Graphic Nonfiction: Audrey Quinn and Jackie Roche Examine the Climate of Syria

While Syria's issues are very much coming to the forefront right now, with racist demagogues inciting the flames of hatred against the people who need us the most, it's not a new issue by any means. Back in 2014, the excellent series, "Years of Living Dangerously" covered something that will really make a Trump supporter's head spin: The Syria situation may be partially a result of climate change radically altering the nature of an entire nation.

Writer Audrey Quinn and artist Jackie Roche take an extended look at how the unrest in Syria can be possibly tied to the changing weather conditions. It's absolutely fascinating. We often think about "grand disasters" like the flooding of America's coastal cities due to rising oceans, but the truth is, climate change is a global issue, and can hit "internal" locations just as easily--and with equally deadly effect.

Roche's watercolor work is excellent, providing a very subdued color scheme to go along with her linework. She's not out to dazzle with the illustrations. These are ordinary people given the look of ordinary people. This is not an attempt to capture every detail--the pictures serve to reinforce the text boxes written by Quinn.

Here's an example from the article:



You can read the complete post here, and I highly recommend that you do so.