Jerusalem

Guy Delisle expertly lays the groundwork for a cultural road map of contemporary Jerusalem, utilizing the classic stranger-in-a-strange-land point of view that made his other books, Pyongyang, Shenzhen, and Burma Chronicles, required reading for understanding what daily life is like in cities few are able to travel to. In Jerusalem: Chronicles from the Holy City, Delisle explores the complexities of a city that represents so much to so many. He eloquently examines the impact of the conflict on the lives of people on both sides of the wall while drolly recounting the quotidian: checkpoints, traffic jams, and holidays.

When observing the Christian, Jewish, and Muslim populations that call Jerusalem home, Delisle's drawn line is both sensitive and fair, assuming nothing and drawing everything. Jerusalem showcases once more Delisle's mastery of the travelogue.

Review: Superb book of reportage from that city. -- Rachel Cooke * Observer *
His witty observation and beautiful pictures are delightful. -- Sarah Ison * Times Higher Education *
A witty, wise graphic travelogue that says more about everyday life in the region than all the news reports and "gritty" features. -- Chris Moss * Sunday Telegraph *
A wonderfully candid book, which makes the situation's hideously insoluble complexities more vividly understandable than anything else I have encountered. -- Rupert Christiansen * Daily Telegraph *
My other favourite graphic book of the year... makes breathtakingly light work of one of the world's most complex political situations. -- Rachel Cooke * Observer *