Anthony Del Col

graphic nonfiction / journalism - based on interviews and testimony from Zumrat Dawut, who recently escaped with her family to the US (via Pakistan) after she had survived inhumane treatment in a Chinese detention camp for Uyghurs and political prisoners.

Even if you've already read other books on Uyghur detention / labor camps and oppression in China, it's still too easy to forget that these are ongoing injustices that are still happening under Xi Jinping (not to mention how scary it is to have the Chinese government use so much invasive surveillance with mandatory phone apps, voice recognition in phone calls, etc.). But this book, though very short and quick to read, stays with you, and much of that is due to the artist Fahmida Azim's skill in conveying emotion through the facial expressions and body language of the figures on the page--it's amazing to think the artwork for this award-winning book was created in just 2 weeks!

The informative backmatter (including a 2023 follow-up interview with Dawut, a conversation with the creators, an interview with Uyghur Human Rights Project advocacy director Louisa Greve, and even a teaching/discussion guide for grades 6 and up) also provides valuable background, which you'll want to read after finishing this nonfiction graphic account.… (más)

It is good, but probably the weakest entry in the series so far. I didn't like how Othello and Will were written out so early--especially considering the fact that they would've been interesting as part of the worldbuilding of the series. And I'm still kind of confused as for why Viola and Cesario were made two different characters. Lastly, the ending leaves a little to be desired as it doesn't really feel like a self contained sequel or a setup for future stories. Still, it's a fun universe to play in, and something you could enjoy if you've read this many issues.… (más)

Excerpt from a longer article:

Synergy: Celebrating Graphic Nonfiction

GRAPHIC NONFICTION are works of nonfiction expressed in a graphic-novel style. Sharing information and true stories, these books use sequential art and other highly visual approaches to communicate factual content.

To understand a concept, it’s useful to read a cluster of books related to a theme. Explore these recently published books for young people:
...
I ESCAPED A CHINESE INTERNMENT CAMP written by Anthony Del Col and illustrated by Fahmida Azim received the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for illustrated reporting. Although written for an adult audience, young adults will find this work of graphic journalism thought-provoking. Based on interviews and testimony, readers explore the life of a woman arrested for simply being a Muslim. Enduring horrific atrocities, she ultimately escaped to America. ARC courtesy of Lev Gleason, an imprint of Diamond Books.… (más)

I loved the audiobook!! 4 hours full of action, mystery and amazing voice actors (especially Omar's!!). The smartest aspect of this story is that the ancestor is blind, so we, as listeners, "see" whatever Omar "sees", aka nothing. We see with the other senses, just like him, for we listen to conversations and we hear the descriptions of smells and feelings of night vision. Another interesting point of the plot is that our protagonist is claustrophobic, so when she enters the animus and synchronises to her blind ancestor, her pulse is abruptly quickened. These two main elements, along with the plot twists, the small romance scenes and Omar's character, made the book so fun to listen to, as it also contains elements more similar to a radio story than an actual book (eg instead of listening "the water fell quickly" you hear the water fall with an effect). So fun and amazing, totally recommend it (but it is for an older audience since it contains some bad language).… (más)