4.5 stars.

Guantanamo Voices is a fascinating but devastating piece of graphic nonfiction. Mirk compiles the stories of ten different people into a cohesive narrative of Guantanamo from 9/11 to 2019 (and actually touches on some of its pre-9/11 history as well) through the eyes of military and government officials, activists and lawyers, and some of the prisoners themselves, using a different artist for each chapter.

A note on my perspective as a reader of this book: I am a white Canadian who is old enough to remember 9/11 and the aftermath, but young enough that a lot of relevant information was missed by virtue of not being interested in the news as a child or things I did see being distant childhood memories rather than something I was old enough to fully absorb and process.

I really like how this opens up with a lot of infographics that help illustrate a lot of the basic facts and statistics for laymen like myself. Omar El Akkad's introduction was an insightful way to open the book as well. I also think that organising the stories to reflect the timeline of events best was a great way to lay this out, making the stories (connected by the place and the politics but often of people who never interacted in any meaningful capacity) feel inextricably connected from one another. I like that the book featured a variety of perspectives in a way that does ultimately and unequivocally condemn everything that has happened at Guantanamo, showing how even people who believed in the system knew how awful and wrong everything was. That said, I preferred the stories that were about the prisoners themselves, or that directly featured them through the eyes of their lawyers. I wouldn't remove anything from this book, but I would very much have liked to see it be longer to include more stories of the prisoners and their families.

This is definitely worth the read for anyone who wants a better understanding of Guantanamo after really only knowing anything through social osmosis. I'm glad I got the chance to read this one, and I plan on learning more after this.

Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

My review copy was too pixelated to still be legible, so I don’t have an opinion on the story. Too bad.

I think this book would be good for high schoolers. It would engage them with the graphic novel format as well as educate them in a topic they may not be familiar with.

Extremely important read. The format made it easy to digest but it also implanted faces to real world horrible situations. Will recommend to anyone and everyone.

Very enlightening book about what is happening in the Guantanamo prison. Infuriating violation of human and civil rights to say the least. Definitely not an easy read, but an important one.

This is such an important book. It is hard to read but you must to see what we have done and are still doing. The fact that Guantamo still holds prisoners is crazy and something that more people need to know about. I didn't know a lot about it before reading this book and not that much has changed for these poor people. Everyone should read this.

Thanks to #Netgalley and Abrams ComicArts for making this book available to me.
This book made me so angry, not just because of the resounding injustice but finding out and understanding the deep and harsh reality of both the prisoners and the people trying to help them. This book contains interviews from people connected to the prison for former prisoners, lawyers and even several soldiers that served in the prison. The stories these people tell her frightening to the bones, and sad.

I think for me, the illustrations made the reading experience more real and harsh, which is what one really needs when reading about the horrors of the systematic structure. I can't exactly say I loved this book, both it was very eye-opening and painful to read but very necessary. When we read books like this we begin to question how things are run in the world and that why this book is very important.

I hope you check it out.

This illustrated book and personal accounts are a tear jerker. It made me so angry, deeply sadden and also felt guilty of the way we Americans have such an short attention span on some of first prisoners still there. It really questions how media and government sometimes go hand in hand what the public should remember or not pay attention to. The illustrations are beautiful and the written words will stick in your mind while your brushing your teeth in the morning. Thank you publisher and Netgalley for my e copy. This honest review is all my own.

This graphic novel was, well, graphic. There were violent scenes and images of gore that made this one a difficult read for me. I was almost unable to finish it. However the stories were so interesting that I found myself returning to it again and again.

There are multiple art styles throughout because a different artist illustrated each part of the story, so the variable imagery is a really neat touch that adds something special to this book.

While some parts were hard to get through, overall I learned alot about Guantanamo Bay that I probably wouldn't have learned in any other way.

This graphic novel was an extremely difficult read. There were many times where I had to put the book down to take a moment to take in what I was reading. I was in elementary school when 9/11 happened. There is not much I remember from that timeframe except that the adults around me were shocked and in despair. My aunt herself recalls crying while watching the news coverage of it in her office that day. After the incident I have heard vague mentions of Guantanamo, and I had understood that it was essentially a prison where torture was being used. Everything I had heard, though, made it seem part of a distant past. It was really jarring, then, reading this book and learning much, much more about it. It leaves me with a feeling of shame that I did not know more sooner and dread as to what the future holds for Guantanamo.

My starred review for Booklist is here: https://www.booklistonline.com/Guant-namo-Voices-True-Accounts-from-the-World-s-Most-Infamous-Prison-/pid=9738499

The review was also cross-posted to Smithsonian BookDragon: http://smithsonianapa.org/bookdragon/guantanamo-voices-true-accounts-from-the-worlds-most-infamous-prison-by-sarah-mirk-in-booklist/

This was a very interesting story and I learned a lot. and. It was the first nonfiction graphic novel that i have the chance to read and it was a very interesting experience.

The imagery with in this graphic novel is stunning and adds to /creates the tone for the stories involved. It does display some gore and graphic details so this book would have to be offered for older students.

Fantastic! A wonderful deep dive into a dark chapter in recent American history. I teach this topic at university, and am highly tempted to assign this book as reading.

Nonfiction graphic novels have to toe a difficult line for depth of coverage and clarity of art. This book does a tremendous job at that. It covers the topic very well, with a personalized approach, while not becoming bogged down in overly text-driven panels/pages.

**I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was suddenly archived before I had a chance to read it, and the file I had downloaded got corrupted with my hard drive. It sounds really interesting though!

This was a very interesting book. I learned a lot and I probably wouldn’t have wanted to read it as a traditional book, but the rich illustrations lured me in.

“Most people care more about their paycheck, their next meal, and their comfort, than other people being mistreated. And people are afraid of things - they’re afraid economically and for their security. Particularly when you have leadership that preys on fear.”

Guantanamo Voices: True Accounts from the World’s Most Infamous Prison is an anthology of illustrated narratives about the people who lived, worked, and were activists within the walls and fencing of the notorious detainment camp. Compiled by journalist Sarah Mirk, this graphic novel is both an examination of the history of the prison in Guantanamo Bay and a graphic chronicle of interviews, each story illustrated by a different artist.

Honest, heartfelt, and a moving chronicle of history - Guantanamo voices was a great read. Yes, much of the subject matter is difficult, but so is the truth of this place. I believe that this book is supposed to be a call to action, one can’t read the horrors within the pages without understanding what evils really are at play. I am thankful that I was able to read these stories, especially in graphic novel format, as that felt more approachable than perhaps straight non-fiction would have been for me as a reader.

While the interviews and the stories of each subject in the book are fascinating, I thought that the forward, preface, and end pages were especially enlightening. The context provided within these pages helped me, someone who only had a basic understanding on the history and political background of the foundation of the camp, was quite helpful.

[CW: violence, torture, Islamophobia, racism, guns, war, nudity.]

Thank you to Abrams and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this wonderful book.

This was such an interesting book. I learned so much about Guantanamo Bay that I did not know. I think that this is a great way to learn more about such an interesting subject. I would highly recommend it to anyone but especially if you are a history buff. Overall, great job.

A very important account wrapped in a beautifully illustrated book. This artful package is something that I think could be an important handsell and self-excite a niche crowd very much.