit。 。。。more

Mina M ，

I think I would’ve enjoyed this a lot more if I was about six years younger， had watched a few episodes of Star Trek at some point in my life， and actually finished reading The Lord of the Rings。Maybe I would。However， I did enjoy the descriptions of Iran， the food， and Darius’s relationship with his family。 I also appreciated the normalization of depression and the coming-of-age aspect， even though this book made me realize how disinterested I am in reading about teen boys （who would’ve guessed） I think I would’ve enjoyed this a lot more if I was about six years younger， had watched a few episodes of Star Trek at some point in my life， and actually finished reading The Lord of the Rings。Maybe I would。However， I did enjoy the descriptions of Iran， the food， and Darius’s relationship with his family。 I also appreciated the normalization of depression and the coming-of-age aspect， even though this book made me realize how disinterested I am in reading about teen boys （who would’ve guessed）。 And overall the narrative and style just didn’t work for me。 There were just Too Many Capitalized Words， nicknames that were used excessively， and wayyy too many repetitions （But that’s normal。 Right？）。 。。。more

Benjamin ，

This has become my all-time favourite book。 Thank you Adib Khorram for this masterpiece。

Virginie ，

3。5

Austin Hage ，

2。5⭐️ DNF。 If I had to read Darius’ father’s full name one more time I would’ve flipped out。 I get this is a YA book， but the juvenile writing really took me out of enjoying this book。I later finished this book out of boredom and it had some redeeming qualities although it was very repetitive。 The last 10% is the only enjoyable part of the book in my opinion。

Therese ，

This was great！ Darius was a great protagonist and I loved reading about him and his realtionship with all the members of his family and his friend。 It was really emotional and I cried。 It was also so fun and interesting to learn a bit about Persian culture and food。 A really good read and I've already started the next book。 This was great！ Darius was a great protagonist and I loved reading about him and his realtionship with all the members of his family and his friend。 It was really emotional and I cried。 It was also so fun and interesting to learn a bit about Persian culture and food。 A really good read and I've already started the next book。 。。。more

Elen ，

4。5/5

Aang Noviyana ，

I cried。 Superb。

elijah ，

Bury me with this book。

Charlie Newman ，

There are a couple things about this book that are a little bit stereotypical YA- Darius’ constant Star Trek lens on the world， for example- but there are a couple things that break the mold so hard I’d forgive it basically anything。 Most of all， I loved the way that it peers gently into the lives of Darius’ parents。 There just isn’t enough YA that is about teenagers， but also gives adults in the story meaningful， *adult* difficulties。 Teenagers are ready to experience stuff like this- they prob There are a couple things about this book that are a little bit stereotypical YA- Darius’ constant Star Trek lens on the world， for example- but there are a couple things that break the mold so hard I’d forgive it basically anything。 Most of all， I loved the way that it peers gently into the lives of Darius’ parents。 There just isn’t enough YA that is about teenagers， but also gives adults in the story meaningful， *adult* difficulties。 Teenagers are ready to experience stuff like this- they probably already are experiencing it。 The adults in YA don’t need to be cheerleaders or antagonists， and I loved so so much the complicated relationship between Darius and his dad， and that its resolution involves Darius seeing his dad as a person。 Other stuff: rich in culture， and a really touching reflection on family relationships， especially Darius’ relating to older relatives。 This book made me call my grandparents。Edit: small addendum— the pitch perfect depiction of “dad who has passed down mental health problems to you and doesn’t want you to suffer the same mental health stuff but doesn’t always know how to handle that” is an OOF， in the best possible way。 。。。more

Sari Rotskoff ，

I love the idea of this book， the culture explored and the location。 But the writing was a bit sparse for my liking。 I think it would be a very appealing YA option for teens。

Sarah ，

Oh， Darius。 Oh， Darius's dad。 And Sohrob is another goodie in the canon of wish-fulfillment boyfriends， even though he's not a boyfriend explicitly。 I loved how much of this book was hanging out。 I loved that Darius called crying "excreting stress hormones。" Having just finished a rewatch of the entire run of The Next Generation， I loved how pivotal Star Trek and Star Trek reference are to the relationships and language of this book。 I loved his grandma and his mom and his sister。 Talking about Oh， Darius。 Oh， Darius's dad。 And Sohrob is another goodie in the canon of wish-fulfillment boyfriends， even though he's not a boyfriend explicitly。 I loved how much of this book was hanging out。 I loved that Darius called crying "excreting stress hormones。" Having just finished a rewatch of the entire run of The Next Generation， I loved how pivotal Star Trek and Star Trek reference are to the relationships and language of this book。 I loved his grandma and his mom and his sister。 Talking about emotions is very hard， and this book does an excellent job of making that difficulty come alive。 。。。more

Scarlet🌹 ，

For the most part， this book was great。 It is definitely one of those that I could see being a favourite of Persian and Iranian people， as it has some lovely cultural elements to it。 It also has great rep for depression。Darius was a great main character。 I really felt for him and he was a loveable fun guy。 But oh my god， if I have to see the phrases ‘almost’， ‘right？’， ‘deeply’ or ‘um’ again， I will throw the book across the room。 Just kidding。 It was a little annoying and repetitive， but a smal For the most part， this book was great。 It is definitely one of those that I could see being a favourite of Persian and Iranian people， as it has some lovely cultural elements to it。 It also has great rep for depression。Darius was a great main character。 I really felt for him and he was a loveable fun guy。 But oh my god， if I have to see the phrases ‘almost’， ‘right？’， ‘deeply’ or ‘um’ again， I will throw the book across the room。 Just kidding。 It was a little annoying and repetitive， but a small criticism in the long run。 。。。more

Emily ，

This book was absolutely breathtaking。 Not only was it educational in Persian culture， but also in mental illness。 Darius’ relationships around him rung so true and relatable for me。 Depression is different for everyone and Darius’ story was so real and raw。 The way he feels about others， even the guilty thoughts really resonated with me and made me feel understood。 Sometimes it’s okay to not be okay。

Sarah Esfandiari ，

4。5🤍made me shed a tear🥲 great read with both heart warming and heart breaking moments - I also loved seeing the representation of my culture。

Tiffany Breyne ，

A bittersweet coming-of-age #OwnVoices story featuring ability， cultural， and religious diversity。 Darius is an endearing character who is trying to figure out who he is in America and in Iran， while dealing with depression and a strained relationship with his dad。Recommend for fans of Phil Stamper and Aiden Thomas， and readers looking for a book about the complexities of growing up and figuring out your identity。

Amelia ，

This book was absolutely amazing。 I really related to Darius in the ways that he thought about himself and felt so many emotions while reading this。 I was even crying during the last 30 pages。

Ethan ，

Very cute and heartfelt。 A sweet story about growing up and belonging。

Amy Lockhart ，

One of the best books I’ve read in a long time！ It dealt with some tough issues， and took me to places I never knew about， and was sweet and funny。 Highly recommend。

Elliott ，

I am in the camp that spells OK O-K， OK？

Mirte Geerts ，

I loved this one！ Wat een hartverwarmend boek， in 1 dag uitgelezen， heel vlot geschreven。 Ik voelde zo mee met Darius en Sohrab en hoe hun vriendschap ontwikkelde。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Darius the Great Is Not Okay

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Darius the Great Is Not Okay&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Darius the Great Is Not Okay&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0