Name: Red
ISBN: 9781553653530

Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas

Tells the story of Red, who, distraught over the kidnapping of his sister, is so blinded by revenge that he leads his community to the brink of war, in a work that blends Haida imagery with Japanese manga.

A Haida Manga

Referencing a classic Haida oral narrative, this stunning full-colour graphic novel documents the tragic story of a leader so blinded by revenge that he leads his community to the brink of war and destruction. Consisting of 108 pages of hand-painted illustrations, Red is a groundbreaking mix of Haida imagery and Japanese manga. Now available in paperback, the hardcover edition was nominated for the B.C. Bookseller’s Choice Award, a Doug Wright Award for Best Book and a 2010 Joe Shuster Award for Outstanding Canadian Cartoonist. It was also an Amazon Top 100 book of 2009. Red is the prideful leader of a small village in the islands off the northwest coast of British Columbia. His sister was abducted years ago by a band of raiders. When news comes that she has been spotted in a nearby village, Red sets out to rescue his sister and exact revenge on her captors. Tragic and time- less, it is reminiscent of such classic stories as Oedipus Rex and Macbeth. Red is an action-packed and dazzling graphic novel that is also a cautionary tale about the devastating effects of rage and retribution.

Fraser Simons

Amazing concept and execution. The artwork is incredible. The story itself is hard to follow at points, but it was basically revelatory that there is a final image constructed out of every single page, and the author encourages you to rip the pages right out of the book and arrange them into the final sequence at the back. I have a library book, so obviously I won’t do that. But I’d love to see images of the final thing, as that sounds incredible. 

But, I think then there is a legitimate barrier to entry as well. If you can’t really consume it properly as it is constructed and sold, while cool and interesting, it’s not accessible either. I got the broad strokes of the story but not everything, apparently. So, I think I can’t rate it 5 stars, but it certainly exceeded my expectations.

Katerina Thorson

I would like to give this book a 3.5/5 stars. I am currently taking a World Ingenuos course and I believe the text is perfect; however the issue I have is the formatting and structure of the storyline. While it's an important story that should not be ignored I believe that the artwork is slightly confusing - especially if someone has not be educated on the background information of the Indigenous group. However, the artwork is still gorgeous and it's understandable why the storyline is confusing because the story behind this is just as confusing and heartbreaking.

Red A Haida Manga

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