I was excited to read Black Paradise because it was graphic novel set in Nigeria and based on the book description seemed to have an intriguing story line. Yet, I walked away very disappointed. The only thing beautiful about the book were the illustrations, which by the way were superior. What I found was a book filled with negative tropes about Africa and the people. The premise was that Hans and his family relocate to Nigeria because he has a great job opportunity. He and his wife, Katie, thought it would be a great opportunity to live in paradise. But that is not what they found. To illustrate this, the author chose to focus on all the negative aspects of Nigeria including the poverty, political unrest, and corruption in business. That's fair because there are those aspects in Nigeria. However, what I found disheartening is that the author Veerle Hildebrandt decided to create a story that played up all the negative stereotypes of African/black people. At first, I thought she was going to use this book to debunk those stereotypes because she initially had Hans and Katie being uncomfortable associating with the expatriates who made racist remarks and treated the local people with disdain and disrespect. Yet, they began to buy into the thinking as well. The Nigerian women were sexualized. According to the expatriate wives that's all the black women were about. In fact, they warn Katie to keep an eye on her maid because all of the men were sleeping with black women. And true enough, her housekeeper is the initiator in an affair with Hans. If they weren't a maid, then they were strippers. All of the men frequent a sex club called "Black Paradise". The Nigerian men are slow and backward thinking. For example, the children ask the gardener to use his shovel to bury a bird they found dead covered in ants. He says "Bury a dead bird? You should it instead!" The author later shows the gardener digging it back up and the kids question--did we eat it? And a stereotypical book about Africa wouldn't be complete without including the trope of "black magic" because aren't these people backward in believing in hexes. And the author doesn't disappoint making "juju" an important part to the story. After reading the novel , I was left wondering what was the point of the book. It definitely was not to humanize people that have historically been made one dimensional. If the author had chosen another country outside of Africa, would this have been how she would depicted a paradise gone wrong? I will never know. What I do know is that I cannot endorse this book.

I truly tried to enjoy the book,especially because the illustrations were intriguing.

Even if the author was probably trying to emphasise some characters’ traits, I found the plot somehow racist and so full of stereotypes that I could not enjoy reading the story.

I dont think I have ever read a book about Europeans living and working in Nigeria and so I was intrigued to find this graphic novel telling the story of a German family who move to Lagos. The husband and wife are very idealistic about life in Nigeria but six months down the line their family is stretched to the limit and work and life is stressful.

Life in Nigeria is materially comfortable but restricted. Their young daughter goes to a German school where she struggles with her studies. The wife finds she doesnt get on with the other German expatriate wives who treat their Nigerian servants like dirt and have a huge dose of white superiority.

The country is unstable and this makes it hard to do business and then the husband decides to have a fling with the servant girl. What strikes the reader is the way the lives of the expatriates are so limited. They might have wealth but they struggle to cope and their lives do not go beyond the self-imposed barriers of their lives. The only time the Germans break down the barriers and get to know Nigerians is when the men go to a strip club. (Insert eye roll here).

As I read this I was counting down how long the family would last in Nigeria. No spoliers here so you will need to read it for yourself. The artwork was ok but it was the content of the story that intrigued me. It felt as though the author had experienced life in Lagos himself.

The wife observes the poverty and dire circumstances in which many Nigerians live but it isn't this which truly upsets her. As she observes the erosion of her marriage she realises that she needs to act to save her marriage and family, and that means a return to Germany but she knows she will have to plan a way out for them.

It is a fascinating and irritating depiction of expatriate life and a lesson for anyone who thinks that the grass is greener on the other side. A place may look like a paradise, it may even be a paradise but there were also dangers in the garden of paradise. It is a really interesting story with good artwork.

Copy provided by Europe Comics in exchange for an unbiased review.

'Black Paradise' with script and art by Veerle Hildebrandt is about a German family that moves to Nigeria and what happens.

When Hans gets a new business opportunity, he moves his wife and daughter to Nigeria. Their house is a walled compound with barbed-wire. They find out it's available because the previous occupants had to vacate when a tank was driven in to the house. They have a friendly relationship with their housekeeper, Wanda, but the other whites treat the blacks as lesser. The men frequent a nightclub for fun and to bribe others for work. Things go from bad to worse for them until they leave the country and head back to Germany.

The story is mainly told from the daughter's perspective, but she approaches the environment from privilege and that attitude doesn't seem to differ. Perhaps a better perspective would have been from the housekeeper's viewpoint. The art is loose in style and not my favorite.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Europe Comics and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

The development of the plot was better than I expected. I am not a frequent graphic novel reader, except for a close study of Maus. Occasionally reading graphic novels brings me a movie feeling. The drawings are nice, suitable for young adults. I like the sections too. Plot twist is the most applaudable part in the book, where takes a step back to the past and tell what actually happened. The aesthetic of the novel is a bit remote from my taste, The depth of the book is there, but with graphic as a method, I feel it is hard to convey the profoundness of the racial issue. Calling the book Black Paradise, I feel it should have a bit more contrast, at least color wise. In addition, the racism thing is mainly expressed through the conversation, which I'd venture to think it is inadequate. The style of this graphic novel gives little room to imagination, which to me is a down point as well.

Post-colonialism isn't much better than being a colony, espically when the white men are still in control, or are trying to be in control.

Hans and his family go from Germany to Nigeria to work for a company that bribes the local government to get them fuel and other things they need to run their factories. Hans thinks he can change things, but he finds that things work differently there.

<img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-5273" src="https://g2comm.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Screen-Shot-2019-07-09-at-9.26.21-PM.png" alt="Black Paradise" />

And the wives treat the black locals like they are less than nothing, their maids must obey without question.

It is all a rather depressing story.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

Black Paradise was an interesting illustrated story and the art was colorful and eye-catching. Another polished graphic novel from Europe Comics.

The artwork was absolutely to my taste, however both the plot and the character development left a lot to be desired.