Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #62299 in Books
• Published on: 2006-06-02
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 96 pages

Synopsis
This is the story of a boy caught up in an unthinkable horror; a major achievement of storytelling and artistry. This is the harrowing tale of the Tutsi genocide in Rwanda, as seen through the eyes of a boy named Deogratias. He is an ordinary teenager, in love with a girl named Benigne, but Degratias is a Hutu and Benigne is a Tutsi who dies in the genocide, and Deogratias himself plays a part in her death. As the story circles around but never depicts the terror and brutality of an entire country descending into violence, we watch Deogratias in his pursuit of Benigne, and we see his grief and descent into madness following her death, as he comes to believe he is a dog. Told with great artistry and intelligence, this book offers a window into a dark chapter of recent human history and exposes the West's role in the tragedy. Stassen's interweaving of the aftermath of the genocide and the events leading up to it heightens the impact of the horror, giving powerful expression to the unspeakable, indescribable experience of ordinary Hutus caught up in the violence. Difficult, beautiful, honest and heartbreaking, this is a major work by a masterful artist.

Customer Reviews

The Horror
Originally published in Stassen's native Belgium in 2000, this graphic novel takes on the 1994 Rwandan genocide and does a credible job of bringing the horror of that dark stain on recent history to the page. Alternating between the time of the genocide and a time about five years after it, the story follows a young Hutu teenager named Deogratias. Prior to the massacre, we see he is a normal boy trying to get into the pants of two pretty Tutsi sisters. However, in the aftermath of the genocide, he has been reduced to a homeless, ragtag lunatic with only moments of lucidity, who tries to keep horrible memories at bay with the aid of the local banana beer (urwagwa). Those familiar with the kinds of atrocities perpetrated in genocides or civil wars won't be particularly surprised at the final revelation as to what rendered him insane -- nonetheless, it's grim and powerful stuff. There's also a subplot involving a French tourist who served in the French army in Rwanda during the genocide. This exists mainly to highlight the French complicity in allowing the genocide to unfold -- albeit guilt that is only marginally greater than that of other Western powers. What happened in Rwanda serves to point out the emptiness of slogans such as "Never Forget", and while it has been covered by many excellent non-fiction books and films, Stassen is to be commended for bringing the horrific story to another medium. This is rough material, definitely not for kids, although the translator's introduction does a nice job of providing enough background for one to use it in a high school history or ethics class.

A snapshot, rather than an insight, to the Rwandan Genocide
This book is about a young boy driven mad by the horrors that he has witnessed during the Rwandan genocide. The artwork is first class - lovely landscapes and full colour illustration throughout.

My main criticism of the book is that it's just too short and I was left feeling that I still didn't know enough about the subject matter. I was expecting the book to be more like Maus (which really educates you about the Holocaust) but Deogratias is much more of a very short snapshot and lacks the breadth and depth of storytelling that Maus does so well.

Overall, if you appreciate great artwork and want to learn a little about the Rwanadan horrors, you'll enjoy this, but I did feel the story could be expanded to explain more about Rwanda, Rwandan culture in general and the Rwandan genocide.