Buy New

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
Buy Used
Used - Very Good See details
Price: £7.06

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
   
Trade in Yours
For a £0.80 Gift Card
Trade in
More Buying Choices
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
Sorry, this item is not available in
Image not available for
Colour:
Image not available

 
Tell the Publisher!
I’d like to read this book on Kindle

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

Burma Chronicles [Paperback]

Guy Delisle
4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
RRP: £12.99
Price: £8.96 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
You Save: £4.03 (31%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
Only 9 left in stock (more on the way).
Dispatched from and sold by Amazon. Gift-wrap available.
Want delivery by Friday, 24 May? Choose Express delivery at checkout. See Details

Formats

Amazon Price New from Used from
Hardcover --  
Paperback £8.96  
Amazon.co.uk Trade-In Store
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. Learn more.

Book Description

8 Sep 2011

Guy Delisle's newest travelogue revolves around a year spent in Burma (also known as Myanmar) with his wife and son. Burma is notorious for its use of concealment and isolation as social control: where scissor-wielding censors monitor the papers, the de facto leader of the opposition has been under decade-long house arrest, insurgent-controlled regions are effectively cut off from the world, and rumour is the most reliable source of current information.

An impressive and moving work of comics journalism from the author of Pyongyang and Shenzen.


Frequently Bought Together

Burma Chronicles + Pyongyang: A Journey in North Korea + Shenzhen: A Travelogue from China
Price For All Three: £26.84

Buy the selected items together


Product details

  • Paperback: 272 pages
  • Publisher: Jonathan Cape (8 Sep 2011)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0224096184
  • ISBN-13: 978-0224096188
  • Product Dimensions: 15.1 x 1.9 x 21.3 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 26,520 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, and more.

Product Description

Review

"Simply put, Burma Chronicles is the most enlightening and insightful book on Burma in years... If you must visit Burma while it remains under the rule of the iniquitous junta, do so with the express intention of bearing witness to the tragedy and suffering of its people. Better still, stay away, and visit it instead through the pages of this heartbreaking, educational and insightful comic masterpiece" (Guardian )

"As a counterpoint to the often inaccessible news stories about the country, this is an excellent portrait of a little-understood land, and makes for a deeply original and fascinating piece of travel writing" (Daily Telegraph )

"Hilarious and touching" (Dazed )

"This book is more fun than most holidays and more enlightening than a hundred blogs by self-appointed experience censors" (Time Out )

Review

`completely engaging...excellent portrait of a little-understood land, makes for a deeply original and fascinating piece of travel writing'. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store

If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store. Learn more

What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?


Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Round the corner from 'The Lady' 23 July 2009
Format:Hardcover
A few years ago I went through a little graphic phase. After being enchanted by Chris Ware's Jimmy Corrigan, a graphic novel which showed the literary possibilities of the form, I quickly happened upon a very different kind of graphic experience in the political travelogues of Joe Sacco. First published by Fantagraphics his series of strips on Palestine were collected together by Jonathan Cape and led me onto his travels into Bosnia and Sarajevo. I guess part of the appeal was to have an easily accessible format to get some basic education about the politics behind those particular areas of conflict (pictures, and everything), but there was also something I loved about the self-deprecating humour and those moments where the shock of reality cut through the page, literally in black and white.

Following in a similar vein Guy Delisle produced a book called Pyongyang, a unique depiction of life in that most secretive of states. Again using simple black and white illustrations Delisle employs a similar humorous approach. Sent to North Korea as part of his work with a French animation company he spends lonely nights in a hotel, wishing for better coffee and food, leading a curious existence as he is marshaled around areas that the government deems fit to see. Slowly he is able to see more of the hidden parts of the country, getting a better idea of the life of ordinary Koreans and the realities of being part of the 'Axis-of-Evil'. That work continued with a trip to Shenzhen in China and his latest travelogue comes from Burma (or Myanmar).

The slight difference with his latest book is that it is his partner's work with MSF (Médecins Sans Frontières) that has brought them there along with their baby son Louis. For a young father like me there was so much that I found familiar from my own travels with tot that the opening few pages had me grinning in recognition. A simple hotel room becomes a gauntlet of power sockets, taps and sharp corners all of which seem to have been designed to tempt young children and torment their parents. Having finally baby-proofed the room he is able to wander the streets of another dictatorship, slowly adapting to custom and tradition. That wry humour is given ample room to entertain, the baffling nature of life in a foreign country somehow amplified by his duty of care to young Louis. The locals of course are charmed by the baby, totally ignoring his father (something I'm all too familiar with) as they pass the baby around.

Burma is of interest of course because it has been ruled by a military junta since 1962 and the leader of the opposition Aung San Suu Kyi has been under house arrest for 13 of the last 19 years. Delisle finds out that the house in which he is staying is literally around the corner from her own, and determines to make a daily pilgrimage to attempt to see her (foreigners are not allowed access to her street) allowing us to see how well he can combine the political and the domestic (the next day he is far too busy bathing his son).

The domestic side was of great appeal to me but for a general readership there are clear examples of the oppression which seems to arouse little protest only because that opposition is so effectively silenced. There is also something about the length of time that Delisle spends in each destination and the graphic form itself which makes it perfect for illustrating those simple details which may evade the casual traveller and yet prove to be emblematic of the country and its culture. His frustrating search for ink with which to make his drawings takes us on a wild goose chase through the local bazaars ending in a great panel, smudged and running, where he is forced to use the fountain pen ink he knew wouldn't work. The three days he spends inside a non-touristy Buddhist retreat give him an entirely new perspective (literally) on the buildings he has been looking in on for the preceding months. Through his regular walks through a park he sees a few prayer notes attached to a tree grow into many, and then a fully fledged shrine begins to develop. That public display of faith depicted in three simple panels.

Sometimes a light touch is all that is needed to expose the banality of life under oppression. The combination of the form, the content and the humour makes Delisle's work accessible and enjoyable but that lightness shouldn't mask the potential importance of them as documents. Through his short exchanges with locals and aid workers he often sums up in a few sentences the essence of the problem or hypocrisy. There's no substitute for the testimony of those living and working in any situation and it could be said that through his books Delisle is proving that old adage about the pen and the sword.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Well worth it 21 Feb 2012
By jake55
Format:Paperback
Unusual but really excellent book for those about to travel to Burma, gives a flavour of the country with wit and humour, yet also sensible. My daughter finished it in one sitting and got a lot out of it.
Highly recommended.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant! 1 Jun 2010
By BusyB
Format:Hardcover
Another excellently drawn and narrated look at another Asian country. Touching, thought provoking, humorous. Further testimony to this guy's deep humanity and eagle eye. Don't miss it.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?   Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
1.0 out of 5 stars Cartoon time
Did not realise that the whole of this book was a cartoon- and although it was amusing in a sinister sort of way , i did not feel the description of the product was clear, and it... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Diana Terry
5.0 out of 5 stars The third graphic novel by Guy Delisle
This is the third Guy Delisle graphic novel, similar to Pyongyang, this book takes you into a forbidden country. Read more
Published 4 months ago by EvanderJR
5.0 out of 5 stars Great
I love the work of Guy Delisle and Burma Chronicles doesn't disappoint. I do think that you have to really like Guy otherwise it could be like having a conversation with someone... Read more
Published 12 months ago by Aftiti
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Product
Very easy to assemble and use. Worked great even on our communal garden that is very uneven and hadn't been mowed in years. Read more
Published 12 months ago by Gordon
3.0 out of 5 stars Intrigues and Frustrates...
Like so many ex-pat books this is one long self-indulgent moanologue: "Things are not the same as they are at home! Read more
Published on 18 Nov 2010 by stevieby
4.0 out of 5 stars Another excellent read from Delisle
Having been introduced to Delisle's work with the excellent Pyongyang: Journey in North Korea - I'm happy to say that Burma Chronicles is of equally high quality. Read more
Published on 18 April 2009 by Sinbad
5.0 out of 5 stars Delisle fan
We love all Delisle's graphic novels - from Shenzhen, Pyongyang to this on Burma. On this latest, you get snippets of info on Burma which are not leaked out to the mass media. Read more
Published on 10 April 2009 by PK
Search Customer Reviews
Only search this product's reviews

Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   
Related forums


Listmania!


Look for similar items by category


Feedback


Amazon.co.uk Privacy Statement Amazon.co.uk Delivery Information Amazon.co.uk Returns & Exchanges