A.D.

Starred review from June 1, 2009
American Splendor
artist Neufeld beautifully depicts the lives of seven New Orleans residents who survived Hurricane Katrina. In the dialogue-free opening chapter, “The Storm,” Neufeld powerfully intersperses images of the hurricane gathering speed with the cities it crippled when it hit Louisiana on August 29, 2005, specifically New Orleans and Biloxi, Miss. Readers are then introduced to seven New Orleans residents, from all walks of life and parts of the city. Denise and her family—mother Louise, niece Cydney and Cydney’s daughter, R’nae—join thousands of hungry and thirsty New Orleanians waiting to be evacuated after their apartment is destroyed. Leo, the publisher of a local music zine, and Michelle, a waitress, reluctantly leave the city for Houston and are devastated when their apartment (and Leo’s impressive comics collection) is flooded. Other characters flee, or try unsuccessfully to ride out the storm. Neufeld’s low-key art brings a deeply humanizing element to the story. Though the devastation caused by the hurricane and the government’s lackluster response are staggering, Neufeld expertly underscores the resilience of the people who returned to rebuild their lives and their city.

June 1, 2009
Graphic artist Neufeld paints an emotive portrait of New Orleans during and after Hurricane Katrina, as seen through the eyes of seven of the city's citizens.

The opening panels coalesce into a long cinematic pan, a thrumming setup for the disaster. The half-page and quarter-page panels—satellite views of weather patterns and close inspections of neighborhoods—are crisp, and the two-page spreads are softly focused. There are no spoken words for the ominous first 25 pages; gathering winds and lashing waters propel the narrative. Thereafter, the braided story of seven people involved in the events—three tell of their exodus and the after-effects, four ride out the storm and its wake at home—provides an intimate appreciation of their frazzled emotional states in response to varied tribulations. This is a Hydra-headed, daily-mounting experience in political malfeasance—Neufeld explores FEMA's failures, the menacing presence of the Army and police and the ineptitude of the government—spontaneous social engineering (tough guys distributing looted goods to the people stuck at the Convention Center and maintaining order), alienation of those who evacuated ("I think I could've stayed longer. I kinda felt like I wussied out") and the kindness of strangers. There's also plenty of misery, from the terror of the storm and the rising waters to the merciless heat and stink in the days after, with little potable water, food or medical supplies. Neufeld's words and images are commensurable and rhythmic, and the vernacular is sharp.

Bristling with attitude and pungent with social awareness.

(COPYRIGHT (2009) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

July 15, 2009
Hurricane Katrina brought devastation to millions of lives, including seven profiled here. Social worker Denise is penned in at the convention center. Young couple Leo and Michelle are evacuating and lose most of their possessions to flooding. Abbas and Darnell stay to guard their convenience store and end up on the roof. Kwame, the pastor's son, is sent to finish high school in Berkeley, CA. And Brobson, the doctor with an unscathed French Quarter residence, sets up a makeshift clinic. The simple and realistic art features color wash in different tones. Neufeld, who volunteered for the Red Cross after the storm, originally published his account as a web comic through the storytelling site SMITH Magazine. "I think a big part of me was swept away in that hurricane," admits Denise in this painful documentary of loss, speaking for thousands still rebuilding their lives. VERDICT An effective and moving model of comics with a social consciousness; strong language may limit access to adults in some libraries.M.C.

Copyright 2009 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2009
Culling from blogs and interviews and employing multiple viewpoints, Neufeld presents some stories of surviving Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. Although most residents evacuated, others remained, including Abbas and his buddy Darnell, Denise and her extended family, and Dr. Brobson. Each responded differently to the disaster. Abbas and Darnell viewed weathering the hurricane as a kind of extended camping trip. Denise and her family sought shelter in a destroyed hospital, at which her mother had worked. The doctor hosted a hurricane party. Still othersyoung couple Leo and Michelle, and teenage Kwamefled at the last minute. Those who stayed watched the city deteriorate from acknowledging a central government to operating with a tribal mentality, while those who left experienced deep loss, even though they werent fighting to stay literally above water. Most emerged scarred and possibly wiser. For college-bound Kwame, leaving was the starting point of a new life. Neufelds rough, even crude artwork sometimes fits the subject and sometimes makes reading a chore. Still, theres no denying that the subject is gripping.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)