Life Under Occupation

by José Pablo García, Ana Beard (Translator)

“Life under Occupation” is the adaptation of a real journey made by José Pablo García to the Occupied Palestinian Territory, in collaboration with Action Against Hunger and the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID). Due to the many delicate situations they had to deal with, this ten-day trip from Nablus to Gaza is a graphic novel full of emotions and feelings.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Nonfiction, Bande Dessinée, Politics, Graphic Novels Comics, Poverty

130 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 13, 2017

Reviews

[Chad · Rating 4 out of 5]

Garcia smartly stays away from the political and religious aspects of the conflict between Israel and Palestine, instead focusing on human beings. How the ordinary person survives among the daily struggles. In any conflict, the people most affected are those just trying to live their lives, that are just trying to provide a better life for their families. That's where the book really strikes home. These people just want to be left alone to live their lives in peace.

Received a review copy from Europe Comics and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[GONZA · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wonder when will we realize that we are all humans...Anyway a politically correct but real story of life under the occupation written as a reportage, the fading colors give me the sense of the poverty and loneliness even if when life goes on, but how? I would really like for the world to find a solution to this never ending conflict.

Mi chiedo quando arriveremo a capire che siamo tutti esseri umani. Comunque un reportage scritto in forma di graphic novel e politicamente corretto su come sia la vita reale in uno stato occupato. I colori smorti danno il senso della povertà in cui vivono le persone e della solitudine in cui sono costretti a tirare a campare.. Mi piacerebbe davvero che il mondo trovasse una soluzione a questo conflitto infinito.

THANKS TO NETGALLEY FOR THE PREVIEW!

[Manon the Malicious · Rating 4 out of 5]

*3.75 Stars*

I was provided an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Life Under Occupation tells the story of the author as he goes from Spain to Palestine to report the situation there.

I really liked the art and the subject was captivating. I could not put it down.
Sadly, I felt like the whole book was poorly constructed. It felt too much like a news report and not like a story.
I do understand that it’s non-fiction and that it was thought as so but I think it could have gained from being a bit easier to read and get into. It would have been perfect if it had.

[Rianna · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/52 books read in 2018.
Provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely love the artwork! The subject is also super interesting, we normally don't hear the stories of regular folks in Palestine. We only hear about the deaths and attacks. So it is definitely great to hear about the other side, the day-to-day lives of the Palestinians.

The writing style did leave much to be desired. It is very choppy, the story jumps from scene to scene. This meant it was easy for me to get distracted & I never really got in the flow that makes reading so enjoyable. This might have been a 5 star book otherwise.

[Benjamin C · Rating 2 out of 5]

I claim this work is a bit dramatized, cherrypicks some truths, and is otherwise un-compelling. For the most part Garcia gives us a dry depiction of Gaza and the most controversial villages in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In the little space he does spend on the rest of Palestine - such as East Jerusalem, Hebron, Ramallah, Bethlehem, etc - the stories he tells are as bland as decaf coffee. It's like painting a picture of daily life in Italy using only photographs of tourist attractions in Rome.

In short, this graphic novel is a massive missed opportunity to illustrate the vibrancy of life in Palestine (including in Gaza). Instead, it recites Wikipedia-style casualty statistics and fails to acknowledge the structural problems at the heart of the conflict. I sympathize with the Palestinian plight, but I've come to believe that the two peoples are at heart incompatible: the Palestinian refugees of the Nakba want to fight and reclaim their land, and (right-leaning) Israelis want to expand an exclusively Jewish State, but Hamas is outgunned (resorting to terrorism targeting civilians, which the IDF is obliged to respond to) and Israel cannot move either (due to humanitarian concerns, internal politics, and international pressure). Instead we have the PLO and an apartheid, a torn Jewish state and a subservient Arab state. Like white vs black in a chess match, I see no resolution, until enough time passes and enough pieces are lost and forgotten, at which point they'll draw.

[Jurij Fedorov · Rating 4 out of 5]

Usually I right away try to figure out the bias. The pro-Palestine books are typically anti-Israel. While there are no pro Israel books or neutral books - at least I haven't ever seen one. But right away there is a giant issue here not about bias. This comic book artist is not some expert. He was randomly called and they wanted him to see West Bank and Gaza over 10 days and write about the poor conditions. 10 freaking days? That's a vacation stay how is this enough? If you are a comic book artist anyhow then go live there for months. Jerusalem has a very strong Christian and Jewish cartoonist culture with plenty of help and support. And there are plenty of areas where you can stay dirt cheap and draw anything you like. Or even stay for free if you ask nicely. Maybe even make a blog to earn a bit extra each month from supporters who want to see the book come alive.

They visit West Bank and show us how the law is a bit vague. We see some Muslims who bought land there for 100 camels. Yet it's not quite clear who they bought it from. The book makes it seem like they have ownership of it, but never tells us if they registered this with Israel. Their houses are often demolished, but it seems like their whole quarters is considered illegal by the country. They talk about how Muslims get a lot of kids to outcompete the Jews. Which is a bit creepy, but I guess this is what they do geopolitically to "win". The author has a cartoony drawing style and just presents Palestinian anecdotes and his own experiences in a fluffy manner. His own experiences are a bit fun. He shows great poverty yet also affluence as he stays in fancy hotels for the 10 days. I do think the overall picture may be a tad misleading. How many Gazans can afford an expensive hotel stay? At times it's surely $100 a night which may be their budget for a week for a full family. He constantly eats in fancy diners and buys expensive tourist knick-knack. Yet he draws the poverty and does interviews too. He never follows up on anything so whatever stories about Israel attacks or demolishment they claim are printed here blindly. He nearly fully ignores any conflict history or explanations for how it works. Rather he mentions a 1967 war in West Bank and then a 2014 Gaza war, yet we don't know anything about it. We just hear about what the Palestinians retell in their story of suffering. When Joe Sacco wrote his book he interviewed Palestinians who wanted to kill civilian Jews. Of course here all that is fully ignored. We see a ton of fancy restaurants and happy people. It looks like a tourist guide more than a book about any grand geopolitical issue. He never once asks anyone about their opinion about anything. It really looks like a book to entice volunteer workers. And Spain right now is extremely anti-Israel. So such a book may convince many young people to travel there and help out for free. Yet I must say I wouldn't really believe the situation is this safe and nice. This is propaganda in a way you expect.

It's not bad and shows you a few new things with plenty of info. Yet it's a tad short and focuses on the monetary issues not any conflict. Of course he also doesn't interview any Jews or Israelis. This an NGO book only to describe poverty to get more funding. So people have to be happy and the situation has to be made to look solvable. Yet post the October 7 terrorist attack on Israel at least the Gaza situation is fully different. They are attacking Israel with rockets and Israel is attacking them back and it keeps going. Israel has solved the Syria issue for now as many terror attacks came from there. They solved Hezbollah for now too. But Hamas is still getting support from many Muslim nations like Qatar and Iran. And unless that situation is solved, ergo Hamas removed, I think all of these fancy plans for water plants and sewers are quite moot as Hamas is digging up waterpipes gifted to Gaza by Israel to make rockets they then shoot at Israeli civilians. And for an NGO this is a terrible situation as anything you give Gaza Hamas takes and uses for war. I would love to see a follow-up book in Gaza once the war is over and reconstruction starts. That would be extremely fascinating. The West Bank stuff I feel is quite nothing. It's an issue that's mainly about land rights right this moment so that part is "solved". Honestly it's an legal issue that should involved lawyers not just be described from one side as I still don't understand who owns what land there.

[Lanica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love that this book was made! More like it need to show the ‘other side’ of what we see in the news or other published media. I work in an elementary school, and I think this book is just too dense to keep my students (pre-k through 5) reading. I would definitely buy it for a middle or high-school.

This book is a travelogue of an artist hired to see the reality of Palestine. It has hints of greatness, but it only shows us hints. Rather than going in depth on any single bit of information, it skims from one interesting piece of information to another. I would have loved to have seen this as a collection of a half dozen graphic novels each focusing on a different village, sector, or event. I want to hear all the details. This seemed rushed and more of a helicopter tour then a actual visit to a foreign land.

I would absolutely recommend this book to school librarians, as well as public libraries or building a personal library. It is a great start for learning about the Palestinian people and the challenges they face on a daily basis. It has a lot of details and stories that would be great for starting discussions. Thank you Action Against Hunger for setting this in motion and funding it. It was a great idea!

Note: Readers will probably enjoy this book more if they know that the author has few statements that make it clear the the bias of this book favors the people of Palestine. There is a subtle message of disapproval for the Israelis and their treatment of the Palestinians. I don’t mind that, because most books I’ve read have a definite pro-Israel slant. Buying this book will help build balance into the average library collection.

[Genevieve Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

This graphic novel outlines in detail a Spanish cartoonist's NGO-guided trip through Palestine. It's drawn in kind of a Tintin-like cartoon style, and is full of information: specifics on the rules and limitations that govern Palestinian life, procedures for passing border wall checkpoints, sewer systems in Gaza, etc. It was interesting to see the ins and outs of how Palestinians live, and the inconveniences of being under occupation that most people can't imagine without having been there.

I was a little disappointed, though, that Life Under Occupation was so heavy on logistics and comparatively light on human stories. Obviously you can't delve deeply into the life story of everyone you meet on a trip that took like two weeks, but was a little frustrating to get like 3 pages of panels on "and I met this person from the NGO and this person from the NGO and this person from the NGO" and like 2 boxes about meeting a village headman whose family lived in plastic tents with no water or electricity.

[Wayne McCoy · Rating 4 out of 5]

'Life Under Occupation' by Jose Pablo Garcia is a non-fiction graphic novel about the author's trip to Palestine with the group Action Against Hunger and the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation.

The graphic novel has plenty of serious moments, but the author has lighter ones as well, like when he was initially asked to go on the trip and had to endure a series of meetings. There is also the time, his sketchbook is commandeered by a child. Less humorous are the arduous border crossings into Palestinian territory, and the destroyed houses and livelihoods. The graphic novel presents things pretty factually without taking particular sides, except that of a member of an aid organization trying to help people.

I liked the art. It was a really great style, and the author seems like he's got compassion as well as a sense of humor.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Europe Comics and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Life under Occupation is a graphic nonfiction book about the hardships and oppression facing Palestinians in the territories. The author, José Pablo García, gives us a story to connect to rather than citing dry facts to show the horrible conditions yet this is only somewhat successful. While the author shows the protagonist interact it is not intimate or deeply felt. This does not make it a bad book. The facts in of themselves speak to the appalling conditions especially the lack of water and this is what made me fall deep into the book and engage with it. It is a political book and I mean this in the best way. I came away knowing more about the consequences of the occupation and the terrible harm done and follow the Middle East conflict more closely than ever.

[Elia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This a very interesting and educational book, since I know almost nothing about the background of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. It was especially interesting to see the stories through non-American eyes! (The author is Spanish, and so may have a different perspective on what's happening there than an American would).

[Carol Tilley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Less frenetic and detailed that Joe Sacco's excellent PALESTINE, but this one stands as an approachable and informative introduction to life under occupation.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tough to read about, but well done. Interesting to have facts but they were sometimes too dense. It affected the narrative.

[Alberto Castelló · Rating 3 out of 5]

Correcto, nada del otro mundo pero siendo corto es una forma amena de conocer algo (a alto nivel) del conflicto Israel - Palestina

[Alberto · Rating 3 out of 5]

Una especie de resumen de la situación en Palestina: como uno de Joe Sacco a la española sin profundizar mucho en las historias y un dibujo menos detallado aunque efectivo.

[Liz (Quirky Cat) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 1/2 stars.

I received a copy of Life Under Occupation from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Life Under Occupation is the true story of Jose Pablo Garcia’s travels to and through the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Not only was it a great read, but it’s an educational one too. If you’re looking to learn a bit more about what is happening here, or why it’s such a conflicting issue, this is a good first step.
Now, I’m not going to claim that Garcia offered us every minute detail of the trip, and that by reading this you’ll have an academic understanding on what is occurring in Palestine. But it will give you a comprehensive view and understanding of what he personally witnessed, as well as several stories of others, as told directly by them to him.
I do feel that Life Under Occupation spent a little too much time focusing on the travel aspect, instead of putting aside more time to talk to real people with real issues. While I have no problem with the former, the title gave me the impression that we’d be hearing mostly from people actually living under these conditions (as opposed to a person traveling through them). Perhaps a change in title would have prevented this confusion.
On the whole I really enjoyed reading Life Under Occupation. It did a fantastic job of being open and accessible, while also talking about very real and serious subjects. I appreciate all of the effort Jose Pable Garcia went through, at the request of the AECID (Action Against Hunger and the Spanish Agency for International Development). I hope this proves to be the stepping stone Garcia was looking for.

For more reviews, check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks

[Anx · Rating 3 out of 5]

Illustrates Israeli-Palestinian conflict in a simplified manner so it’s easier to understand. But obviously very skewed

[Andréa]

Note: I received a digital review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.