The White Donkey: Terminal Lance - Hardcover

Uriarte, Maximilian

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0316362832 ISBN 13: 9780316362832

Publisher: Little, Brown and Company, 2016

Synopsis

New York Times Bestseller

A graphic novel of war and its aftermath.

A powerful, compulsively page-turning, vivid, and moving tribute to the experience of war and PTSD, The White Donkey tells the story of Abe, a young Marine recruit who experiences the ugly, pedestrian, and often meaningless side of military service in rural Iraq. He enlists in hopes of finding that missing something in his life but comes to find out that it's not quite what he expected. Abe gets more than he bargained for when his journey takes him to the middle east in war-torn Iraq.

This is a story about a Marine, written and illustrated by a Marine, and is the first graphic novel about the war in Iraq from a veteran. The White Donkey explores the experience of being a Marine, as well as the challenges that veterans face upon their return home, and its raw power will leave you in awe.

About this title

About the Author:

The White Donkey was written and illustrated by infantry Marine and Iraq veteran Maximilian Uriarte, creator of the hit comic strip "Terminal Lance." Uriarte enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in 2006 at the age of 19 and served for four years. During his first deployment to Iraq in 2007 he served as an MRAP turret gunner and dismount of India Company's "Jump" platoon in the Zaidon region southeast of Fallujah. He deployed to Iraq again in 2009 as a billeted Combat Photographer and Combat Artist, then enrolling in California College of the Arts. In 2010 Uriarte created the popular comic strip "Terminal Lance" while still on active duty. The strip is now published in The Marine Corps Times and has grown immensely in popularity, with 450,000 Facebook followers and one million unique hits per month.

Review:

Winner of the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation 2017 James Webb Award

One of Barnes & Noble's Best Comic and Graphic Novels of 2016

One of The Los Angeles Times' 10 Most Important Books of 2016

"It was 2010 when Uriarte, a lance corporal in the Marine Corps, created the online comic 'Terminal Lance,' which swiftly developed a fan base. Using some of the same characters, he created a more serious and involved graphic novel, THE WHITE DONKEY, based on his 2007 deployment in Iraq."

―Carolyn Kellogg, The Los Angeles Times

"A masterpiece."―Ray Olson, Booklist (starred review)

"Combines a casual, straightforward dramatic style with clear, no-frills art that draws readers into his characters' everyday experiences and then wallops them with the tragedy of ordinary life...Both respectful to the military and its role and sympathetic to the delicacy of the young soldiers, the story's power lies in a middle-ground view of the ongoing social conflict, seeking to bridge understanding on both sides."―Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"In many ways, The White Donkey is one long illustrated deployment journal.... Yet, tucked into the panels and frames, are those singular moments that, like a rock cast into a pond, send their ripples out almost infinitely-altering lives and ending others. The White Donkey follows the tremors, backwards and forwards, and manages to illustrate what feels like a 'true' war story and a lonely chapter in a war our country is trying desperately to forget."―The Washington Post

"Few books pack the punch of The White Donkey. Uriarte has a genius for details that illuminate the truth and pull you into the story with cinematic fervor. He uses the art form itself to punctuate his pacing and immerse you in the inner reality of a marine's life.... Uriarte puts it all on the page for a story that is hardcore and haunting. A brilliant addition to wartime literature. A+"―JeriAnn Geller, Booktrib

"In The White Donkey, a sense of alienation pervades Abe's experience. He endures the tedium of war, the yearning for action to gain legitimacy in the eyes of fellow Marines, and, finally, the horror of combat... all drawn with stylized realism."―The Wall Street Journal

"A vivid and gripping tale.... For my brother Marines: this book is mandatory.... And for our civilian friends that are always asking, 'What's it like in the Corps?' this book will help you to understand. Even more importantly, it could help you help someone who may have returned to the civilian world with invisible wounds."―John Absalom, Maui Time

"Spiked with bitter and obscene humor, this debut and first-ever graphic novel about the Iraq War from a veteran reveals the cynical tedium of daily life in combat and how voluntary service can lead to an existential crisis of self-blame. Compelling."―Martha Cornog, Library Journal

"A palpable reminder of how text and art can craft an unspoken, and in a sense, indescribable narrative power."―Narrative Species

"The White Donkey examines our expectations of war according to what the media has showed us. Uriarte is concerned with how the war impacts people who are expected to transition back to a civilian world that understands the conflict in terms of The Hurt Locker and American Sniper."―Matt Young, The Rumpus

About this edition

• Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 0316362832
• ISBN 13: 9780316362832
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 288