Darius the Great Is Not Okay

Darius the Great Is Not Okay

by

Adib Khorram

Teachers and parents! Our Teacher Edition on Darius the Great Is Not Okay makes teaching easy.

Laleh Kellner Character Analysis

Laleh is Darius’s eight-year-old sister. Unlike him, she manages to be wildly popular at school—though Darius doesn’t hold this against her, as he adores his little sister and she idolizes him in return. She’s bright and opinionated, and she isn’t above throwing tantrums if she’s hungry or extremely bored. Because Mom taught her Farsi and she’s nearly fluent, she has an easier time than Darius does integrating into the extended Bahrami family in Yazd. Secretly, Darius believes that his parents decided to have Laleh so they had a second chance to raise a child who wasn’t such a disappointment as he believes he is (though he goes out of his way to not punish Laleh for this). And though he tries not to blame Laleh for it, Darius is distraught when Dad allows Laleh to watch Star Trek with them and says he likes watching it with her—Darius sees this as proof that she’s the preferred child in the family.

Laleh Kellner Quotes in Darius the Great Is Not Okay

The Darius the Great Is Not Okay quotes below are all either spoken by Laleh Kellner or refer to Laleh Kellner. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Friendship  Theme Icon
).
Soccer/Non-American Football Quotes

I thought about that: How back home, all Persians—even Fractional Persians like me and Laleh—were united in our Persian-ness. We celebrated Nowruz and Chaharshanbeh Suri together in big parties, Bahá’ís and Muslims and Jews and Christians and Zoroastrians and even secular humanists like Stephen Kellner, and it didn’t matter. Not really.

Not when we were so few in number.

But here, surrounded by Persians, Sohrab was singled out for being Bahá’í.

He was a target.

Related Characters: Darius Kellner (speaker), Sohrab Rezaei, Laleh Kellner
Page Number: 102
Explanation and Analysis:
Sins of the Father Quotes

I mean, it was inevitable that Laleh would acquire a taste for Star Trek—eventually. She was my sister, after all. And Stephen Kellner’s daughter. It was in her genetic makeup.

But I thought I would get to keep that bit of Dad to myself for a little while longer.

It was the only time I ever got to be his son.

Related Characters: Darius Kellner (speaker), Dad, Laleh Kellner
Page Number: 144
Explanation and Analysis:
Bette Davis Eyes Quotes

I was used to being a disappointment to Dad, and being a disappointment to Babou didn’t seem that different. But I hated that he was disappointed in Laleh too, for something she couldn’t change.

I swallowed.

Babou looked up at me. There was something sad and lonely in his eyes, in the way his mustache drooped over his frown.

I wanted to tell him I was still his grandson.

I wanted to tell him I was glad I was getting to know him.

I wanted to tell him I was sorry about his brain tumor.

I didn’t tell him any of that, though.

Related Characters: Darius Kellner (speaker), Dad, Laleh Kellner, Babou
Page Number: 164
Explanation and Analysis:
Persian Casual Quotes

And even though I hated getting shuffled around and grabbed by my love handles, my rubbery constipated face did relax into a smile.

I had never been surrounded by my family before. Not really.

When Dayi Jamsheed started herding us together into a big group photo, my eyes started burning. I couldn’t help it.

I loved them.

Related Characters: Darius Kellner (speaker), Dad, Mom, Laleh Kellner, Mamou, Babou, Dayi Jamsheed
Page Number: 174
Explanation and Analysis:
My Cousin, the Ringwraith Quotes

“You are not very Persian,” he said. “Not like Laleh.”

I looked down at my Team Melli jersey, which I still had on over my button-up.

This was the most Persian I had ever been in my entire life, and it still wasn’t enough.

“You are more like your dad. He doesn’t like them either,” he said. And then he grabbed a cucumber for himself and wandered off.

Related Characters: Darius Kellner (speaker), Dayi Jamsheed (speaker), Sohrab Rezaei, Dad, Laleh Kellner
Related Symbols: The Jersey
Page Number: 182-183
Explanation and Analysis:
Yesterday’s Enterprise Quotes

Sohrab glanced at me and turned back to Laleh. “Laleh,” he said. “It’s not polite to do that. Darioush can’t understand you.”

I blinked.

No one had ever made people speak in English around me before.

Not even Mom.

“It’s okay,” I said.

“No,” Sohrab said. “It’s not polite.”

“Sorry, Darius,” Laleh said.

“It’s fine.”

I looked at Sohrab. He squinted at me with his spoon in his mouth.

“Thanks.”

Related Characters: Darius Kellner (speaker), Sohrab Rezaei (speaker), Laleh Kellner (speaker), Mom, Sohrab’s Uncle/Agha Rezaei
Page Number: 235
Explanation and Analysis:
First, Best Destiny Quotes

“It made me into a zombie. That’s why I couldn’t tell you stories. I could barely tell the time of day.”

I didn’t know.

“I lost myself for a long time, Darius. I didn’t like who I became on those pills, but they saved my life. They kept me here. For you. And your mom. And by the time I was doing better and Dr. Howell tapered me off, your sister was born and I just...things were different. She was a baby, and she needed me. And I didn’t know if you even wanted stories anymore. If you were ever going to forgive me.”

“Dad...”

“Suicide isn’t the only way you can lose someone to depression.”

[...]

“And it kills me that I gave it to you, Darius. It kills me.”

There were tears in his eyes.

Actual human tears.

I had never seen my father cry before.

Related Characters: Darius Kellner (speaker), Dad (speaker), Mom, Laleh Kellner, Dr. Howell
Page Number: 286
Explanation and Analysis:
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Darius the Great Is Not Okay PDF

Laleh Kellner Quotes in Darius the Great Is Not Okay

The Darius the Great Is Not Okay quotes below are all either spoken by Laleh Kellner or refer to Laleh Kellner. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Friendship  Theme Icon
).
Soccer/Non-American Football Quotes

I thought about that: How back home, all Persians—even Fractional Persians like me and Laleh—were united in our Persian-ness. We celebrated Nowruz and Chaharshanbeh Suri together in big parties, Bahá’ís and Muslims and Jews and Christians and Zoroastrians and even secular humanists like Stephen Kellner, and it didn’t matter. Not really.

Not when we were so few in number.

But here, surrounded by Persians, Sohrab was singled out for being Bahá’í.

He was a target.

Related Characters: Darius Kellner (speaker), Sohrab Rezaei, Laleh Kellner
Page Number: 102
Explanation and Analysis:
Sins of the Father Quotes

I mean, it was inevitable that Laleh would acquire a taste for Star Trek—eventually. She was my sister, after all. And Stephen Kellner’s daughter. It was in her genetic makeup.

But I thought I would get to keep that bit of Dad to myself for a little while longer.

It was the only time I ever got to be his son.

Related Characters: Darius Kellner (speaker), Dad, Laleh Kellner
Page Number: 144
Explanation and Analysis:
Bette Davis Eyes Quotes

I was used to being a disappointment to Dad, and being a disappointment to Babou didn’t seem that different. But I hated that he was disappointed in Laleh too, for something she couldn’t change.

I swallowed.

Babou looked up at me. There was something sad and lonely in his eyes, in the way his mustache drooped over his frown.

I wanted to tell him I was still his grandson.

I wanted to tell him I was glad I was getting to know him.

I wanted to tell him I was sorry about his brain tumor.

I didn’t tell him any of that, though.

Related Characters: Darius Kellner (speaker), Dad, Laleh Kellner, Babou
Page Number: 164
Explanation and Analysis:
Persian Casual Quotes

And even though I hated getting shuffled around and grabbed by my love handles, my rubbery constipated face did relax into a smile.

I had never been surrounded by my family before. Not really.

When Dayi Jamsheed started herding us together into a big group photo, my eyes started burning. I couldn’t help it.

I loved them.

Related Characters: Darius Kellner (speaker), Dad, Mom, Laleh Kellner, Mamou, Babou, Dayi Jamsheed
Page Number: 174
Explanation and Analysis:
My Cousin, the Ringwraith Quotes

“You are not very Persian,” he said. “Not like Laleh.”

I looked down at my Team Melli jersey, which I still had on over my button-up.

This was the most Persian I had ever been in my entire life, and it still wasn’t enough.

“You are more like your dad. He doesn’t like them either,” he said. And then he grabbed a cucumber for himself and wandered off.

Related Characters: Darius Kellner (speaker), Dayi Jamsheed (speaker), Sohrab Rezaei, Dad, Laleh Kellner
Related Symbols: The Jersey
Page Number: 182-183
Explanation and Analysis:
Yesterday’s Enterprise Quotes

Sohrab glanced at me and turned back to Laleh. “Laleh,” he said. “It’s not polite to do that. Darioush can’t understand you.”

I blinked.

No one had ever made people speak in English around me before.

Not even Mom.

“It’s okay,” I said.

“No,” Sohrab said. “It’s not polite.”

“Sorry, Darius,” Laleh said.

“It’s fine.”

I looked at Sohrab. He squinted at me with his spoon in his mouth.

“Thanks.”

Related Characters: Darius Kellner (speaker), Sohrab Rezaei (speaker), Laleh Kellner (speaker), Mom, Sohrab’s Uncle/Agha Rezaei
Page Number: 235
Explanation and Analysis:
First, Best Destiny Quotes

“It made me into a zombie. That’s why I couldn’t tell you stories. I could barely tell the time of day.”

I didn’t know.

“I lost myself for a long time, Darius. I didn’t like who I became on those pills, but they saved my life. They kept me here. For you. And your mom. And by the time I was doing better and Dr. Howell tapered me off, your sister was born and I just...things were different. She was a baby, and she needed me. And I didn’t know if you even wanted stories anymore. If you were ever going to forgive me.”

“Dad...”

“Suicide isn’t the only way you can lose someone to depression.”

[...]

“And it kills me that I gave it to you, Darius. It kills me.”

There were tears in his eyes.

Actual human tears.

I had never seen my father cry before.

Related Characters: Darius Kellner (speaker), Dad (speaker), Mom, Laleh Kellner, Dr. Howell
Page Number: 286
Explanation and Analysis: