A Game for Swallows To Die, To Leave, To Return

Abirached, Z. (2012). A game for swallows : to die, to leave, to return. Minneapolis : Graphic Universe. Zenia and her brother live with their parents in an apartment in Lebanon in 1984. During this time, Lebanon was going through a Civil War that had lasted for over 9 years. They live in a second floor apartment on the splitting line of Beirut into the Islamic west and Christian east. They always had to be cautious of possible bombings and snipers, so they would seclude themselves to the foyer of their apartment since it is the safest place should a bomb hit the building. The neighbors even find their foyer as a safe haven during the bombings. One evening, the parents had not made it home from their grandmother’s house on the other side of Beirut during one of the bombings. They receive word that they had left an hour ago and the children begin to worry because it shouldn’t take them long to get home from their grandmother’s house. Zenia and her brother wait for their parents in the safe spot in the apartment and one by one, the neighbors begin to trickle in to check up on them, comfort them, and share food with them. The parents arrive safely back home and struggle with the idea of starting all over, leaving their community and friends, but living a safer and comfortable life. The family receives their papers to leave the country and ultimately making the decision that it is in their best interest to move on. Abirached description of her personal accounts during these turbulent times gives the reader an insight of the struggles that people in Lebanon had to endure during the Civil War. Her accounts also through the pictures and conversations, display the culture and traditions of family and neighbors helping one another to survive the violence. Related books: War Brothers: The Graphic Novel by Sharon E. McKay and The Great American Dust Bowl by Don Brown.