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Pride of Baghdad
written by Brian K. Vaughan and illustrated by Niko Henrichon

I read this gorgeous graphic novel in one sitting yesterday. It’s about a pride of four lions that escaped into the streets of Baghdad, along with a large number and variety of other animals, after the U.S. bombing of the city. It’s based on a true story but of course this telling is from the lions’ point of view.

You can read this a couple different ways. One way, it is a story about some lions who escaped from their zoo only to find themselves in a much bigger one (the bombed streets of Baghdad). Another way, it is a parable of the whole larger story of the war. The lions, long ruled by the zookeepers, crave freedom only to find it unfamiliar, unpredictable, and frightening. They could be seen as representing the Iraqis, long ruled by Saddam Hussein, who craved freedom from that opression, only to find that with that freedom came chaos and not necessarily a better life. Or it could just be a story about some lions.

Interpret it however you wish, analyze it as much or little as you want, but regardless, it is beautifully written and beautifully illustrated. The illustrations are rich with red and orange and shades of brown and gold. The eyes of the lions are full of expression and you’ll care about them by the end of the story. You’ll want to go back and re-read what the wise old turtle said one more time. And you’ll have a real sense of the panic, the fear, the complete unreality of the end of your own personal world. I imagine it must be only a small sense of it, just a tiny taste, but somehow this story of a family of lions brought it home to me more than any news story has yet: just how devastating this war has been for the people of Iraq.

It occurs to me, reading this just after The Book Thief, that both are stories of how war is essentially the end of the world to so many people who live in it. We are so isolated here, so detached from the bombs and rubble, and these stories are reminders of what is all too easy to ignore. It’s painful to read these stories, it makes us look at things we’d rather not truly see. And thank god they do.

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The Book Thief
by Markus Zusak

Go check this book out or buy it right now. Or the audio version - the reader (Allan Corduner) is wonderful. I started out listening to it in the car but I soon realized that this book had a lot of visual elements so I checked out the book and I started reading it. But then I missed Corduner’s voice so I started listening to sections after I’d read them. Now I’ve finished reading it and am listening to the end and it haunts me.

The book thief is a girl named Leisel Meminger and her story is organized according to the books she has stolen. Each one is significant in its own way. Her story is narrated by Death which sounds ridiculous but it really works. Death doesn’t enjoy his job, he endures it. War is the boss constantly pushing him to get more work done. Death distracts himself with colors and the sky so he doesn’t get bogged down by the humans. Humans scare him and fascinate him. Sound familiar? Oh, and there is no scythe, and the black hooded robe is only if it is raining.

This is set in Nazi Germany and covers so many things that a summary would feel a bit ridiculous. What is more important is the characters and the way they are described, the way this stunning book is written. Hans Hubermann is warm silver metal and a cart of paint and an accordion. Rosa Hubermann is a cardboard wardrobe with a wooden spoon and an iron fist. Rudy’s hair is lemon-colored and Max’s hair is like twigs when he first arrives but after a bath it is like feathers. You see?

I didn’t want to finish this book, I dragged out reading the end slowly because I didn’t want it to end. I knew what was going to happen because Death tells us well in advance. He himself questions why he spoils the ending this way. But it doesn’t ruin it. It makes you savor each bit leading up to what you know is coming that much more.

What a beautiful book, this one will linger with me a long time, I can tell. I’m officially going to add this book to my mental list of my favorite books of all time.  I believe this author has another book out which I will be requesting promptly. But really, go read this book.

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