next night.
I get a smile and a small pot of food.
Penn has many friends here.
Do you know somewhere
he can find day work?
Soon, I have friends, too. I make the
wipes last as long as I can. The wipes
came to me for nothing."
This is a powerful and moving graphic novel that has at its heart one young orphan from Ghana, and his horrendous journey to find a new home. Ebo's older sister Sisi is in Europe. His brother Kwame is on his way as well. Ebo is living with his uncle, but wants to be with his siblings.
At the outset, we know that he has been reunited with Kwame, as we meet the two on an overcrowded boat drifting on the open sea, hungry and being chastised for the two even being together. It is considered bad luck for family to travel together in such circumstances.
Flashbacks, created by Giovanni Rigano in sepia tones, show Ebo in his village and as he begins his search for family. It is almost two years earlier, and Ebo has just discovered that Kwame has gone. Village boys taunt him:
"Forget it, Ebo.
He's gone already.
He got on the dawn bus.
Can it be that your only brother
left forever and did not tell you, Ebo?
Perhaps he doesn't care about you."
Ebo is gifted with three things: a voice meant for singing, a strong and optimistic nature, and enthusiastic ambition. Though poor and alone, he believes that he will find his family. Searching for Kwame in a refugee camp in Niger, Ebo is told that Kwame has gone already to Agadez. By chance, he finds him there. Reunited, they are now faced with the struggle of so many refugees in the world today: to find safe passage to a better place in Europe, always in hopes of finding Sisi as well.
Moving back and forth from then to now, readers are made very aware of the dangers, the disillusionment, and the persistence needed to find a way out. Their need for water is ever-evident in the outstanding panels created to help tell their story. Such beauty and desolation sit side by side as the brothers board the boat, and endure the appalling conditions. It is a struggle that seems never to end.
Sensitive to its characters, and raising difficult issues, it is a story that will long stay with readers. No punches are pulled in telling this refugee story that is all too common. While heartbreaking, it ends with a sense of hope that allows readers to think that some good might come from this long journey taken. There are far too many Ebos in this world, and we need to know their stories. They are not the nameless, faceless people of news stories, once front page news and now rarely mentioned. They are human beings who deserve peace, and safety.
Back matter includes Helen's story, as told to Women for Refugee Women, and adapted by the creators. A map and a note from them is also included.
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