This week’s challenge
was to read a graphic novel. This is a favourite genre for some of the
librarians here at JCU (actually, you’d be hard-pressed to find a library that
didn’t contain at least one librarian who is a fan of graphic novels), so we
enjoyed the opportunity to trawl through our collection looking for sequential
art.
We actually have a
surprising amount of books that fall under the “graphic novel” umbrella, but
you can never have too many.
Sharon Bryan read The Arrival, by Shaun Tan.
So far I’ve managed to
use graphic novels quite a number of times during this Reading Challenge. I
snuck them into A Book With a One-World Title, A Memoir or Journal, An EpicPoem and – just last week – A Book About Science. So now that the challenge
actually is “A graphic novel”, I feel spoilt for choice. Part of me really
wants to revisit Rapunzel’s Revenge,
which is one of my favourite books of all time, but if I’m honest, I feel this
spot belongs to the most graphic of graphic novels: The Arrival.
By “graphic” I mean
illustrated. The Arrival has no words
– the entire story is told through pictures. And it is told so very, very well.
A man whose homeland is filled with monstrous things reluctantly leaves his
family to try to find a better place to live. He finds himself in a strange
place where everything feels alien – even the written language is so unfamiliar
to him that he can’t recognise when it is upside-down. The customs are often
beyond him, as are the “normal” things people do as part of their day-to-day
lives, and he despairs of ever fitting in and earning enough money to bring
over his family.
Along the way, he
meets other immigrants who have fled other unsafe or unfortunate situations who
share their stories, and even though they are all from different places, they
help each other out as best as they can.
The artwork is
monochrome and in sepia shades – every image looks like an old photograph. They
beautifully capture the sense of danger in the immigrants’ hometowns, and the
sense of bewildering strangeness in this new place. Shaun Tan does a wonderful
job of showing us what life is like as a displaced person, a refugee or an
immigrant.
I cannot recommend
this book highly enough. There isn’t a single word in it, but it will take you
on a journey and leave you feeling a little bit bigger for the experience –
something the best of novels can do.
Samantha Baxter read Rapunzel's Revenge, by Shannon Hale
Samantha Baxter read Rapunzel's Revenge, by Shannon Hale
“Once upon a time, in a land you only think you know, lived a little girl and her mother . . . or the woman she thought was her mother.
Every day, when the little girl played in her pretty garden, she grew more curious about what lay on the other side of the garden wall . . . a rather enormous garden wall.
And every year, as she grew older, things seemed weirder and weirder, until the day she finally climbed to the top of the wall and looked over into the mines and desert beyond.”
Rapunzel’s Revenge (810 HALE) is a fractured fairy-tale set in the old west, with Rapunzel ditching the jerky ‘rescuer’ to save her mother with the help of a ‘gentleman’ she meets along the way. What follows is a series of adventures, but I won’t spoil the ending.
The thing I like most about this graphic novel is the ability of the author to write what you would expect to happen but the drawings show a slightly different story allowing for a nice comedic effect.
The Alchemist: A
Graphic Novel (741.5 ALC) is based on the best-selling original text which was published in
1988. It tells the story of a young man named Santiago who is encouraged to
find his ‘personal legend’ or treasure. In the novel, your personal
legend "is what you have always wanted to accomplish. Everyone, when they
are young, knows what their Personal Legend is."
Santiago embarks on a journey through the desert to find his
treasure, a journey which is characterised by determination, perseverance and
self-discovery. He encounters blessings and misfortunes, and meets a number of
interesting characters along the way who teach him valuable lessons.
Sampere is better known for illustrating action hero graphic novels, but writes:
When I started working on the pages, the magic of the book quickly invaded me…I think when you read the novel, you get a very relaxed feeling, it just calms you in a very good way…I tried to create an art style that would transmit this sensation that the original book gave you.
Whether you have read the original text or have yet to try it, the graphic novel version is an aesthetically enjoyable way to consider the challenges of stepping out of your comfort zone and following your heart.
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