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Boxers and Saints are hard to review for me. In some ways, Gene Luen Yang's art and dialog seems so boiled down that I felt that some of the nuances of an incredibly culturally, religiously, and historically important series of events might lost, but somehow it wasn't. It was so refreshing for me to read Boxers and Saints, because unlike many creators several comic books and graphic novels that have been released recently with the growing popularity and acceptance of these media as legitimate art forms, Gene Luen Yang is a consummate visual storyteller. Also, I'm not a huge fan of magical realism, but Yang makes it not only work, but enhance the storytelling and and communicate the essence of events, rather than just seeming like a gimmick to explain inconsistencies and impossibilities, which I feel often happens with stories containing magical realism.
My biggest complaints for Boxers and Saints are the following:
1) I think that it should've been issued as two parts of one book rather than in separate volumes, since reading them together better communicates the complexity of events, emotions and character decisions, and might help prevent some readers from feeling like Yang sometimes favors one "side" over another.
2) I wish that Yang had included some sort of foreword or afterword highlighting the importance of the historical events, or at the very least encouraging readers to investigate the "additional reading" material cited at the end of each volume.
3) I wish there were more so that I wouldn't have to dig into the "additional reading" for more information! :)
My biggest complaints for Boxers and Saints are the following:
1) I think that it should've been issued as two parts of one book rather than in separate volumes, since reading them together better communicates the complexity of events, emotions and character decisions, and might help prevent some readers from feeling like Yang sometimes favors one "side" over another.
2) I wish that Yang had included some sort of foreword or afterword highlighting the importance of the historical events, or at the very least encouraging readers to investigate the "additional reading" material cited at the end of each volume.
3) I wish there were more so that I wouldn't have to dig into the "additional reading" for more information! :)