> GRAPHICS MIKE DONACHIE
Ghetto: Sanctuary For Sale
By Gregory Henriquez, Marya Cotton-Gould, Sarah Schlegelmilch, Patricia Tewfik and Wei Li
Henriquez Partners Architects/ Blueprint, 92 pages, $19.95
It’s difficult to know where to start in describing this fascinating book, which is simultaneously: speculative fiction in graphic novel form; a real proposal for an architectural project by a Vancouver firm in collaboration with the UNHCR; and a contribution to the ongoing 2021 Venice Architecture Biennale.
It’s also an experiment in comics storytelling, presenting the same story twice. Start at the front and you have the pointof-view of U.S. tourists in Venice; from the back, you will see the same events through the eyes of Iranian refugees. The middle pages present a credible, detailed proposal to realize the fictional setting of the book: a housing project that’s part holiday destination and part sanctuary for refugees.
This is social activism in story form, in which the fiction seeks to become real.
Cyclopedia Exotica
By Aminder Dhaliwal
Drawn & Quarterly, 268 pages, $29.95
There’s no shortage of comic books using allegory to present the experience of minorities — the X-Men are an obvious example — but Aminder Dhaliwal has a unique voice. She did it with “Woman World,” her superb first book, and “Cyclopedia Exotica” is even funnier and more thought-provoking.
It’s the story of cyclopes, the “monsters” from Greek mythology. Here, they’re a real ethnic minority coexisting with “two-eyes” people, while enduring a range of assumptions and prejudices, from the depressingly mundane example of having “hard-to-pronounce” names, to the downright creepy fetishization of their physical differences.
Dhaliwal, who’s originally from Brampton, has her own experiences to drawn upon, so “Cyclopedia Exotica” makes its important points well. It’s also hilarious throughout, with a guilty aftertaste when you realize what you’re laughing at. But you’re learning, as the allegory does its work. Good.
Hell’s Flaw
By Lovern Kindzierski, John Bolton and Annie Parkhouse
Renegade Arts Entertainment, 64 pages, $14.99
Adult fairy tales are well-established in genre fiction, across various media, as a source of dark entertainment. Meanwhile, in Canada, one publisher is making it even darker, and sexier, in a way that isn’t getting nearly enough entertainment.
Renegade Arts Entertainment, based in Canmore, Alta., publishes the Shame series in lavish books (this is the fifth volume) following the rich European tradition of beautiful slow-burn stories. Written by Winnipeg’s Lovern Kindzierski, it’s a twisted story of a family of witches and high fantasy battles between good and evil.
Undeniably, however, the beautiful watercolour art by John Bolton catches the attention first, heavy with eroticism and artistic influences that an academic could analyze for days. And, unlike so many comics that are marked “for mature readers” but are, ironically, quite immature, its sexual content is completed with real maturity and adult themes.
The City of Belgium
By Brecht Evens
Drawn & Quarterly, 336 pages, $34.95
You may blink your way through this book, fighting to follow its layout and to absorb its colours. Make the effort. It’s worth it.
“The City of Belgium” follows three people through a night out in interweaving storylines about relationships, identity and especially mental health. Our main characters, who are hard to like, have different motivations but are united in their struggles to understand themselves.
Evens, who really is Belgian, paints bewildering, delightful comics with colour piled upon colour and layouts that challenge the eye. It’s hard to think of many others in the medium willing to experiment so boldly with the form of their sequential art. It takes courage and pays off.
There’s strong writing here, but this book’s strength is in its incredible visuals, conveying the chaos of the city’s crowds and nightlife. It’s an utter treat. Mike Donachie frequently writes about graphic novels and comics for the Star