Boxers & Saints by Gene Luen Yang

Title: Boxers & Saints
Author: Gene Luen Yang
Release date: September 10, 2013
Pages: 325, 170

One of the greatest comics storytellers alive brings all his formidable talents to bear in this astonishing new work.

In two volumes, Boxers & Saints tells two parallel stories. The first is of Little Bao, a Chinese peasant boy whose village is abused and plundered by Westerners claiming the role of missionaries. Little Bao, inspired by visions of the Chinese gods, joins a violent uprising against the Western interlopers. Against all odds, their grass-roots rebellion is successful.

But in the second volume, Yang lays out the opposite side of the conflict. A girl whose village has no place for her is taken in by Christian missionaries and finds, for the first time, a home with them. As the Boxer Rebellion gains momentum, Vibiana must decide whether to abandon her Christian friends or to commit herself fully to Christianity.

Boxers & Saints is one of the most ambitious graphic novels First Second has ever published. It offers a penetrating insight into not only one of the most controversial episodes of modern Chinese history, but into the very core of our human nature. Gene Luen Yang is rightly called a master of the comics form, and this book will cement that reputation.

This boxed set includes the trade paperback Boxers as well as the trade paperback Saints, packaged together in one slipcase.

Boxers & Saints are two graphic novels chronicling the boxer rebellion from the perspectives of both the boxers and the Christian converts in China.  The first book, Boxers, is from the point of view of Little Bao, one of the figureheads of the Boxer rebellion.  The second book, Saints, is from the point of view of Vibiana, a young Chinese girl who converts to Christianity during the boxer rebellion.  The stories intertwine throughout  both books and the full story is truly told through both books.

Boxers & Saints might be made easier to read by their graphic novel format but they are not meant for readers much younger than high school age.  The story is brutal and graphic.  Older readers and older teen readers are going to be the ones to appreciate this story the most.

My full review!

Themes:

• war
• love
• family
• loyalty
• rejection
• religion
• bravery
• friendship

Extra content:

Between My Pages' review: "It offers a penetrating insight into not only one of the most controversial episodes of modern Chinese history, but into the very core of our human nature."

Emilie Hanson's review: "As a pair, both Boxers and Saints create a thought-provoking reading experience for readers young and old, inspiring questions as to how history is made and how much it depends on point of view."

Interview with Gene Luen Yang

Another interview with Gene Luen Yang