I Never Thought I'd Go on a Journey with a Crazy Cat....

             Good evening, fellow bloggers and readers.  Shalom to you all, within a shelter from the raging storm outside (uh yes- tornado warnings and all).  A dark and stormy night seems to be a suitable setting for this week’s read, as I greet you from Algeria.  I just finished reading the adventures of Kitty in Joann Sfar’s graphic novel The Rabbi’s Cat.  Ah, Kitty:  his commentary kept me more than amused, start to finish. 

This graphic novel was a vast contrast to another graphic novel I have read and love, Zorro.  Unlike Zorro, Joann Sfar both wrote the text and illustrated the graphics for the novel.  Isabelle Allende wrote the story of El Zorro, while Matt Wagner put the story into text, and Francovilla did the artwork.  The artwork itself was really interesting.  The Rabbi’s Cat has a much more apparent cartoon-feel.  However, notice that Sfar creates distinction and importance through how detailed his characters are in each image.  Check out the panels of Kitty on page 92, as he thinks seriously and nervously about his mistress’ pending marriage.  Sfar also sticks with the more traditional graphic novel appeal:  straight-lined panels that never alter in size, that consistently read from left to right.  Francovilla took to a more modern and eye-catching approach for Zorro.  He shows the reader which way to proceed:  my eyes practically interacted with the action of the text, as his panels have fluctuating gutters, big images, and zig-zag sequences.  Sfar’s gutters never change, but they are uneven and give the feel of homeliness.  I actually liked how he used zooming in and out within his images because it gave me a more classic comic book-feel.  I mentioned earlier of the storm I am enduring, which brings me to the use of color.  Pages 103 and 108 have panels of gray and rainy images that define the family’s mood toward Paris. Panels of their home in Algeria are sunny yet tastefully muted in sandy colors.  Interested now?  That’s one of the best things about graphic novels:  they feed one’s imagination visually as well as textually.

            Oh, you know what?  I believe that one of things that make this graphic novel the most interesting is the main character himself.  Uh, for one, it’s a cat and the story is told from his point of view.  Secondly, he’s not your typical protagonist.  Okay.  To be honest, Kitty can be a biased jerk.  For instance, when Kitty’s master asks his rabbi for a Bar Mitzvah for Kitty, the rabbi responds no (as we are told arrogantly by Kitty’s thought bubble), yet his voice bubble reads “Tututut” (Sfar 17).  Nice job Kitty, you’re a little vague on the details there.  That is, the useless, contradictory, and unimportant details to Kitty are omitted to his liking.  So, here we have a genuine unreliable narrator.  Kind of scary, huh?  Yes, it is indeed an experience to be under the guidance of Kitty.  He reminds me of those people in your life who are brutally honest when they can find pleasure in it, and who lie, refracting, when they don’t want to be badgered.  Basically, the types of people you may try to avoid from time to time. 

            Oddly, I found myself having one thing in common with Kitty:  the habit of constantly questioning and contradicting religious beliefs.  I, however, have more to say about Church, as a religious institution.  Kitty likes to take things a step further and question the truth of God.  He fires back after the rabbi’s rabbi states “that only God is true” and responds “that God is a reassuring myth.  I say that he doesn’t have anyone to take care of him because he is old and his parents are dead” (18).  Jeez, Kitty, seriously harsh much?  The master asks the same question as I pose on the very next page.  The questionably moral Kitty replies “I’m just trying to tell the truth, to see how it feels.”  Yeah, I bet he enjoyed that way too much!  

            Go ahead, get to know Kitty for yourself and report back to me.  I love graphic novels, more in the superhero line (you know how much I adore Batman), but The Rabbi’s Cat makes for a fun read too.  Adios, my friends:  until next time…if there is a next time?  Let me know what you think!  It’s been a pleasure writing to you.

MATCH TONIGHT: Bad Babamukuru VS Nervy Nyasha

         Good evening fellow bloggers and readers!  Mhoroi to all (Yes- Mhoroi means hello in Shona)!  My greetings come to you this week from Zimbabwe, where our current author's roots lie.  Tsitsi Dangarembga, writer of Nervous Conditions, has been brave enough to show readers a new point of view in the world of colonialism.  After reading her true-life accounts, I now have a better understanding of how the white-European mindset was planted in the minds of Africans.   She boldly unveils how it can uproot and detach one from their home and their self.
          Well, I guess we should begin by becoming acquainted with the contenders of tonight's match.  Ladies and gentlemen:  in corner number one, standing grizzly at around forty-years old, we have Bad Babamukuru!  He is selfish, egotistical, and crudely overbearing.  In this patriarchal society, Babamukuru calls himself King.  Pfff.  (Boo!)
          In corner number two, standing just about five foot, our brave fourteen year old, we have Nervy Nyasha!  She is rebellious, truly intelligent, and hard working.  In this patriarchal society, she has been given two choices:  Bow down to Babamukuru or suffer the consequences.  (Goo Nyasha!)
         I was extremely disturbed by the fight that took place.  I believe that Babamukuru was out of line:  he accused Nyasha based on his assumptions.  Might I say, that as teenagers, almost all of us experience this trust issue with our parents.  "Where have you been young lady?"   Jeesh, I know that they worry because they love me, but was the tenth degree necessary those times?  So, take this situation which almost all of us have had and can relate to, then multiply it by one million.  Babamukuru completely crosses the line when he escalates from questioning to torturing.
          I do believe my mouth dropped wide open when I read of Babamukuru climbing on top of Nyasha, who was already in "her miniscule skirt riding up her bottom."  This was a sickening case of sexual abuse, poor Nyasha, and it only grew worse.  Babamukuru proceeded to call her a "a daughter who behaves like a whore," layering on the verbal and mental abuse.  I soon feared for Nyasha's life, for he continued to beat her until it looked as though "he would kill her with his bare hands."  What also bothered me at this point was the action, or gross lack thereof, on the sidelines.  Maiguru, Tambu, and Chido all stood there silently, watching Babamukuru nearly take the life of his fourteen year old daughter.  Ugh!  Uh, hello?  A little help please?  And then, the family called Nyasha selfish for sulking after that horrific event.  Good grief!
           Yet, it is their silence and Babamukuru's actions that uncover the ugly affects of colonialism.  No one interfered with the fight because they were all brainwashed into believing Nyasha deserved to be punished for defying her patriarch.  Unlike the English mindset of those characters, my clear mind had a great respect for Nyasha and for her bold attitude.  I simply could not understand how the onlookers could be so spineless as to let such abuse go on!  However, I later realized the white European mindset was that powerful.  It cultivated, grasped, and lived off of the fear one had of not being accepted in society.  Dangarembga is telling us to resist the poison of such colonialism.  I agree with her, for the only place one should feel the need to be accepted is in one's self.