Shenzhen: A Travelogue from China & Pyongyang: A Journey in North Korea – Guy Delisle
In contrast to fly-on-the-wall documentaries, Delisle is ever-present in these books as in many ways they are as much as about him as they are the places he is staying. He’s working in the Far East for animation studios outsourcing their work, and the frustrations of dealing with language barriers, intepreters and foreign customs heavily pepper the narrative, as does the loneliness and boredom of being away from home in hotel rooms for long periods.
The two books differ in that Shenzhen is a more personal affair, focusing on his dealings with everyday people, his experiences as a foreigner in a strange land and the general insanity that the loneliness of such a position brings. Hardly anyone speaks English and he will sometimes go whole days without saying a word. Pyongyang on the other hand rarely sees him without an interpreter-chaperone and as a book has much more commentary on the bizarreness of the political landscape and the all-pervasive propaganda that shrouds the society. While Delisle clearly has preconceptions about North Korea – he brings Orwell’s 1984 with him in a fit of rebellion – he still manages to avoid a heavy-handed agenda, holding back from the scything critique about the realities of life for average citizens that I was expecting. Rather than painting things in a bad and uncompromising light, he paints them in a strange, quaint, bizarre and weirdly charming light, and each story still contains those beautiful, special, quiet moments that you get when travelling. Delisle himself has commented that these are by no means journalistic in nature as he feels there is too much of his own opinion in them.
One of the subtleties of the artwork in these is that Delisle caricatures himself in a simpler way than the rest of the cast, often drawing only his eyes as dots, omitting his mouth and also bestowing himself a uniquely angular nose. If we were to believe Scott McCloud’s Understanding Comics, this draws us in to his persona and helps us easily identify with it while his more detailed Korean and Chinese counterparts heighten the already existing culture divide, making them appear more foreign, alien and harder to relate to. The overall feel of the artwork in the book is one of informality, it’s all shaded by hand and there’s not a ruled line in sight as far as I can tell, not even among the panel edges, and this is very fitting with the non-journalistic, personal approach. The unintimidating nature – of both the art and the comic form itself – is very approachable and accessible, the uncluttered panels, simple layouts and comic timing all serve to draw you in without effort, with the end effect being more powerful than you expect.
Would I have preferred a more direct, incisive, balanced, investigative and journalistic approach to the subject matter? Not really as I don’t think I could have stomached it in this instance, Delisle’s sense of humour and eye for the personal brings a lot of much needed humanity to the table. Would it have worked if it wasn’t a comic? Undoubtedly, but I’m not sure I would’ve read it, something about Delisle simple and clear artwork brings these worlds to life in such a charming way. It’s hard to know what to say about them really as they’re so understated and disarmingly honest, all I can think of is that I will not hesitate to pick up his next book, Burma Chronicles, when it comes out.