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The Arrival : Shaun Tan


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For my first post I read The Arrival by Shaun Tan. A silent graphic novel, The Arrival puts a surrealist spin on the immigration experience, inspired by Tan’s own experience immigrating to Australia.

Tan’s mastery of illustration and research of real immigration stories come together beautifully in this compelling novel. Though The Arrival is marketed as a children's book, it takes a mature and eye-opening approach to its subject.


The protagonist, an immigrant leaving his family to start a new life in an unfamiliar country, must navigate an unfamiliar place without knowing its language. The Arrival puts its reader in the same position--we must navigate the book without words. Instead of language, Tan uses character acting, panel setup, and the details he chooses to focus on to tell the story.

For example, at the beginning of the novel Tan shows a montage of different objects around the immigrant’s home--a child's drawing of the family, a steaming teapot, a family photo, etc. Without even seeing a character, this imagery shows us that the protagonist is a family man. 

We also see Tan using the styling of the panels to help translate the story. When a veteran is remembering his time at war, the flashbacks to his sweet family farewell are in beautiful golden panels. When this vet is thrust into combat, however, the panels become smoky and gray. 

Character acting also guides us through the story. At the end of The Arrival, the protagonist's daughter is seen pointing out directions to a fresh immigrant. We understand that the protagonist and his family have settled into her place in this new world, and are now helping others. This last image beautifully resolves the novel's journey.


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