Hello, I’m Raul Duke and I’m a comic book geek.  I’ve spent thousands of dollars and collected many thousands of comic books and graphic novels over the years. I have a very well crafted argument for comic books as literature and have been known to attend the occasional comic book convention.  I tell you this as a sort of full disclosure and to help put this review into context.  Pride of Baghdad is one of the best graphic novels I have ever read.

Pride of Baghdad is written by Brian K. Vaughan (Y: The Last Man, Runaways, Ex Machina) and illustrated by Niko Henrichon (Barnum!).  Pride tells the true story of a pride of lions who escape from a zoo after a U.S. bombing of Baghdad in 2003.  After being “freed” from life in captivity, the lions are lost, confused and starving while roaming the streets of a decimated city.  Brian Vaughan and Niko Henrichon craft a beautiful and harrowing tale loaded with nuances both political and moral which force the reader to consider if freedom is truly something that can be given or must be earned instead.  Pride is a story that will raise many uncomfortable questions without shoving ideals down the reader’s throat.  The art has a water-colored look, saturated with earthy tones which capture the sun drenched locale and the tone of the story.

Next time you find yourself in a book store, take a trip over to the graphic novel section and pick up Pride of Baghdad. It’s one of the finest graphic novels ever published.

9.8/10 Near Perfect.

Mahalo,

Duke