We can never have two many comics testaments to the ongoing realities of the refugee crisis. Every time I cover one and add it to our dedicated Broken Frontier resource list on the subject I am left in awe at the courage of those forced to flee their homes and make terrifyingly dangerous journeys across continents and countries to some eventual form of sanctuary. They remain incredibly important accounts; ones that in any sane world would shame the “stop the boats” brigade into silence. Sadly though that’s not the reality we live in but, nonetheless, cartoonist Fabien Toulmé’s Hakim’s Odyssey is a vital addition to this bibliography.
What perhaps distinguishes Hakim’s Odyssey from some of its shelf-mates is its length. At around 750 pages and over three volumes Toulmé recounts the true story of Hakim, a young Syrian man displaced by the events in Syria in the early 2010s and forced to make his perilous way from his homeland to France and eventual reunion with his family. The three books cover each stage of that arduous trip; from Syria to Turkey; Turkey to Greece; and finally from Macedonia to France, his final destination.
Let’s address a legitimate concern about comics work dealing with the refugee crisis before going further because it’s one Toulmé himself recognises early on. Most comics practice dealing with this subject over the last few years has been filtered through Western eyes, and Toulmé acknowledges that Hakim’s Odyssey is no exception. In this regard the three volumes are based on many interviews Toulmé conducted with Hakim over many months, with its subject’s approval.
Toulmé looks to bring the complex story of Syria and Syrian refugees to the comics page beginning with Hakim’s life prior to the Arab Spring and before life in the country would change forever. With his safety in doubt after being arrested for helping protestors, Hakim is forced to leave behind his burgeoning plant nursery business and flee to Lebanon. Circumstances see him constantly on the move. While in Turkey he meets another Syrian refugee Najmeh who he marries, and has a son Hadi with.
When Najmeh’s family are able to officially join her father in France neither Hakim nor Hadi can get the proper paperwork to join them. Thus begins the most dangerous part of his travels including a harrowing boat trip on an inflatable vessel from Turkey to Greece; one which Toulmé captures in all its tense, unpredictable chaos in an extended sequence. Along the way we meet fellow refugees, some of whom will weave in and out of the story, and we are witnesses to both the hostility and the acts of kindness Hakim experiences. Stepping outside of the main thrust of the narrative, jumps forward in time also allow us to watch the growing friendship between Hakim and Toulmé.
Toulmé’s visuals use a straightforward clarity that gives us a deeper empathy with Hakim and his plight for its honesty and accessibility. This means that occasional moments of visual metaphor are made all the more striking when they are inserted into the flow of the story. Most importantly, though, it’s Toulmé’s understanding and acceptance of the immense responsibility he has to his subject that shines through in his art. The incredible sacrifices that Hakim makes, especially with a young child in tow, ensure that Hakim’s Odyssey is never less than a totally compelling read. Another fine piece of socially conscious comics work from the Graphic Mundi catalogue.
Fabien Toulmé (W/A), Hannah Chute (T) • Graphic Mundi, $29.95 (per book)
Review by Andy Oliver
