United States of Banana
A Graphic Novel
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4.0 • 1 Rating
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- $19.99
Publisher Description
“I was a monument to immigration—now I’m a border control cop.” So admits the Statue of Liberty in Giannina Braschi’s United States of Banana, a rollicking and nakedly political allegory of US imperialism and Puerto Rican independence. Illustrated by Swedish comic book artist Joakim Lindengren and based on Braschi’s epic manifesto by the same title, the story takes us along on the madcap adventures of Zarathustra, Hamlet, and Giannina herself as they rescue the Puerto Rican prisoner Segismundo from under the skirt of the Statue of Liberty. Throughout their quest, the characters debate far-ranging political and philosophical subjects, spanning terrorism, global warming, mass incarceration, revolution, and love. The Marx Brothers, Pablo Neruda, Barack Obama, Disney characters and more make appearances in this stirring call to overthrow empire, liberate the imprisoned masses, and build a new country rooted in friendship, art, poetry, and laughter.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Braschi (Empire of Dreams) adapts her poetry collection, with Swedish artist Lindengren, into an incisive if sometimes mystifying critique of colonialism in graphic form. Braschi, Zarathustra, and Hamlet sustain a conversation with the Statue of Liberty that morphs into the story of Segismundo, a Puerto Rican man obsessed with unpacking Puerto Rico's colonial history. This core conceit is wrapped in layers of strangeness, meandering subplots, and bizarre elements. Besides the four main characters, the tale is packed with appearances by a variety of historical figures and art that echoes myriad influences. Donald Trump and Don Quixote occupy neighboring panels, poet Rub n Dar o pops up, and artists such as Edvard Munch, Salvador Dal , Pablo Picasso, Ren Magritte, and M.C. Escher all make cameos. The amalgamation is stimulating to the point of overwhelming, presented as an exercise in "thinking through big ideas aloud," but absent the explainer introduction by a pair of academics, the density of imagery and allusion in this heady mix begs for more organizing structure. Metatextuality, pastiche, and intertextuality coexist with David Bowie, pop culture, and Abraham Lincoln, but nothing gets enough space to shine.
