Shaun Tan's The Arrival

I've just read Shaun Tan's The Arrival.

I enjoyed the ride. Never a dull moment, though the images successfully illustrate a long passage of time. No dialogue, and no narration. Not a single word of English. thought the story is vague, it has incredibly clear concepts. A man that immigrates for the good of his family, presumably to get a job and send money back, aid them in coming to the new world.

Though the world he leaves resembles our own more than the new world, the entire book has an other worldly sense, grounded only by the human forms, and their expressions.I took the dragon like tails, spirals and shadows over the city as a metaphor for destruction, war, perhaps depression or corruption in the city. And yet, when the man arrives in the new world, the imagery is not recognizable. And so, I can only assume that it was to keep an audience at the man's side, understanding his confusion. (What with the Internet, we can "travel" the world easily) I found that it was effective, and I appreciated the imaginative portrayal of everything the main character encountered. The simplicity and ancient art inspired design was beautiful. I love the designs of the animals that follow the humans. I'm not sure what they are. The closest thing I could think was a Golden Compass-esque "soul beside the body" deal. And yet, our main character find his in a bin. Nonetheless, they keep the sense of wonder as the story progresses, with each new character having one of their own.

The main character is beautifully rendered..realistic proportions, with a soft pencil edge. We do not hear this character talk, he only emotes. And with this addition, we're even more attached to this character, as he introduces us in to the new world as the audience travels with him.

Along with the main character's journey, the book occasionally dips into the life of the acquaintances he makes, a brief history of each. Whether they escaped a similarly threatened country, or fought in a far away war, the clarity of the images brings the same understanding and empathy.