Algeria is Beautiful Like America is a graphic novel memoir that tells one woman's story of her experiences learning about where her family came from, coming to terms with the rose-colored lens her family had put over a particularly dark time in Algerian history, and visiting her ancestral homeland herself.

The author, Olivia, grew up in France with her Algerian family – her grandparents fled with her mother from Algeria during its war for independence, which spanned 1954-1962. Now, I knew almost nothing about Algerian history when I went into this, and I wish I had known at least a little beforehand because it was at times hard to follow. Burton does some explaining, but I still had many questions. So here's my SparkNotes version:

France ruled over Algeria from 1830, until the Algerians achieved their independence in 1962. Burton's family are among a group of people that were labeled as "Pied-Noir," or Black Foot. This term was used to label French people who were born in (occupied) Algeria. Essentially, being a Pied-Noir came to be representative of French colonialism and the atrocities against the native population of Algeria.

There were a lot of problems with French colonial rule – the Pied-Noirs only represented 10% of the Algerian population, but had the majority of political power and own a large chunk of usable land. To become citizens, native Algerians would have to give up their Muslim identity, therefore very few native Algerians were citizens, and had little political representation. Everything started to come to a head after the last World War, and when it became clear that the Algerians would gain independence, the Pied-Noirs began an exodus from Algeria.

Olivia's family proudly declares their Pied-Noir heritage and status, but as she grows older, she begins to realize the negative connotations associated with the term. Olivia's family is also cagey about their opinions on Algeria's revolution, and she becomes more aware of her family's racism towards the native peoples and Muslims of Algeria.

A big part of Olivia's coming-of-age story is coming to terms with the reality of Pied-Noirs in Algeria, versus her family's good memories of living in Algeria before their life there ended as they knew it. As an adult, Olivia decides to do one thing her mother never wanted her to do for the danger of it: travel to Algeria herself, seek out the places in her mother & grandmother's stories, and try to find people who knew them to reconcile reality with stories.

Olivia's journey of learning hard truths about her ancestry was painful and poignant, and I think something a lot of Americans can probably relate to. It's a story of confronting difficult things but overcoming the discomfort to learn, educate, and become more aware for a better future. At the same time, Olivia's heartfelt desire to discover anything good amongst the darkness was moving – because there were good moments within the reality of her family's history. Not everything is black and white, but it's important not to ignore the black parts – I think that was the main moral takeaway of this story.

My main problem with this book was that I had a hard time following the history of Algeria – partly this is on me for not really knowing anything, and I didn't really expect this to be a history book... but the lack of context made the reading experience not-super-smooth for me.

I also found that parts of the story really wandered or took too long to get to the point. The more travelogue sections of the story I kinda skimmed. Finally... I think that the reveals about her family's history were somewhat underwhelming. Not meaning that they were boring, but I felt they deserved more time than they got. The moments where Olivia connects with native Algerians and Muslim Algerians felt more meaningful to me than the actual moments about her family history.

I did like the artwork, however – it has a very soft, pencil-sketch look that added some texture and softness to the illustrations. There's also a limited use of color that I found was an interesting choice – most of the color moments are solely in the illustrations of the photographs that Olivia takes along the way.

Overall, I'm glad I gave this one a chance. It got me off my proverbial butt and learning about something in world history I knew nothing about. I do feel however that the meat of the story and history of Algeria is very front-weighted, (and even then, I felt the history could have been a little more clearly explained), and I feel the ending needed more attention. Algeria is Beautiful Like America covered a tough subject, and in broader terms, its message about the discomfort we as humans most confront about our difficult pasts that resonated with me the most.

This book is the journey of Olivia as she travels back to Algeria, where her family is from.

I'll admit, the first 50 pages were difficult for me to get into and I almost set the book aside. The comic/graphic style didn't really work for me, especially as I was reading this on my Kindle.

After that, however, I enjoyed this travel-type memoir. I knew very little about Algeria and it was interesting to see what Olivia encounters as she experiences the country for herself. The only problem is that it's really just a vacation. This book doesn't dive deep into anything, really.

This is a graphic novel memoir/biography that explores layers of history, culture, ancestry, from a personal lens. I learned so much from this book, and the storytelling style is very authentic. It’s like a wonderful conversation with the author as these parts of personal history, landscape, politics, and culture unfold and the whole time you’re enthralled by shared human experiences. I just think this is a treasure. I will be recommending it often.

'Algeria Is Beautiful Like America' by Olivia Burton with illustrations by Mahi Grand is based on the author's trip back to the land of her ancestors and what she finds there.

Olivia only knew of Algeria from photographs and relatives. After her grandmother dies, she decides to go back and visit the places that her family left. She travels alone to a with no knowledge of the people or language, but finds so much along the way.

I really liked this story of history and conflict and family. I liked the journey and the strangers that take her in. The story is more text driven, but the illustrations are quite nice. I like the use of color for the photos that Olivia takes.

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

A young French woman seeks more information about her family's past in Algeria and explores the context about the political situation that she didn't understand as a child. Her solo trip to Algeria, which seemed to her at the outset to be somewhat dangerous and foreign, ends up being welcoming and full of surprising warmth. It's also uncomfortable for her as she gradually understands that her family was on the wrong side of history, and that no one in Algeria seems to hold that against her as much as she thought they might. She discovers the fallibility of humans, of memory, the generosity of strangers, and the beauty of the landscape. For a reader unfamiliar with the complex history of Algeria and France, it was a challenge to keep up, but Burton shows a human size sliver of a larger picture.

I loved this graphic novel chronicling how a young French woman travels to Algeria in search of her roots.

I've become a big fan of graphic memoirs. This is another to add to the list of ones I've enjoyed.

This story may be mostly about one person's familial history, but that history is tied into Algeria's. The country's turbulent past is so beautifully told through the eyes of Burton as she visits her family's homeland. As she explores the country to learn about her roots, the personal accounts of Algerian's fight for independence from the people she comes across gives names and faces affected by France's rule.

Facing her family's past isn't an easy one, as she believes they were on the wrong side of history. They mostly played the role of colonists. Yet knowing this, the people she meets treat her with kindness and share their stories. Most of them are grappling with the problems previous generations have left them with. It's part of being human. While Algeria's history has its uniqueness, learning more about it through accounts of people directly affected shows how similar it is to histories all over the world. Colonists vs. native populations as well as the mistakes made by people in the past you have no choice but to deal with.

I appreciated that Burton doesn't make excuses for her ancestors. She wants to learn more to understand her present better. Her story is a reminder that we don't always come from people who were on the right side of history, but we can learn from them.

I love reading comics like these. It teaches me about other countries and peoples lives, without having to read a thick book. Illustrations also help.

I really enjoyed this book.

I received an electronic ARC of this graphic memoir in exchange for an honest review. This is a touching autobiography of a woman trying to make sense of who she is by exploring her family's past. The tone is honest and the pain she felt in being so unsure of her place in the world came through. So does the wonder and confusion of her visit to Algeria. The artwork works well with the story. I thought that the technique of making the pictures she takes be in color while the rest of the novel was in black and white. Worth reading.

I know absolutely nothing about colonialism around the world, so this was a fascinating glimpse into the French-Algerian history. I learned so much from this book as it follows the French-born author on a trip to Algeria to find her roots as her grandparents and mother were born and lived there. I loved the beginning while it chronicled her grandparents' and parents' stories, but I found her actual trip to Algeria lacking in detail or emotion or umph. I did love the use of color through the book - her narration panels are in black and white while her "photographs" capturing the beauty of the land are all in color...but I wish there were more color panels to help grasp the beauty of the country as that was the whole title!

I never a graphic novel before and I absolutely loved it. Reading it felt like I was the one on a trip to Algeria to visit my ancestors birth place. I wish history lessons were written like this! Things would’ve been so mich more easier.

I loved this book. The history of Algeria's pied noirs/contemporary history is visually presented in this compelling graphic memoir.

One thing that seems typical of the immigrant experience is that the next generation idealises the home country, based on the nostalgic memories of their parents. Olivia Burton, daughter of two Algerian immigrants to France is one such person. Her parents were "black-foots": the French colonisers that had to rapidly leave the country as groups like the FLN and the OAS started to turn Algeria into a bloodbath.

Burton burns to see the place that she came from, even though her family used to live in the Aurès, one of the most dangerous parts of the country. She heads to Algiers on her own and, with the help of a few contacts, manages to make it into the Aurès and meet people who knew her family. It's an eye-opening and somewhat romantic story, with rather an ironic twist.

I couldn't help but feel that Burton glosses over a bit in her re-telling and that there is a grittier story here, Still, the account that she gives of connecting with and coming to understand her family's past is quite affecting and, at times, amusing.

Beautiful story. Both writing, drawings and plot.

I know very little about the history of Algeria, so found this account very interesting - both from a historical and a "personal" (on Olivia's behalf) point of view. I can understand the urge to explore your roots, and found Olivia's experiences both poignant and relatable.

I really liked how Mahi Grand (the illustrator) did some panels in colour and others in black and white. It was a great way of emphasizing Olivia's experiences.

Excellent story of Olivia's journey and self-discovery.

This graphic novel was a lovely, well written, and beautifully drawn memoir of a girl's adventure to visit her family's homelands. Using a guide, old photos, and her grandmother's memoir, she leaves France to explore Algeria where she learns (and teaches the reader) a lot about Algerian political history as well as her family's history and influence on the country.

This graphic novel focuses on a French woman’s search for her roots.

Algeria Is Beautiful Like America Hardcover – Olivia Burton (Author), Mahi Grand (Artist)
This type of graphic novel seems to resonate with me. I’ve already covered at least four different types of novels that focus on countries shaped by recent war. It seems that all of the 20th Century involved one kind of war or another.

So, Algeria: I had absolutely no idea about its recent history. Nor did I know about the Christian and Jewish settlers of French Algeria who had to immigrate to France after the Algerian War of Independence.

Olivia is the granddaughter of a Black Foot (“Pied-Noir”). The term is a mocking one, since the French used it to indicate that these people had arrived with their feet full of dust from the roads, escaping the war.



After her grandmother’s death, Olivia finds her journals and letters describing her homeland. Ten years later, she decides to travel to Algeria and experience the country for herself. All her family is scared for her, because Algeria is now a Muslim country, and a woman traveling alone can only attract danger.

In the end, nothing deters her. She finally arrives alone, with her grandmother’s postcards and letters in tow, and a single phone number in her pocket: an old man, Djaffar, is willing to act as her guide.



1. Facing the fact that you ended up on the wrong side of history can be tricky.
Olivia’s mother also lived in Algeria. She and her grandmother only had good memories of it: of their beautiful house, simple life, and vast land full of sheep. They did not involve themselves in politics much, but the family had a lot of land—a lot.

When they started fearing for their lives, they fled to Algiers, the capital. There, they had an apartment with a beautiful view of the sea. Once the war started its most virulent phase, they came back to France. Colonizers expelled from their colonies, yes, but also Algerians forced out of their own homes—a tricky memory.



2. Who we are is deeply rooted in where we come from.
A girl that has only listened to her families’ memoirs of their homeland can only conjure up a fragmented picture of her past. A pilgrimage can be enlightening in many ways, both good and bad, and this account is all about this type of discovery.

There is even a saying in Algiers: “If you don’t know where you’re going, it’s good to know where you come from”. This seems to summarize the plot perfectly.



3. The past is important, but it is also gone.
When Olivia finally arrives at her grandmother’s house, she takes the cell phone and calls her mom in France. Her mother starts crying, and this simple detail made me tingle. The house is boarded up, the tombs are desecrated, but the families that still live in some of the residences are very friendly and welcoming. They take her and Djaffar in, they provide food and shelter, and have kind words for her family, although the memories are almost gone. They used to work for them, but the French attended different schools. Sometimes, since it was such a small town, they would play together on the streets, but that would be about it.

4. War is a game-changer.
Take Djaffar’s story: he would have married to a good Muslim girl like his brother did, and ended up with great-grandchildren… but he also had to escape from the war. He faced shame and experienced cultural shock in France: learned about Marx and Freud, worked hard. When he returned, he was neither here nor there. That torn feeling is something akin to many immigrants.



My own mother came back to Syria with my grandmother in 2005, well before the actual war. My great-grandfather had arrived in Latin America at the beginning of the 20th century, and when he returned to Syria with all his family, the conditions had worsened. So he decided to leave again, never to come back.

The family that remained there treated my grandmother kindly and took her everywhere; after all, she had returned after 60 years! It was the trip of her life, something she still remembers proudly, especially the fact that she had never forgotten Arabic, her father’s language.



5. The land of our ancestors is rooted in our DNA.
We carry different fragments of it: sometimes we express it through food; sometimes we feel it in our thoughts and opinions, however subconsciously.

And sometimes, it is all about the landscape. Olivia’s mother had always wanted to retire to the countryside, but she never found the right spot. Now that her daughter is in Algeria, she suddenly realizes what her mother cannot find: her Algerian landscape, the wide mountains, the clear sky, and the flocks of sheep. For her mom, this is gone forever. And her nostalgia can be felt all throughout the book.

Algeria Is Beautiful Like America is available now.

Publisher: Diamond Book Distributors/Lion Forge
Publication date: April 24, 2018
ISBN: 9781941302569
Price: $24.99
Comics & Graphic Novels, Nonfiction (Adult)

The graphic novel Algeria is Beautiful Like America is written by Olivia Burton and illustrated by Mahi Grand. It tells Olivia’s own story, a woman of Algerian descent, as she returns to Algeria to try to better understand her heritage after discovering her grandmother’s memoirs. Her family is ‘Black Foot’ (Pied-Noir), French settlers during France’s occupation of Algeria who left after the Algerian War of Independence. As she travels using her Grandmother’s words as a guide, Olivia compares her family’s recollections of the country including their distain for the Arab indigenous population with what she sees and learns as she travels across the country - much of the book recounts her internal struggle as she try to reconcile the two different accounts.

The graphic novel form may seem an odd choice for a memoir but, in fact, in the few I have read, I have found it works very well and Algeria Is Beautiful Like America is no exception. I admit I knew little about Algeria before reading this but I found Burton’s history of the French colonialism and the Algerian War fascinating as well as her own reactions to her discoveries. Mahi’s illustrations are beautifully done in black and white, the only exception the photographs Olivia takes on her journey and they complement Olivia’s story perfectly. For anyone who enjoys graphic novels as well as memoirs, this one is well worth the time.

<i>Thanks to Netgalley and Diamond Book Distributors/Lion Forge for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review</i>

****Thanks to NetGalley for an e-arc in exchange for my honest review.****



I thought this graphic novel was interesting and I learned a little history about a different country other than the one I grew up in or was born in. I could relate with the beginning of the story and find that you have to see things with your own eyes, because the same thing happened to me when I wanted to go to Mexico to visit the country I was born in. My mother too thought it was a bad idea and when I finally went it was not as bad as it was when she lived there.

Maybe the issue is I gave up half way through, but given that the primary character is from France and was raised there, by parents who lived there...but I'm still trying to figure out how America ties in at all.

The one positive I have was that the illustrations were great. Apparently a comic book style memoir is not something I enjoy...at all.

Wonderful art. The narration and story was beautifully written and characters were so interesting. Burton writes a really eye opening book that interests the readers from page 1.