“Shaun Tan’s “The Arrival” documents one man’s journey to a new world. In this new world, everything is turned on its head and is entirely different from how the man lived his life in his old home. For the man, “familiarity” becomes a rarely used word; everything is different. The strangeness of everything in the new world comments on how to an immigrant, everything is seemingly foreign and is met with a sense of confusion.
But what is intriguing about The Arrival is that, not only does it comment on the strangeness and showcase all the changes and irregularities that someone in a new world would see and experience, there is always that strong sense of hope present, and I found that very uplifting.
This book is told entirely through the use of illustration (there is no text to feed the story to you) and as the reader you must rely on your own image-interpreting skills. A beautifully illustrated book.”
