Art Spiegelman, the author of the amazing, powerful book Maus gives his reaction to the destruction of the twin towers. Is In the Shadow of No Towers as amazing and brilliant as Maus? No. Is it fair to hold him to that standard? Not really.
The book contains—in his cartoon format—some of his memories of September 11, when he and his wife went to pick up their daughter amid chaos at her New York City school.
Where the book really takes off, though, is when he objects—in his unique, creative way—to how President Bush uses the September 11 attacks to wage war in the Middle East. Spiegelman, no fan of Bush, accuses the President of “hijacking” the tragedy to gain public support, settle scores and help big business.
Whether you agree with the artist or not on that issue, Spiegelman’s book is a must-read for anyone interested in cartoons and/or how artists are addressing their emotional reaction to the attacks.
I give it an 8.
This review was originally posted in my blog.
ed/Pub:NB Edited: PC