Pride of Bagdad was the first graphic novel that I decided to buy as well as one of the first that I ever came across. I believe that I mentioned it in a previous post here, but I'll elaborate on it a bit more. What attracted me to this graphic novel besides the fact that I liked the style it was drawn in, was the fact that it was a mature (not "Disneyfied") story told in the view of animals. Pride of Bagdad was inspired by a true story. Like Barefoot Gen, it takes place during the time of war - in 2003 at the time of an American bombing raid on Iraq.
The story follows a pride of lions as they "escape" from the Bagdad zoo's rubble just after the bombing. They then struggle to live in the destroyed streets along with an assortment of other animals. Unfortunately, in the end, all of the main characters ( Zill, Ali, Safa, and Noor) are gunned down by some US soldiers.
Overall, pride of Bagdad is a unique take on life during the wartime, illuminating its struggles. It is an interesting work and worth a look if you like to read something different every once in a while.
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