lwalla01's review
informative
reflective
fast-paced
4.5
Really good overview on Jews, Jewish history & Israel. Not as good as explaining why some of what’s happening is problematic.
greyscarf's review
3.0
An interesting overview of Jewish history & the creation of the Israeli state intertwined with Harvey Pekar's own view of Jewish nationalism. JT Waldman's art compliments the shifts in time with era-specific illustrations & graphics.
Definitely for American Splendor intermediaries. The book was completed after Pekar died & does feel a little incomplete. Pekar discusses the evolution of his ideas about Israel going from his parents' influence to his own disillusionment. But I was left wondering if Harvey's parents ever experienced the same change of heart or how the changing policies of the Jewish home-state ever affected them as they aged. Readers do get some satisfaction with Joyce Brabner's epilogue, but I was still left with an unsatisfied feeling. Overall a quick but engaging read that serves as a quiet closing chapter to a lifetime of thoughtful work by Pekar.
Definitely for American Splendor intermediaries. The book was completed after Pekar died & does feel a little incomplete. Pekar discusses the evolution of his ideas about Israel going from his parents' influence to his own disillusionment. But I was left wondering if Harvey's parents ever experienced the same change of heart or how the changing policies of the Jewish home-state ever affected them as they aged. Readers do get some satisfaction with Joyce Brabner's epilogue, but I was still left with an unsatisfied feeling. Overall a quick but engaging read that serves as a quiet closing chapter to a lifetime of thoughtful work by Pekar.
charlottelizabeth94's review
5.0
This is the first graphic novel that I've ever read and I have to admit that I was slightly sceptical about the whole thing. It took a while for me to adjust to looking at pictures alongside the main text but the artwork was so detailed and completely complimented the text so I felt like it really worked as a whole.
I've studied the Israel-Palestine conflict from the Arabic point of view but I'd never seen it from a Jewish perspective until reading this. It gave such a clear history and progression that I was completely captivated by the whole text and would happily have read through a lot more.
I'm not sure whether I'll read another graphic novel as I'm still firmly a fan of the traditional novel but this was certainly an eye-opener and challenged me to read outside my comfort zone!
I've studied the Israel-Palestine conflict from the Arabic point of view but I'd never seen it from a Jewish perspective until reading this. It gave such a clear history and progression that I was completely captivated by the whole text and would happily have read through a lot more.
I'm not sure whether I'll read another graphic novel as I'm still firmly a fan of the traditional novel but this was certainly an eye-opener and challenged me to read outside my comfort zone!
chrismarnone's review
2.0
I was really not a fan of this book. It gives a quick, dirty, biased history of Israel and the Jewish people, but it's fairly dry. I have great respect for Pekar and his work on American Splendor, but was not a fan of this.
guiltyfeat's review
2.0
I really didn't go into this looking for a fight but it's just so undercooked and trivial. Pekar was a Jew with no strong feelings about Israel. He never went there. He's fairly sure that Occupation is not a good thing and... er... that's it. I guess I was looking for something a bit meatier, but his patented brand of grumpy apathy doesn't suit the subject. Disappointing.
nick_jenkins's review
4.0
Pekar, who died while this book was in production, is more pretext than narrator here, but Waldman's artwork is fantastic. Not particularly profound as an analysis of the debate, it is nevertheless a thorough testament to the confusion and frustration it causes among Jews.
giddypony's review
4.0
Excellent attempt at understanding Israel - what came before that lead up to this point. It is a quick read, and an overview of Harvey Pekar's views, which are intelligent and insightful. For more indepth studies, one should, naturally, look to something other than a graphic novel.
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