Barefoot In The Dark, by Dennis O’Neil
I don’t know when I first saw an English edition of Barefoot Gen. It was probably sometime in the mid 70s, when I was editing for the modest enterprise that has become the mighty Marvel Entertainment. In those days, a lot of stuff crossed editorial desks and we read most of it, if not all. So: Japanese comics? Sure, I’ll give it a look. It was probably my first experience with manga and I remember feeling a mild taste of cognitive dissonance – a perceived disconnect between subject and form. (I am choosing to ignore, because it’s a bit off-subject, the hybrid of cartooning and illustration that’s most superhero art.)
The subject was grim. Barefoot Gen is the autobiographical tale of a child who witnessed and survived the atomic bombing of Nagasaki. But it was presented in a visual style I would have described as “cartoony.” Like most American pop-cultch consumers, I associated bright, simple, exaggerated drawings – cartoons – with material that was at least supposed to be humorous, and there was nothing remotely funny about Barefoot Gen. It was, and is, a powerful anti-war document and, because it is that, deeply humane.
It’s creator, who did both art and copy, is named Keiji Nakazawa, and Barefoot Gen is his story. He had this to say about it: “People should be told what happened. If you live through something like the A-bomb, you know that war is too horrible not to be avoided at all costs, regardless of the justifications offered for it.”
The work first appeared in 1972 as a serial in a mass market Japanese publication, Shukan Shonon Jampu (and perhaps some kind reader will translate that for us). Later, it migrated to smaller magazines, and later still, it was published in English as a paperback book series. The most recent English iteration appeared in 2004, with an introduction by Art Spiegelman.
And although I haven’t read this particular edition, I feel safe in proclaiming it this week’s Recommended Reading.
Keiji Nakazawa’s message is one we’ve all surely heard before, but it bears repeating and repeating until the world finally heeds it, and it especially bears repeating in an election year that is marred by inexcusable violence abroad. As for his method: I’m not sure that cartooning, with its plasticity, expressiveness and simplicity – qualities not often linked in so-called “fine art” – is not a good medium to represent something “too horrible not to be avoided at all costs.”
And speaking of fine art, and abruptly changing tone and subject…On Sunday, June 22, Stanford Carpenter and Peter Coogan and a bunch of comic book guys will be at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s in New York City to do panels as part of the Met’s superhero costume exhibit. Although I’ll be there, I don’t exactly know what I’ll be doing, and I’m not sure exactly what’s on display, but I know and trust Drs. Carpenter and Coogan and I’m sure the event will be worth a visit. Afterward, if the weather’s nice, you can treat yourself to a walk through Central Park.
RECOMMENDED READING: Barefoot Gen by Keiji Nakazawa, as noted above.
Dennis O’Neil is an award-winning editor and writer of Batman, The Question, Iron Man, Green Lantern, Green Arrow, and The Shadow – among others – as well as many novels, stories and articles. The Question: Poisoned Ground, reprinting the second six issues of his classic series with artists Denys Cowan and Rick Magyar, is on sale right now, and his novelization of The Dark Knight will be available any moment.
Last year, my nephew entered a "National History Day" competition. He did a project on the Atomic Bomb and the bombing of Japan. I suggested that he use "Barefoot Gen" as source material. He ended up making the book part of his display. Some of the judges of the competition were confused by having a comic book in a history display. Other judges were very impressed that he was hip enough to know about "Barefoot Gen" and use it as primary source material. He ended up doing very well and was recognized at the state level. I had read a short volume of this more than 25 years ago. Amazon.com said that Barefoot Gen is being presented in an all new translation of a TEN part series. I hadn't realized the work was that large. Amazon.com only seems to carry four volumes. Volumes 5 and 6 just came out in April, 2008. Volumes seven to ten haven't been translated yet. Last Gasp (the USA publisher) has all six.http://www.lastgasp.com/1/9/0/0/barefoot/gen/Shūkan Shōnen Jampu is Weekly Shonen Jump, an anthology series that sells THREE MILLION copies a week in Japan. A WEEK! It has sold as many as SIX million a week. It started in 1968 and is still running strong. It's about the size of a phone book. Shonen Jump is responsible for many of the manga and anime series that pervade our culture, including Yu-Gi-Oh, Bleach, Naruto, Dragonball Z, the list goes on and on. "Shonen" means "young boy" in Japanese. So I guess a rough translation is "Weekly Young Boys Magazine."http://www.japan-zone.com/modern/manga.shtml
Thank you for your column recommending Nakazawa's _Barefoot Gen_. As for your claim that "there was nothing remotely funny about Barefoot Gen," I have flipped through my copy of the first volume and you are more right than I had remembered. I frequently show the first of the two animated feature films that Nakazawa made about Gen to students, and in that film, lighter scenes appear between the heavier ones to give viewers a chance to catch our breath, laugh and identify more strongly with the characters. As part of the preparation for that powerful film, I have my students read Nakazawa's comic book _I SAW IT_ (_Ore wa Mita_), in which he tells his life story in comic book format without the fictionalization of Gen. Although I published it in 1982, I have boxes of them left and would be glad to send a free copy of that comic book to your readers for a self-addressed stamped envelope sent to EduComics, box 45831, Seattle, WA 98145-0831, USA.
Thank you, Leonard. That's a fantastic gesture — I read I SAW IT, and I recommend it most highly to one and all.How much postage should folks stick on the envelope?
Mike, I notice that "promotional comments may be removed." If the moderators permit me to add this one thing, I will be glad to work out the details with anyone who writes to me at rifas@earthlink,net. I included your endorsement of _I SAW IT_ in the article I wrote about republishing NAkazawa's work, "Globalizing Comic Books from Below: how manga came to America," which was published by the International Journal of Comic Art. I remain grateful for your support.
Thanks for the review, and to Russ for noticing that volumes five and six were out. I've ordered them, should have them in a few days. I also didn't know there were more than the four books, much less ten books total, until the new editions came out, and with the long gap was afraid sales didn't warrant continuing. And I strongly recommend taking Leonard up on his offer for I SAW IT. Beautiful book, Leonard, thanks for publishing it.Regarding the new editions of the first four books, I reviewed them a while back. I looked at the differences in how they flipped the artwork in this post and outlined the three major extended scenes (really whole storylines, about 150 pages) over here.
Thanks for the review, and to Russ for noticing that volumes five and six were out. I've ordered them, should have them in a few days. I also didn't know there were more than the four books, much less ten books total, until the new editions came out, and with the long gap was afraid sales didn't warrant continuing. And I strongly recommend taking Leonard up on his offer for I SAW IT. Beautiful book, Leonard, thanks for publishing it.Regarding the new editions of the first four books, I reviewed them a while back. I looked at the differences in how they flipped the artwork in this post and outlined the three major extended scenes (really whole storylines, about 150 pages) over here.