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I Won't Pretend These Missiles Are Stars

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Starred review from Booklist: “Readers will likely find this anthology difficult to put down.” What does war feel like? Listen to real people on the ground in Iran. War is not a video game. People'...
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  • 16 June 2026
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Starred review from Booklist: “Readers will likely find this anthology difficult to put down.” 

What does war feel like? Listen to real people on the ground in Iran. War is not a video game. People's lives are shattered. 

An eye-opening anthology from a collective of fifteen different young writers and artists who were going about their daily lives in and around Tehran, while Israel and the United States carried out a bombing campaign to cripple the Iranian nuclear weapons capabilities. 

We learn about the nightmare of trying to sleep while bombs are exploding all around you; about the struggle to rescue your beloved cat as you are evacuating your home; about the anxiety of not being able to communicate with your friends and loved ones and learn of their whereabouts; and we hear about the trauma of being forced to return to an abusive home in order to stay "safe."

A searing and honest account of life in Tehran during the U.S. and Israeli attacks of 2025. This book was edited by two Iranian comics teachers, and we have kept all of the editors', authors', and artists' identities anonymous for their safety.

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Price: $22.99
Pages: 212
Publisher: Street Noise Books
Imprint: Street Noise Books
Publication Date: 16 June 2026
Trim Size: 9.00 X 6.00 in
ISBN: 9781951491550
Format: Paperback
BISACs: COMICS & GRAPHIC NOVELS / Nonfiction / Biography & Memoir, Graphic novel / Comic book / Manga: Memoirs, true stories and non-fiction, COMICS & GRAPHIC NOVELS / Anthologies, POLITICAL SCIENCE / Human Rights
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“There are kernels of hope, moments of joy and an overwhelming sense of love—for relatives, for the people of Iran, for life—but there are no happy endings. These are nuanced, engaging stories which deserve full attention, and they are incredibly important to consult as the cycle of violence repeats yet again.”School Library Journal

“Each story provides insight as to how the 2025 armed conflict . . . affected the creators' daily lives and hte hope and hopelessness they felt. . . . A true feast for the eyes. . . . Readers will find this anthology difficult to put down.”Starred review Booklist

“Raw, beautiful, and another example of the power of the medium and the desperate need to figure out how the hell we can stop all of this madness.”—Yazan al-Saadi, author of Lebanon Is Burning

“As the West gleefully beats the drums of war again, it is more necessary than ever to see how war intimately devastates each human life. This is a familiar experience for many in our region, and one which those outside our region seem to have normalized.”—Deena Mohamed, author of Shubeik Lubeik

“Powerful testimonies of life in Iran, where citizens are reduced to collateral damage caused by the barbaric violence of the U.S. and Israel, and the repression of their own government, bravely reported in unforgettable comics.”Jennifer Camper, author of Rude Girls and Dangerous Women

“A beautiful, harrowing, and poignant collection of comics that is, unfortunately, all too timely.”—Jesse Mechanic, author of The Last Time We Spoke

The Cartoonist Collective is a group of artists living and creating their art within Iran, led by two comics educators. They use the art of comics to document and share their lives with the world outside of Iran, in order to further our understanding of the reality of life in that region.