The Arrival

The Arrival
By Shaun Tan
Published by Arthur A. Levine Books
Reviewed by Martha Beach and Lisa Tran

The story of immigration is one so universal that it transcends language.

Shaun Tan understands this in his unique graphic novel, The Arrival, a full story of a man who leaves behind his family in order to immigrate to a new country - all told through a series of pictures.

Follow the main character from page to page, place to place, and watch as he journeys through his new and strange world without saying a word. The detailed drawn images are realistic. They evoke a sense of loneliness, bewilderment, frustration, fear, and joy that many immigrants experience when adjusting to a new culture.

A story told without words, The Arrival will capture the imagination of all who behold its beautifully illustrated pages.

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Kenk: A Graphic Portrait

Kenk: A Graphic Portrait
By Richard Poplak
Published by Pop Sandbox
Reviewed by Martha Beach

Kenk is a journalistic graphic novel that details the life of Igor Kenk, who is now known as the world's most prolific bike thief.

In the summer of 2008, Kenk was arrested in Toronto when almost 3,000 bicycles were seized from him. They were all assumed to be stolen, although only a couple hundred were able to be legitimately claimed by Torontonians. It was one of the biggest news stories of the year.

The illustrations in the novel are taken from never-before-seen documentary footage of Kenk that was filmed during the year leading up to his arrest.  They are raw images of a man who was both loved and hated.

Kenk is an amusing and thought-provoking graphic portrait of a bigger-than-life character living in a changing city, both affected by the forces of economic crisis and gentrification. The Queen West neighbourhood changed drastically in the decade that Kenk lived there, but Kenk didn't change with it.

In Kenk, we see a changing Toronto through the eyes of someone who has a lot of good ideas and good intentions, but has gone about it in the worst way. After reading Kenk: A Graphic Portrait, you may understand why Igor Kenk did what he did, you may understand that he wanted to help people and benefit his city, but he simply went about it in the completely wrong way.

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Ghostopolis

Ghostopolis
By Doug TenNapel
Ages 10+
Published by Scholastic Canada
Reviewed by Martha Beach

Ghostopolis is a children's graphic novel that is sure to be a page-turner for any student.
Garth, a normal kid, likes to read and play make-believe with his toys. But Garth, as we find out in the first few pages, is terminally ill.

Garth's life is drastically altered when a washed-out agent from the Supernatural Immigration Task Force accidentally sends him to Ghostopolis - the world of the dead.

This once regular guy suddenly finds himself in a ghost's world where he has powers that even ghosts don't have. While in the world of the dead, Garth can do things that the ghosts can't; he flies, disappears, and walks through walls while the dead are bound by Ghostopolis' rules of gravity and physics. In the world of the dead, Garth can do anything he imagines.

Garth is on the adventure of his life. He has to use his new powers to fight the evil ruler of Ghostopolis, all the while he has to try and get back home.

Ghostopolis is a graphic novel jam packed with adventure, battle, and travel. Plus, during his escapade, Garth learns something very important about his life - his long, long life.

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