The Arab of the Future 1: A Childhood in the Middle East 1978-1984: A Graphic Memoir
A graphic memoir that recounts a childhood spent moving between Syria, Libya, and France from a child’s perspective.
Work Information
A childhood shaped by family ambition and political pressure is rendered in vivid drawings and sharp detail.
Riad Sattouf’s English-language debut portrays a childhood marked by movement and the shadow of dictatorship with intimacy and wit.
Book Information
- Publisher
- Metropolitan Books
- Published
- 2015-10-20
- Pages
- 153 pages
- Language
- 英語
- Size
- 16.31 x 1.57 x 23.67 cm
- ISBN-13
- 9781627793445
- ISBN-10
- 1627793445
- Price
- 4113 JPY
- Category
- 洋書/Biographies & Memoirs/Cultural & Regional
The Arab of the Future , the #1 French best-seller, tells the unforgettable story of Riad Sattouf's childhood, spent in the shadows of 3 dictators—Muammar Gaddafi, Hafez al-Assad, and his father In striking, virtuoso graphic style that captures both the immediacy of childhood and the fervor of political idealism, Riad Sattouf recounts his nomadic childhood growing up in rural France, Gaddafi's Libya, and Assad's Syria--but always under the roof of his father, a Syrian Pan-Arabist who drags his family along in his pursuit of grandiose dreams for the Arab nation. Riad, delicate and wide-eyed, follows in the trail of his mismatched parents; his mother, a bookish French student, is as modest as his father is flamboyant. Venturing first to the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab State and then joining the family tribe in Homs, Syria, they hold fast to the vision of the paradise that always lies just around the corner. And hold they do, though food is scarce, children kill dogs for sport, and with locks banned, the Sattoufs come home one day to discover another family occupying their apartment. The ultimate outsider, Riad, with his flowing blond hair, is called the ultimate insult… Jewish. And in no time at all, his father has come up with yet another grand plan, moving from building a new people to building his own great palace. Brimming with life and dark humor, The Arab of the Future reveals the truth and texture of one eccentric family in an absurd Middle East, and also introduces a master cartoonist in a work destined to stand alongside Maus and Persepolis .
Riad Sattouf is a best-selling cartoonist and filmmaker who grew up in Syria, Libya, and Algeria, and now lives in Paris. The author of four comics series in France and a weekly column in the satirical publication Charlie Hebdo , Sattouf also directed the films The French Kissers and Jacky in the Women's Kingdom . The Arab of the Future is his first work to appear in English.
Reviews
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Made me feel sentimental for the revolutionary ideals of the 60's and 70's
The renderings were wonderful. I love the color schemes . People here really dislike the father figure and see him as a tyrant of sorts. While I didn't "like" him per se, I found him to be a sympathetic character. Imagine growing up in a rural, nearly medieval village and being the only person in your family to become literate, get an advanced education, learn new languages, and travel abroad? How does one reconcile their new knowledge with culture and family of origin? This is a man trying to straddle two very disparate cultures and make sense of it, decide what should be adopted and what should be thrown away. It wouldn't be an easy task for any one, and in our globalist world we know plenty of people are dealing with this very struggle on a daily basis. While there are dark elements in the story, I also felt sentimentality and nostalgia for the idealism expressed by the father and by Quadaffi's communitarian vision. This was the era when people believed that Marxism and Pan-Arabism would transform society and move it forward. The father embraces these ideals and believes a new society is possible. It all seems quaint now, in an era where much of the Muslim vanguard has discarded Marxist ideals and instead embraced the retrograde, Wahhabist vision of life organized around theocratic principles. This story may have been different if it took place in the modern era. It's a great book, hard to put down, and challenging to modern western sensibilities.
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Muy recomendado
Histórico y biográfico a partes iguales, con la maestría narrativa del autor a la que nos tiene acostumbrados. Muy recomendable.
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An Arab childhood
This is an amazing story, the first of a trilogy - Riad Sattouf's drawings are simple and reminiscent of newspaper cartoonists, but the story he tells about his life under three dictators - Qaddafi, Assad, and his father - is tremendously powerful and moving. The background of his childhood, the oppressive atmosphere of rural Syria, is startling and a revelation for people who have never seen these regimes in action. Highly recommended.
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Five Stars
an essential read if you liked Maus and Persepolis.
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Grown up content
Not what I was expecting. Very engaging story with mischievous graphics. A childhood story that should only be read by adults. I continue to think about some of the issues it raised. If you haven't read a graphic novel, this is an interesting one to start with.