page_title: Habibi (graphic novel)
section_title: Reception
hierarchical_section_title: Habibi (graphic novel) / Reception
caption_attribution_description: English: Graphic novelist Craig Thompson at a September 20, 2011 signing for his book, Habibi at Midtown Comics Downtown in Manhattan. In the photo, Thompson has just sketched Dodola, the book's female lead, on the book's title page, and is signing his name below it, which he did for each book fans presented to him at the signing. Photographed by Luigi Novi. This photo is not in the public domain. It may, however, be used, modified and published for any purpose, free of charge, only if the photographer is properly credited, either by linking the photograph to this page, or with an easily visible credit to the photographer placed near the photo in each instance in which it is used. Please maintain the original file name in all uses. (See licensing information below.) Publication of this photo without this proper attribution constitutes copyright infringement. You can see a gallery of some of my other photos here. If you have any questions, you can contact me on my Wikipedia Talk Page.
context_page_description: Habibi is a black-and-white graphic novel by Craig Thompson published by Pantheon in September 2011. The 672-page book is set in a fictional Islamic fairy tale landscape and depicts the relationship between Dodola and Zam, two escaped child slaves, who are torn apart and undergo many transformations as they grow into new names and new bodies, which prove to be obstacles to their love when they later reunite. The book's website describes its concept as a love story and a parable about humanity's relationship to the natural world that explores themes such as the cultural divide between less developed countries & more developed countries and the common heritage of Christianity and Islam.
  While it has been lauded by publications such as Time, Elle, Salon, NPR and reviewers for the beauty of its visual design and epic setting, it has also been criticized for misrepresenting various elements such as sexuality and its depiction of Arabic culture.
context_section_description: Douglas Wolk of Time magazine called the book "as grand and sustained a performance as any cartoonist has published... and that every mark on the page can be a prayer". Lisa Shea of Elle magazine wrote, "Thompson is the Charles Dickens of the genre... [and] Habibi is a masterpiece that surely is one of a kind" Neel Mukherjee of Financial Times observed that the book was "executed with enormous empathy and something that in earlier times would have been called divine inspiration." Laura Miller of Salon stated, "a big, rousing, unabashedly tear-jerking Dumas novel, with fascinatingly intricate designs and fabulous tales on almost every page." Inbali Iserles of The Independent predicted that "The book is destined to become an instant classic, confirming the author's position among not only the most masterful of graphic novelists but our finest contemporary writers, regardless of medium." Glen Weldon of NPR commented, "Of all the books I've read this year, the mysterious, marvelous Habibi is the one I most look forward to meeting again." Jacob Lambert of The Millions called the book "The Greatest Story Ever Drawn." John Hogan of the Graphic Novel Reporter commented, "I don’t usually look at books in-depth here in the introduction to the newsletter, but I have to make an exception in the case of Habibi", and proceeds to call Habibi "easily the best graphic novel of the year, and probably the decade...This is a work that truly changes the game and sets a new standard for all the graphic novels that follow it."
  Michel Faber of The Guardian praised Habibi as "an orgy of art for its own sake", and calling Thompson an "obsessive sketcher" whose artwork he categorized with that of Joe Sacco and Will Eisner. Although Faber lauded the book's visuals and its message, he found both its length wearisome and its treatment of sex to be problematic, in particular the repeatedly sexual cruelty visited upon Dodola, which Faber felt caused the story to fold in on itself.
  Natalie du P.C. Panno, writing for The Harvard Crimson, called Habibi "exquisite", seeing Thompson's use of Arabic calligraphy and geometric designs as a third dimension that, when added to the familiar graphic novel languages of image and text, broadened the possibilities for expression, perhaps more so for readers who do not know what it means, and must be guided in its interpretation. du P.C. Panno also praised the sensitivity with which Thompson executed his portrayal of Orientalist tropes, particular by the end of the book.
  Charles Hatfield of The Comics Journal conducted a round table discussion of the book featuring himself, Hayley Campbell, Chris Mautner, Tom Hart, Katie Haegele, and Joe McCulloch. Most of the panelists applauded Thompson's visual storytelling, calling it "gorgeous", "mind-altering", "lavish", and singling out elements such as Thompson's use of false light, and the "poignant" image of the wooden ship in the desert. More than one panelist compared Thompson's artwork positively to that of Will Eisner, in particular the fisherman from the story's final act. Also praised were the use of Arabic calligraphy and numerology, the intertwining of Biblical and Koranic vignettes as subplots with the main story, the scripting of Dodola's challenge to "turn water into gold", and the parallels between motifs such as chapter numbers and their content, and between the river and blood. Hatfield thought that the book's range of themes, from environmentalism to anti-Islamophobia, to thinly-veiled allegories about water rights, racism, pollution, slavery and rape made the book "way too big for elegance". By contrast, Mautner in particular thought Habibi was a smoother read than Blankets, which he felt featured too many subplots. Hart and McCullough agreed that Thompson's tendency to delineate every little detail which such obviousness left little to the reader's imagination or interpretation. The most recurrent complaint was with the book's bleak outlook on life and humanity, and the sexual cruelties inflicted upon the characters, which some of the reviewers thought was e
caption: Craig Thompson sketches Dodola in a copy of the book during an appearance at Midtown Comics in Manhattan, on September 20, 2011, its release date.
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