Palestine Collection [Paperback]

Joe Sacco (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 11, 2001

A landmark of journalism and the art form of comics. Based on several months of research and an extended visit to the West Bank and Gaza Strip in the early 1990s, this is a major work of political and historical nonfiction.

Prior to Safe Area Gorazde: The War In Eastern Bosnia 1992-1995—Joe Sacco's breakthrough novel of graphic journalism—the acclaimed author was best known for Palestine, a two-volume graphic novel that won an American Book Award in 1996. Fantagraphics Books is pleased to present the first single-volume collection of this landmark of journalism and the art form of comics. Based on several months of research and an extended visit to the West Bank and Gaza Strip in the early 1990s (where he conducted over 100 interviews with Palestinians and Jews), Palestine was the first major comics work of political and historical nonfiction by Sacco, whose name has since become synonymous with this graphic form of New Journalism. Like Safe Area Gorazde, Palestine has been favorably compared to Art Spiegelman's Pulitzer Prize-winning Maus for its ability to brilliantly navigate such socially and politically sensitive subject matter within the confines of the comic book medium. Sacco has often been called the first comic book journalist, and he is certainly the best. This edition of Palestine also features an introduction from renowned author, critic, and historian Edward Said (Peace and Its Discontents and The Question of Palestine), one of the world's most respected authorities on the Middle Eastern conflict. Black-and-white comics throughout

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Sacco uses the comic book format to its fullest extent, creating bold perspectives that any photojournalist would envy.” (Utne Reader )

“Sacco's Palestine brilliantly and poignantly captures the essence of life under a repressive and prolonged occupation.” (Nasseer H. Azuri, Professor of Political Science, The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth )

“Sacco is a pioneer.” (Journal of Palestinian Studies )

“Based on his research, interviews, and personal experiences in Palastinian Occupied Territories in 1991 and 92, [Palestine] takes you there and gives you a first-hand account of the atrocities and suffering in the conflict with Israel. He gives you a close up visual rendering of the physical and emotional conditions of the people, who struggle daily for survival... Sacco has rendered the terrible conditions of life into a compelling and sympathetic artistic documentary. It is sad, but most good stories are sad... What’s better, his drawing is detailed and realistic, very approachable and interesting.” (American in Auckland )

About the Author

Joe Sacco lives in Portland, Oregon. He is the author of many acclaimed graphic novels, including Palestine, Safe Area Gorazde, But I Like It, Notes from a Defeatist, The Fixer, War's End, and Footnotes in Gaza.

Edward W. Said was University Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia. A member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Royal Society of Literature and of Kings College Cambridge, his celebrated works include Orientalism, The End of the Peace Process, Power, Politics and Culture, and the memoir Out of Place. He is also the editor, with Christopher Hitchens, of Blaming the Victims, published by Verso. He died in September 2003. 

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Fantagraphics Books; First Edition (states) edition (December 11, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 156097432X
• ISBN-13: 978-1560974321
• Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 0.6 x 7.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (93 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #33,193 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #6 in Books > History > Middle East > Palestine
  • #8 in Books > Comics & Graphic Novels > Publishers > Fantagraphics
  • #24 in Books > History > Middle East > Israel

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

94 of 100 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Much more objective than on first impression April 3, 2003

By Chutes

Format:Paperback

You have to read Palestine carefully, especially if you are either strongly sympathetic or hostile to Israel. It would be easy to see the book as condemning Israel. It is not, but since Sacco's intention was to get to know the community that we in the US don't know well, the Palestinians, the book shows mainly their experiences and interpretations of them. (It would have been a good idea to include a timeline of the historical events related to the Israel/Palestine tragedy, so that people who do not know the facts could put into perspective the versions of history that Sacco's Palestinian interviewees have.)

I emphasize that this is not the book to turn to in order to figure out whether to side with the Israelis or the Palestinians. It does not give that kind of information, and there are other books for that (Thomas Friedman's From Beirut to Jerusalem is a good one). For the most part there are no terrorists or major political figures interviewed and there is no survey of the historical background, the mistakes and crimes that have left both peoples in this mess. What I saw in this brilliant piece of comic journalism is an on the ground look at what is going on with people caught in the storm.

Palestine is about the human spirit, often humorous and courageous. It is also about the tragedy that is what happens when people suffer at each other's hands, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, as well as physically, and lose the ability to see the human face.

Victims turn into villains. The scenes of the settlers attacking the Arab villages at night reminded me chillingly of Kristalnacht. A 16 year old Palestinian terrorist-in-training is chilling as he describes his recruitment at 13, his loss of interest in anything but the violence, and the version of history that he believes in.... Sixteen year old settlers strutting through town with their Uzis are just as chilling. You are appalled by them all, and by the societies that have turned children into murderers. And you are touched by the crowd scenes, where you see tiny figures of men and women in the background, hurrying their children away, keeping them away from the stone throwing crowds.

You see the mythologies that both sides, though mainly (because of the nature of the book) the Palestinians, have created in order to give themselves pride and explain all the pain. You see that these mythologies are not going to save anyone.

Sacco does not idolize his Palestinian subjects, though he is very sympathetic to most of them. He shows the irrational hatred, the elevation of victimhood to almost divine status, and the self-destructiveness of some of the people he interviewed. He really likes the children, especially inquisitive little girls, but he shows that there are some nasty kids too. I emphasize that he likes these people, despite their human failings. Their errors do not mean they are to be dismissed, just as their suffering does not mean that the lines on which Arab politicians have chosen to explain the situation are right. It was Sacco's irony, actually, that allowed me to trust his observations of life in an occupied region, with all that "occupied" implies.

The most troubling part to the book, therefore, was the portrayal of the Israeli soldiers. I wish that he had interviewed Israeli soldiers, since they (and settlers) are the only Israelis present in the Palestian refugee camps, and the soldiers come off looking brutal much of the time. But in looking through the book a second time, I noticed that many of the soldiers looked terrified. This terror coupled with the brutality throws another light on the tragedy afflicting both Israelis and Palestinians.

I've been left haunted by one particular image, the depressed face of his last guide, an educated, unemployed volunteer with a school for the handicapped. It is not a dramatic, self dramatizing depression. Sacco's skill is impressive here, as he shows the man's face change, subtly, according to what is going on (sad tales, checkpoints, the charming chatter of a 10 year old girl)--he has other feelings, but his hopelessness has smothered the intensity. Read more ›

38 of 40 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Great Sacco Documentary Comic June 21, 2002

By Bill Corporandy

Format:Paperback

I do not have much to contribute that has not already been stated by other customer reviewers but I would like to add to the overwhelming consensus that this is an excellent book and, since it is done in comic book style, I would recommend it as an effective tool for adolescent readers in our high schools. Saccco's book was written before the most recent wave of Palestinian suicide bombings which has wreaked havoc both to Israel and to outside sympathy for the Palestinian cause. However, this book should give all open-minded readers insight into the despair that has led so many Palestinians to support terrorism. Sacco's disarmingly informal writing style and his powerful artwork convey both the constant systematic and randomly unsystematic injustice that Israel, its soldiers, settlers and other citizens have directed at the Palestinians. Sacco exposes the economic discrimination that gives incentives to West Bank Jewish settlers and imposes taxes and other bureacratic and physical barriers on Palestinian attempts to earn a living: Palestinian agricultural produce left on the docks to spoil before it is shipped to European customers, the denial of adequate water and permits to drill deeper wells, cutting down groves of olive trees, etc. Sacco also takes us inside hospitals where Israeli soldiers intimidate and beat patients, nurses, and doctors, disrupting surgeries, treatments, etc. Individual Palestinians recount their prison experiences: the psychological and physical torture and the inhuman living conditions, abuses of the legal system, etc. There is much more in this new edition--printed in 2001 and again in 2002--at roughly 300 pages, this is nearly double the size of an earlier edition. Everyone with an interest in the Middle East Crisis or terrorism should read this book.... This book is pro-Palestinian but it is not anti-Semitic or against the existence of an Israeli state. It is also recommended by Art Spiegelman, the great cartoonist and author of the Jewish Holocaust comic classics, Maus I and II. For more great info on the plight of the Palestinians, I recommend regular reading of Tikkun, an excellent, liberal Jewish-American bi-monthly periodical. Read more ›

67 of 77 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A poignant account of what the Palestians have had to endure March 22, 2002

By A Customer

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Joe Sacco's "Palestine" provides the western world with a powerful account of the Palestinian perspective of their conflict with Israel. Sacco's path takes him through much of the West Bank, Gaza, Jerusalem and parts of Israel. He tells the stories of the people he meets and through them paints a picture of the brutality and injustice they endure under the apartheid policies of Israel. With the media coverage of the conflict being what it is, the accessibility of the graphic novel format makes "Palestine" a singularly important work. By communicating the truth, perhaps a lasting solution to this conflict can be found.

Although the journalistic content of "Palestine" is its primary value, it also stands on its own aesthetically. Sacco also writes well and the narrative flows smoothly from one part of his journey to another.

72 of 84 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars The value of this book is relative to its audience September 12, 2002

By al mann

Format:Paperback

It may be the case that in the United States the issues of the Middle East are presented in a very subjective manner (pro-Israeli) through mainstream media. This is not the case where I live now, where there is a pro-Palestinian sentiment, expressed again in a subjective manner.

The value of this book is relative to the exposure one has already had on the subject. If you do not know much about it, and especially if you have lived in an environment which portrays Palestinians as bad and Israelis as good, then this is a good book for you, that will open your eyes to the other side of the story.

However, you should not then regard this book as the truth. It is subjective as well in its own manner. Its subjectivity lies not so much on the presentation of non-truths, or its certain exagerations, but rather on its omission of truths which support the other side. For example, when the name "Golda Meier" comes up, the book mentions statements she made about the Palestinians which are ridiculous and cruel: and she did make such statements. However, when the name Nasser comes up, he appears only as someone who "symbolises Arab nationalism and unity," which is a great injustice to history and to the reader. Moreover, the coverage of the Israeli side of the story is so superficial, that it would be better if it had been omitted altogether.

Therefore, you should follow up in quest for knowledge on the subject with more material, from both sides. (try not to spend time looking for something "objective!" It does not exist....

Finally, if you have already been exposed to the various sides of the debate, this book may prove a good way to remind yourself that, after all the analysis of whose fault was what, and who is historically to blame, and what the legal issues are and the technicalities, there is alot of human suffering involved. I, personally, have experienced the human suffering from the Israeli side, and can venture to assert that it can reach similar levels. Afterall, if you start debating on moral issues by counting body bags, and comparing who suffers more, and who deserves it more, then you have lost the plot.

(The most disturbing aspect of this book is the portrayal of the place of women in society - the west vs. Palestine.) Read more ›