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4.17 AVERAGE
4.17 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
informative
sad
fast-paced
Graphic novels can be used to incredible effect, especially with laying out stories that may have otherwise go unheard. Moreover, its the type of medium where you can take in a panel for an infinite amount of time, as a way to stop it.
I had never heard of the Spanish photographer Francisco Boix or the Mauthausen concentration camp before, until now. This is a semi-factual account about the life and death in the camp as well as the incredible feat, he partook in, of stealing negatives of photos taken by the Nazis that were later used as evidence to expose the atrocities there.
The artists never shy away from displaying the horror and hardships lived there. The art is very intricate with deep, stark lines and dark, pale colours. The narrator's POV helps with immersion into that world and yet, as it is said later, I won't know what it was really like as I didn't live through the atrocities. There are many questions raised here, about doing the right thing and persistence to fight for a greater good with high risk when your life can be numbered at any time, and what happens when something you have fought for so hard is negligible in someone else's eyes. Worst of all, your mere survival suggests to them that you were a collaborator.
I would have appreciated a note regarding what parts of the novel were embellished. As the author mentions in the foreword and I could see for myself, even those freed may not have lived to tell us their story.
I had never heard of the Spanish photographer Francisco Boix or the Mauthausen concentration camp before, until now. This is a semi-factual account about the life and death in the camp as well as the incredible feat, he partook in, of stealing negatives of photos taken by the Nazis that were later used as evidence to expose the atrocities there.
The artists never shy away from displaying the horror and hardships lived there. The art is very intricate with deep, stark lines and dark, pale colours. The narrator's POV helps with immersion into that world and yet, as it is said later, I won't know what it was really like as I didn't live through the atrocities. There are many questions raised here, about doing the right thing and persistence to fight for a greater good with high risk when your life can be numbered at any time, and what happens when something you have fought for so hard is negligible in someone else's eyes. Worst of all, your mere survival suggests to them that you were a collaborator.
I would have appreciated a note regarding what parts of the novel were embellished. As the author mentions in the foreword and I could see for myself, even those freed may not have lived to tell us their story.
For the most part, I would say that most of the world is very familiar with the concentration camps that held the Jews. But, there were others that were held as well, and this story tells of one such camp which held Spanish communists, that Franco didn't care about, and let the Nazis have. They were tortured just as much as the Jews, killed, beaten, starved, and experimented on.
François Boix, was a photographer, who fled from Spain, during the Spanish Civil War, to France, just in time to be captured by the Nazis, and put in Mauthausen. There, he manages to survive, and gets a job shooting photos of the deaths of his fellow inmates, because the Nazis, for some reason, want to document it. Perhaps it is art, as they tell him, perhaps it is something else.
And the overwhelming feeling Boix has, through all this, is that these pictures must be preserved at all costs, that the pictures have to get out into the world. That when this is all over, that there will be punishment for those who have done this horrid deeds.
Most of the book is him trying to figure out a) how to survive and b) how to get these photos out into the world.
The sad thing is, he manages to do both. This is not giving away anything, of the story, since the story opens with him being free, but the part where he goes to the Nuremberg trails, and tries to get his story heard is so sad. They only want revenge, they do not want to hear his story.
A little slow in bits, where he is trying to figure things out, but well done, and based on the life of a real person, written from information of those who lived with him, at the camps, and stories passed down.
Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.
François Boix, was a photographer, who fled from Spain, during the Spanish Civil War, to France, just in time to be captured by the Nazis, and put in Mauthausen. There, he manages to survive, and gets a job shooting photos of the deaths of his fellow inmates, because the Nazis, for some reason, want to document it. Perhaps it is art, as they tell him, perhaps it is something else.
And the overwhelming feeling Boix has, through all this, is that these pictures must be preserved at all costs, that the pictures have to get out into the world. That when this is all over, that there will be punishment for those who have done this horrid deeds.
Most of the book is him trying to figure out a) how to survive and b) how to get these photos out into the world.
The sad thing is, he manages to do both. This is not giving away anything, of the story, since the story opens with him being free, but the part where he goes to the Nuremberg trails, and tries to get his story heard is so sad. They only want revenge, they do not want to hear his story.
A little slow in bits, where he is trying to figure things out, but well done, and based on the life of a real person, written from information of those who lived with him, at the camps, and stories passed down.
Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.
dark
informative
tense
medium-paced
Graphic novel about the Spanish photographer, Francisco Boix, who was a prisoner of war in the Nazi concentration camp Mauthausen. Boix is given the job of documenting death in photographs and works to secret the film from the camp to show the atrocities at the risk of the lives of all the prisoners.
Narrated by a Spanish photographer, Francisco Boix, The Photographer of Mauthausen, is a gripping look at the atrocities the Spanish experienced during WWII in the concentration camp of Mauthausen, Francisco volunteered for the French army and was arrested when the Nazis invaded and immediately ended up in a level 3 work camp- no one is meant to get out alive.
The focus of this graphic novel is of Francisco working with other Spanish prisoners to get film negatives out of the camp to expose the Nazis. The artwork, drawn by Pedro Colombo, is so realistic and somber that you could almost envision what it may have looked like in these concentration camps. I highly recommend this graphic novel to anyone interested in WWII history as it is a story many would not be too familiar with.
The focus of this graphic novel is of Francisco working with other Spanish prisoners to get film negatives out of the camp to expose the Nazis. The artwork, drawn by Pedro Colombo, is so realistic and somber that you could almost envision what it may have looked like in these concentration camps. I highly recommend this graphic novel to anyone interested in WWII history as it is a story many would not be too familiar with.
There is so much I’m constantly made aware of that I don’t know. I am so thankful to stories and writers like this that share these stories.
The photographer of Mauthausen is a Historical Fiction/ Non-Fiction Graphic Novel based on true events. Actually the author himself have disclaimed that the dialogues between the characters are only guesswork so we can safely say it as retelling based on true events in the life of Francisco Boix.
Francisco was Spanish press photographer and belonged to communist party. During the onset of WW2 he fled to France. But unfortunately he was handed over to Germans as War Prisoners. All the war prisoners are usually sent to Mauthausen concentration camp.
It is called as "Bone Mill" by Germans because it is category 3 camp, meaning no prisoner to come out alive. Unlike extermination by gassing in Auschwitz, Mauthausen does it by slave labor and exhaustion.
The book starts when Francisco arrives at the camp. He soon join the secret communist party inside and gets a job in Identity Department as Photographer. When a SS documenting the death of Prisoners comes to know about Francisco's interest in photography, he takes him for his pet project.
As Francisco learns the nature of his new work, he realizes it will be their only chance to collect proofs of whats happening in these concentration camps and expose the Nazis to world. At first many people agrees and help him. But they eventually stop when the risk of getting caught becomes inevitable. So he must do the final act with a help of small boy whom he sworn to protect. It puts all the life of prisoner in danger.
It is must read graphic novel! The artwork is Dark, Gloomy and not joyful complementing the story it tells. I even verified all the major events mentioned in this book and found it to be true. I gained lot of knowledge from this read! There is also a movie in the same name of you are interested. It is an IMPORTANT read and I will rate it 4 ⭐
Francisco was Spanish press photographer and belonged to communist party. During the onset of WW2 he fled to France. But unfortunately he was handed over to Germans as War Prisoners. All the war prisoners are usually sent to Mauthausen concentration camp.
It is called as "Bone Mill" by Germans because it is category 3 camp, meaning no prisoner to come out alive. Unlike extermination by gassing in Auschwitz, Mauthausen does it by slave labor and exhaustion.
The book starts when Francisco arrives at the camp. He soon join the secret communist party inside and gets a job in Identity Department as Photographer. When a SS documenting the death of Prisoners comes to know about Francisco's interest in photography, he takes him for his pet project.
As Francisco learns the nature of his new work, he realizes it will be their only chance to collect proofs of whats happening in these concentration camps and expose the Nazis to world. At first many people agrees and help him. But they eventually stop when the risk of getting caught becomes inevitable. So he must do the final act with a help of small boy whom he sworn to protect. It puts all the life of prisoner in danger.
It is must read graphic novel! The artwork is Dark, Gloomy and not joyful complementing the story it tells. I even verified all the major events mentioned in this book and found it to be true. I gained lot of knowledge from this read! There is also a movie in the same name of you are interested. It is an IMPORTANT read and I will rate it 4 ⭐
The Photographer of Mauthausen is the semi-factual account of Fransisco Boix, a Spanish photographer captured in France and taken to the Nazi concentration camp Mauthausen. When it's discovered he speaks German, soldiers use him to translate insults and derogatory remarks to their victims. He ends up in a position developing film for Ricken, an evil man intent on creating photographic art out of death. Fransisco believes the film negatives are his only chance at telling the true story of what took place at the camp and decides to sneak them out at any cost: whether it be his life or that of others.
Historical fiction isn't a genre I read often but this story sounded like one I needed to hear. Its graphic novel form ended up making it the perfect medium to read it in because the artwork provided a direct window into the past. The coloring was also done beautifully: fires seemed to glow in dim scenes with grim colors. The storytelling held suspense and I found myself on the edge of my seat a few times as Fransisco needed to make hard but important choices in life-threatening circumstances. This was a really good read and I recommend to anyone who enjoys historical-based stories or enjoys first-person accounts.
Trigger Warning for graphic images of death.
Thank you Dead Reckoning Publishing for providing an eARC via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
Historical fiction isn't a genre I read often but this story sounded like one I needed to hear. Its graphic novel form ended up making it the perfect medium to read it in because the artwork provided a direct window into the past. The coloring was also done beautifully: fires seemed to glow in dim scenes with grim colors. The storytelling held suspense and I found myself on the edge of my seat a few times as Fransisco needed to make hard but important choices in life-threatening circumstances. This was a really good read and I recommend to anyone who enjoys historical-based stories or enjoys first-person accounts.
Trigger Warning for graphic images of death.
Thank you Dead Reckoning Publishing for providing an eARC via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.