Poppies of Iraq

Poppies of Iraq was written in 2017 by Brigitte Findakly and illustrated by her husband Lewis Trondheim is a memoir of Findakly's life growing up in Iraq.  Findakly had a better than average life in Iraq as her father was a dentist and they could afford private schools and vacations in France where her mother emigrated to Iraq from.  The family was unique because they were Orthodox Christians in a Muslim country.

With her father being asked to pay excessive taxes that he could not afford to pay, he decided to leave Iraq for France.  His cover story for the government was that he needed training on how to do dental implants.  The training was approved and the family left with no intention of returning until things improved in Iraq.  I believe the author was about 18 years old at this time.  However, this was 1979.  The Iran-Iraq War followed from 1980 until 1989, the Gulf War in 1990, and the second Gulf War in 2003.  Her father never expected his exile to be that long.

The family was not political unless they had to be and when her father could no longer support Saddam Hussein's government he willingly gave up his government pension and all hope of ever returning to Iraq.  The author, however, made several trips back to Iraq over the years and saw her relatives homes, possessions and dreams becoming more and more shattered.  Eventually they all left by 2016, their homeland no longer recognizable.

While the family did not suffer much religious prejudice while the author lived there, as Saddam Hussein's government took hold her cousins suffered persecution and developed Islamaphobia.  It seems to me though that the author's mother kept her indoors at certain times so perhaps there was some prejudice happening to them.

Poppies in Iraq is an informative graphic memoir on life in Iraq from 1950 through the present time.  The title comes from an archeological site in Nimrod where the author used to play as a child.  Poppies were prevalent there.

Red Rosa

Kate Evans' Red Rosa is a graphic biography of Rosa Luxemburg.  I was not familiar with Luxemburg before reading this biography but I found that she was a woman ahead of her time.  Rosa was a passionate socialist who did alot of writing and speaking to educate and inspire many people to her cause. She was the only woman of her era, the early 1900s, to have this power.

She was born and raised in Poland but also lived in Germany promoting her beliefs. She was tough enough to question the beliefs and actions of both Marx and Lenin. She also did not care for society's role for women and chose not to marry, prefer to have lovers instead. She was truly a woman in control of her life and I admire that.

As a feminist myself, I was surprised that I had not heard of Rosa Luxemburg before seeing this book.  She was certainly a female powerhouse of the twentieth century and belongs in studies on women's history.  Unfortunately, none of the courses I took in college mentioned her.

Ladies, this is a must read!

Notes on a Thesis

French cartoonist Tiphaine Riviere's graphic novel covers the life of Jeanne Dargan during her 6 years as a PhD student.  While the book is satire, her story is sad and discouraging as well. Jeanne's life during those years was so disjointed that I would not choose to work one a PhD myself.

The publisher's summary:

"When Jeanne is accepted on to a PhD course, she is over the moon, brimming with excitement and grand plans - but is the world ready for her masterful analysis of labyrinth motifs in Kafka's The Trial?  At first Jeanne throws herself into research with great enthusiasm, but as time goes by, it becomes clear that things aren't quite going according to plan.  Notes on a Thesis is a reminder of the strangeness of academia, of every awful essay, every disastrous exam, and every insanity-inducing dissertation."

The artwork in Notes is interesting.  As Jeanne becomes more and more discouraged by her lack of progress, she is drawn with an increasingly wilted body.  Some of the other characters are drawn the same way, especially the lazy administrator Brigitte who I think resembles a government employee more than an administrator. 

The story was funny but also discouraging. I have thought about getting an advanced degree but Jeanne's experience makes me think twice about it. Jeanne got bogged down in teaching grad students and spent years just working on her thesis idea and creating the writing plan. This is not something that I want to do. 

Riviere is known for writing satire. She certainly excelled with Notes. She has Jeanne reading 3,200 books during the research phase of her degree and Jeanne wrote a 69 page outline of her thesis. Unbelievable!

5 out of 5 stars.

Exit Wounds

I have been looking forward to finding another Rutu Modan book ever since I read The Property.

In this fiction story Koby Franco, a Tel Aviv cab driver, is contacted by a female soldier, Numi, who is looking for Koby's father Gabriel whom she believes was killed in a suicide bombing at a bus station cafeteria.  Gabriel was also her lover.  Together they follow clues and interview witnesses to the bombing to see if anyone knows whether Gabriel was in fact at the cafeteria at the time of the bombing.

The artwork consists of simply drawn characters with detailed background drawings of buildings.  I liked the use of bright colors.
This is a coming of age story with Koby trying to come to terms with his relationship with his father.  The mystery plot was well thought out and followed the pattern of a normal mystery novel with the usual 3 problems that a protagonist has to deal with in order to solve the mystery. 

I enjoyed the book and am looking forward to reading more from this author.

Patience

I must start off this review with a mention of the artwork.  The author has used psychedelic sixties colors which puts me in heaven.  I wish that the story matched these lovely colors but for me it did not. 

The story opens with a man named Jack finding his pregnant wife Patience murdered in their home. After years of living with his grief Jack finds a time traveling machine and uses it to go back in time to save Patience.

I am not a fan of time traveling stories so I found this book hard to follow. It does not seem right, though, to fault an author for writing a book that I am inclined to not like.  I pickd up the book at my public library based on the color of the artwork. So, if you love time travel books, maybe this one is for you.

Weapons of Mass Diplomacy

French author and diplomat Antonin Baudry, writing under the pen name of Abel Lanzac, has written a fictionalized account of his time working for the French Foreign Ministry during the time period leading up to the U. S. invasion of Iraq. 

The story begins with Arthur Vlaminck getting hired as a speechwriter for Foreign Minister Alexandre Taillard de Vorms.  De Vorms has a nasty temper and loves to quote poets and philosophers. He is never happy with what Vlamink writes. Never. Vlamink gets to travel with the Minister on diplomatic trips abroad and to the United Nations (U.N.) where he sees the American president (George W. Bush) and Jeffrey Cole (Colin Powell) address the U.N. concerning Resolution 1441 which provided for inspections on the nation Khemed's (Iraq) weapons of mass destruction in order to avoid war.

While this is a serious topic, the author has written a wonderful satire of this part of our recent history. He has shown the difference of opinions between France and the U. S. on the subject all while showing the reader how diplomacy works.

I do not understand why the author does not use his real name, the name of his boss, Bush, Powell or Iraq. I am certain there is a professional reason for this but I do not know what it is.

This book was pretty amusing.  I highly recommend it.

This Was Our Pact

This Was Our Pact is a children's fiction novel completely illustrated in shades of blue.  Five friends decide that they will meet on their bikes and follow lanterns that have been placed in a river as they float downstream. They have many adventures along the way, with friendships being cemented throughout the journey.

The publisher's summary:

"It's the night of the Autumn Equinox Festival, when the town gathers to float paper lanterns down the river.  Legend has it that after drifting out of sight, they'll soar off to the Milky Way and turn into brilliant stars, but could this be true?  This year, Ben and his classmates are determined to find out where those lanterns really go, and to ensure success in their mission, they've made a pact with two simple rules:  No one turns for home.  No one looks back.

The plan is to follow the river on their bikes for as long as it takes to learn the truth, but it isn't long before the pact is broken by all except for Ben, and (much to Ben's disappointment) Nathaniel, the one kid who just doesn't seem to fit in.  Together, Nathaniel and Ben will travel farther than anyone has ever gone, down a winding road full of magic, wonder, and unexpected friendship."

This Was Our Pact is a great fantasy quest for kids. Kids will love the adventures that the boys come across on their journey. Every now and then science facts are thrown in but the quest to follow the lanterns is the main story. The adventure itself is mesmerizing but the artwork with all its blue hues accentuates their escapades. The storyline also includes the quest of a bear that the boys meet so this book is definitely all about the exhilaration of following a quest.  

5 out of 5 stars.

Rolling Blackouts

Rolling Blackouts:  Dispatches From Turkey, Syria and Iraq is a graphic novel summarizing a trip that the author took to the Middle East with friends who are international journalists.  It is a comic about how journalism works and is based on true events that occurred during the two month trip.

The journalists have formed a collective called Seattle Globalist and have planned a trip through  Turkey, Syria and Iraq to write reports primarily about the region absorbing refugees with dwindling resources, an underreported subject in the mainstream media.  All but one are friends from childhood and includes a former Marine who had been stationed in Iraq.  The author observed her friends interview civilians, refugees and officials including a UN refugee administrator, taxi driver, Iraqi refugee deported from the U. S., Iraqis seeking refuge in Syria and the American Marine.

The journalists use their first interview with a subject mainly to get to know them personally.  Then they meet afterward to discuss what kind of story they can get from the person and how to lead the interview.  Follow-up interviews focus on how the war affected them and if the interviewee was a refugee the journalists discussed their life before the war, how they became refugees, what their future plans and/or desires are and what kind of life they think is actually possible for them.

I found it interesting that none of the refugees wanted to resettle in the U. S. They believe the U.S. invasion of Iraq caused their life to be permanently over. It was also interesting that while the refugees were both rich and poor, most of them were formerly middle class with degrees. There is no longer a middle class in this region and that is why these countries are finding it impossible to rebuild.  All of the people with skills that are needed to rebuild are sitting in refugee camps.

I loved this serious non-fiction graphic novel and hope that more serious graphic novels are written in the future. The information inside its pages was very informative.  The artwork was created with colorful watercolor drawings done in comic panels.  This book is a must read for our national politicians as they do not seem to understand the problems facing the Middle East.  Highly recommended!

Preacher

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Everyone told me not to read this graphic novel because it would offend me as a Christian. Not so. While foul language runs supreme and there is blasphemy here and there, the book has an amazing plot that I couldn't help but love.  Book One contains issues 1 through 12 of this 75 issue serialized comic. The issues were published between 1995 and 2000.  It was written by Garth Ennis and illustrated by Steve Dillon.

Preacher opens with our former preacher Jesse Custer eating out with two friends Tulip O'Hare and Cassidy. He is asked why he gave up preaching at his Annville, Texas church. Jesse then begins his life story. The rest of the book is an autobiography that explains how Jesse's possession by a supernatural force called Genesis caused his church to be flattened, killing his entire congregation. Genesis was formed by an unholy coupling between an angel and a demon. This coupling caused Jesse's church to be destroyed. With a strong sense of right and wrong, Jesse travels the U S. while trying to find God. His friends Tulip and Cassidy travel with him.

The artwork kept me reading this novel. The crisp line drawings and vibrant colors were attractive and the supernatural creatures that Steve Dillon created were cool.  Even the facial expressions supported the story, something that I didn't expect in a fantastical story like Preacher. Above all, it was the coloring that attracted me to the story. I don't normally read fantasy fiction but this graphic novel had enough questions about how people find God and lose God over circumstances in their lives that made me want to keep reading.  There are 6 more books giving the Preacher story.  I will be buying them but will not be reviewing them.  The artwork is the same and Jesse's life story continues so there will not be much to add in a review. 

4 out of 5 stars.

Shanghai Dream

Shanghai Dream is a sad book.  It is well written and illustrated but because the story concerns Jews running away from Nazis, and then the Japanese, in order to save their lives.  It ends abrultly without a denouement and I feel the rest of the story should be told in a subsequent novel. Luckily, Shanghai Dream is Book One.

The publisher's summary:  

"A young German Jewish filmmaker escapes the Nazi threat in Shanghai, where he is forced to adapt to a new land and cope with familial loss through the magic of filmmaking.  In 1938 Berlin, aspiring filmmaker Bernard Hersch works at the UFA studios and dreams of one day directing the screenplay he and his wife Illo are writing. But as a Jew in Hitler's Germany, Bernard faces increasing danger and discrimination, and is soon forced to accept deportation to Japan as his only hope.  However, Illo, disconcerted at having to abandon her elderly father, leaves Bernard behind at the last minute and returns to Berlin, where she and her father are shot by Nazis.  Rerouted to China, a heartbroken Bernard struggles through grief and vows to bring his and Illo's screenplay to life as a tribute to her legacy. Along the way, he finds love in a city under siege."

I was spellbound by the storyline. It was an emotional roller-coaster to read how the family made one choice after another, all of them lose-lose choices. I fell in love with the Bernard and Illo characters and felt like I knew them, perhaps because I have friends who lived this reality. The writing was suspenseful. A fast pace increased the suspense but it was also written with a sense of dread as the family had to make decisions quickly if they were going to survive the antisemitism directed at them. 

The artwork was drawn in comic strip panels. Some pages were colored by Delf in sepia tones and others were in black and white. All of the pages that referenced the writing of Illo's screenplay were drawn in black and white. 

Shanghai Dream is an accurate retelling of a part of WWII history. I highly recommend it, especially for young people.  5 out of 5 stars!

Dior

Girl in Dior is the story of the rise of the fashion label Christian Dior. Intermingled into the story is that of a fictional budding journalist Clara Nohant who becomes one of Dior's models and after marrying into British royalty, a customer.

The book is supposed to be a biography of Christian Dior.  While his life is covered, the addition of a fictional character, Clara, mars the story and I do not know why the author chose to add her to the story. Clara was not necessary to write a great graphic biography.

The illustrations are exquisite.  I would love to see some of them framed on my walls. The question for many will be whether the price of the book is worth the illustrations given a botched storyline.  For me, the answer is yes.  It was the beauty of the dresses illustrated that made me buy this book.

It's hard to figure out how to rate this book.  I think anyone interested in fashion will like it because of the illustrations as well as the history of the House of Dior.  I just wish fiction wasn't added to this biography.