The Photographer

The Photographer
by Emmanuel Guibert [958.1 qGui]

Sometimes distance, language and culture are barriers to understanding a country. Afghanistan has been a country in an area of the world of great mystery for most Americans. Afghanistan was pushed to the forefront of American news after 9/11. I picked up The Photographer after reading about it on the American Library Association's recommended nonfiction reading list for 2010. The Photographer combines the diaries and images of French photographer Didier Lefèvre's and fill in the blank illustrations of Emmanuel Guibert to tell the fantastic and dangerous account of a French Doctors Without Borders team in 1986. In 1986 Afghanistan was at war with the Soviet Union. The Photographer takes the reader through the treacherous Hindu Kush Mountains with a caravan that must avoid targeted roads while the country is at war. The caravan's purpose is to deliver people and supplies to remote regions of Afghanistan. The Photographer includes two unconventional elements which make it a very exciting read. One is in its visual presentation. Using a mixture of b&w photographs and drawings I felt as though I was reading a unique documentary movie. Guilbert's The Photographer is a travel diary, photo book, and graphic novel all in one. This is a unique must read for those curious about Afghan culture and history. [If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try The 9/11 Report or Waltz with Bashir.] recommended by Glory B. - Bennett Martin Public Library


[ official Emmanuel Guibert web site ]

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