The Arrival
The Arrival
Written and illustrated by Shaun Tan
South Melbourne, Lothian Books, 2006
9" x 12"
Kerlan Collection, Children's Literature Research Collections
University of Minnesota Libraries
An Australian artist of Chinese heritage, Shaun Tan adds a phantasmagorical dimension to the classic scenario of an immigrant's bittersweet departure from his home country and his arrival in a strange new land. In this wordless, comics-style narrative, rows of small sepia-tone drawings of colossal cities and looming beasts suggest images preserved in an old photo album-documentary proof, Tan implies, of an experience so unsettling that it must be seen to be believed.