Hard to pin down how I feel about this book. A different title for this book could have been "Everything is Hideous". All of the characters fall somewhere between clown & goblin (except Sattouf's French mother... did something bad happen to her?). Libya is depicted as a place run by the whims and fancies of Ghaddafi, & so it appears relatively cushy compared to the Syria Sattouf describes. The village in Syria Sattouf lived in, where his dad's family is from, is depicted as a filthy, brutal place. I have to wonder if part of the depiction is heightened by his loathing of it (and if he'd have nicer things to say about it if he didn't live there as a foreigner & outsider). The extended family dynamics alone would indicate a miserable childhood. I definitely want to read the next volume, if only so I can get a clue of what this guy's relationship with his Dad is (or did something bad happen to him?). Sattouf clearly loves his dad, but also blames him for all the suffering he and his mom went through. Who wouldn't?