What to say besides the fact that it is the perfect way to learn in a playful way a complicated and mostly unknown subject ?

First, the illustrations; simplistic enough to make more room for texts, which is normal because the texts and explanations are long. The drawings are far from ugly and I like this very dark, melancholic, and dull side that reflects that the subject is serious, and that it is far from being a children’s comic ! There's also so much shade, it almost looks like oil stains are part of every drawing.

Now on the content; My best friend is in biology and is passionate about ecology. For me, who already listened to her monologues for hours on the fauna and flora and the danger of oil/ deforestation/ mines, it was a real rediscovery! I love the fact that the authors explain the subject in a serious and literal way, not being afraid to use scientific names (indeed, the readers are not stupid). For details that are difficult to understand, they use the child’s character to explain certain terms, which I also find intelligent and well thought out.

The dialogues do not feel forced and the characters all the same realistic (who would not want to take a picture in an oil pit for their instagram ? #guilty). I also like that we can see how, through characters native to the region, we can see the evolution and direct impact of these industries on humans, and the disdain of the state towards these inhabitants just to race capitalism.

In short, it was a very complete and informative reading, even if I consider that you still have to be interested in the subject to be able to read it, it was still touching and playful.

Must read if ecology interests you !

I went into this not knowing much about the Ecuadorian Amazon or the toxic tourism / any of the issues that are ongoing, this book definitely gave me more insight and knowledge into not only what is going on but how we can help by looking at our own consumption.

Alright, I literally just finished reading Crude: A Memoir by Pablo Fajardo, one of the lead counsels involved in UDAPT cases, so when I saw this I had to check it out. So, I'll admit there is a little comparing going on here because they are both powerfully illustrated graphic novels discussing the indifference that Chevron/Texaco has for the damage that they have done to the Ecuadorian Amazon, but where Crude is more about the law side of things, Toxic really discusses how the environment and the people were and are still effected by the oil contamination in the area.

Some of us will never be able to afford a trip to Ecuador to go with Donald on a toxic tour, but this graphic novel gives us an idea of what it would be like to go with him. Amelia Fiske has carefully created a narrative for us around the many tours that she took while working on an anthropological study in the area, so while this exact talk may have never taken place, she does a good job of giving us the important bits in a natural way. However, it does read a bit pedagogic at times. There is just so much information packed into the toxic tour that we're provided within these pages that it is hard to take it all in.

The images provided by Jonas Fischer are a bit blocky and industrial feeling with large segments of black, which are meant to represent how the oil contamination spreads to everything (I think). They're interesting and convey the feelings of horror and misery that people feel upon learning about the contamination, but also the people living through it. Also, the character designs were all very distinctive, and with such a small cast, it felt intimate.

Overall, I think that if you're interested in learning about UDAPT and the people impacted this is a great and quick read to pick up. It gives readers a lot of the important information, while also making them feel like a tourist going on one of the toxic tours, but without the plane trip. That being said, if you're interested, they give all the information that you could need to book one in real life, which if I ever go to Ecuador, I am totally doing. So many people don't know about this issue and I hope that this book is read and shared widely so that more people will become educated on it.