Kansas City native and YA author Adib Khorram has a deep love of storytelling. After a lifetime of feeling erased from popular culture, he wrote a story on he could tell—Darius the Great is Not Okay. The story follows Darius Kellner, a half Iranian kid who has always felt like an outsider as he embarks on his first trip to Iran with his family.

The book dives into diaspora, feeling like an outsider, Iranian culture, living with depression, feeling like you belong when you’re around people of a similar culture, connecting with family and more.

Adib talks to Wits’ End host Shah Emami about tea, being Iranian-American, Iranian food and culture. They go over the process of making tea, cooking Iranian dishes and cover Adib’s Darius book(s).

While covering the importance of representation in YA literature, Adib and Shah talk about Adib’s upcoming projects—Darius the Great Deserves Better and Seven Special Somethings.

Adib’s media:

• Twitter: @adibkhorram

• Instagram: @adibkhorram

• Website: https://adibkhorram.com/

Follow Shah & the Wits’ End Podcast:

• Twitter: @_shahcomics

• Wits’ End Twitter: @witsendpod

• Website: https://witsendpod.com/

• Instagram: @shah_comics

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