Jerusalem - by Guy Delisle (Paperback)

About the Book

Acclaimed graphic memoirist Delisle returns with a thoughtful and moving travelogue about life in East Jerusalem and his involvement with the brutal, three-week Gaza War.

Book Synopsis

"[Jerusalem] is a small miracle: concise, even-handed, highly particular." --The Guardian

Jerusalem: Chronicles from the Holy City is the acclaimed graphic memoirist Guy Delisle's strongest work yet, a thoughtful and moving travelogue about life in contemporary Jerusalem. Delisle expertly lays the groundwork for a cultural road map of the Holy City, utilizing the classic "stranger in a strange land" point of view that made his other books required reading for understanding what daily life is like in cities few are able to travel to. Jerusalem explores the complexities of a city that represents so much to so many. It eloquently examines the impact of conflict on the lives of people on both sides of the wall while drolly recounting the quotidian: checkpoints, traffic jams, and holidays.

When observing the Christian, Jewish, and Muslim populations that call Jerusalem home, Delisle's drawn line is both sensitive and fair, assuming nothing and drawing everything. A sixteen-page appendix to the paperback edition lets the reader behind the curtain, revealing intimate process sketches from Delisle's time in Jerusalem.

Jerusalem is a masterfully hewn travelogue; topping Best of 2012 lists from The Guardian, Paste, and the Montreal Gazette, it was the graphic novel of the year.

Review Quotes

"The cultural and physical barriers among the Jewish, Muslim and Christian communities become the source of dark but gentle comedy: absurdity teetering on the edge of tragedy." --The New York Times

"The tone of [Jerusalem] is by turns gently humorous and dumbfounded. His drawing style . . . suits his brisk, snapshot approach." --Financial Times

About the Author

Born in Québec City, Canada, in 1966, Guy Delisle now lives in the south of France with his wife and two children. Delisle spent ten years working in animation, which allowed him to learn about movement and drawing. He is best known for his travelogues about life in faraway countries: Burma Chronicles, Jerusalem: Chronicles from the Holy City, Pyongyang, and Shenzhen. He has since expanded his oeuvre by telling a Doctors Without Borders acquaintance's story as a nail-biting thriller (Hostage) and revisiting his teen years and first summer job (Factory Summers).