Michel Kichka's latest autobiography offers a fascinating glimpse into his journey from a comics-obsessed kid in Belgium to a prominent author and illustrator in Israel. His storytelling is infused with humor and warmth, making the narrative engaging as he reflects on his life in Jerusalem and the creative surge he experienced during the Covid lockdown.

While Kichka’s anecdotes are often delightful and insightful, at times the pacing felt uneven, and some sections could have benefitted from deeper exploration.

The art style wasn't for me, but this was an interesting look into the other side of the world during covid.

I read the author's previous memoir of his childhood in the same format. It was my window into the country of Israel since I had known nothing about the country or its history previously. I have since learned a few things, especially given the news cycle towards the end of last year (although I cannot believe we are almost halfway through the first month of a whole new year, enough to warrant saying last year).
This was written and contains situations separate from the recent events. The focus is more on the time around the COVID quarantine, when the country was in the news then as well.
This is a personal journey with art that suits the mood as well as the colours to go with it. Our author writes about his experience teaching art during COVID and the personal implications of having grown-up children and seeing their lives unfold.
A lot is packed into this volume.
I liked the feeling that the author was trying to convey (assuming I got it right) and the long winding roads that were depicted as well. Given the content, I probably expected it to be shorter.
I would recommend this book in combination with the author's earlier work to get a complete picture of the man in particular and life in Israel in general.
I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley and the publishers but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.

Book 161 of 200 ~ 2023

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Wowza... this is a truly insightful autobiography of a Belgian who is now based in Israel.

He shares and walks the reader through his life, experiences - in particular with COVID-19, as well as his very honest thoughts about everything going on. Would be interesting if he does another pertaining to what is unfortunately going on now.

Gritty because of his honesty, yet peppered with wit when needed, a beautifully illustrated autobiography for sure.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

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I got the ARC of this graphic novel thanks to NetGalley and Europe Comics (one of my favourite graphic novel publishers) but ended up reading it much later.

When I started this book, I genuinely thought that the book would be an exploration of politics in Israel. Michel Kichka does talk about his political beliefs and his thoughts about the Israel-Palestine conflict. However, these are immersed in between his stories about his life. The writer talks about incidents from their childhood, what made them pursue drawing as a career, and a lot of memories and incidents from their life put in a book that is just perfect in length. The political views - left, much to the chagrin of his local market vendors - of the writer have been mentioned along with these incidents but especially while talking about their time as a cartoonist for news channels and the illustrations have also been done like those you would see in a newspaper or magazine.

When it comes to the art style of the book, I loved how seamlessly different incidents and times flow into each other. Plus, the cityscapes of Israel (where the writer lives) are so beautifully done, that it’s hard not to imagine oneself there and witnessing the writer talk about their walks and the empty streets depicted during the pandemic.

Highly recommended light but a great read.

This was a short and enjoyable graphic novel about Michel Kachka: a bit of his history growing up, his time during the pandemic, his family, and his political opinions.
The art was really pretty and the writing/narration style was enjoyable. Like having a cup of coffee and listening to a friend talking.
I particularly liked the page where he mentioned “talking” to his younger self to encourage him. His younger self is so fearless and optimistic, I think most people’s younger selves are. It’s a nice exercise to do if you are stuck.

An incredible illustrater gives us a brief tale of Pandemic lockdowns in Jerusalem. But more than that an understanding of the state of things and the hope to the fact that religious extremists aren't going to take over the country wholesale. Then October 7th happened. It's sad that a voice like this will probably be drowned out in the cries for revenge and more innocent people will die on either side in the name of some fiction. At one point the author says "There are Laws and there are customs. And everyone is free to live as they are fit." If only this were true. Read this book. It's worth it.

A super timely book that explores life in Jerusalem during the Pandemic along with the author's family history and some thoughts on the currently political situation in the country.

After "Second Generation" (an extraordinary autobiographical account of ordinary men under the weight of History with a capital H), Michel Kichka once again makes room for memory. From the pandemic peace of 2020 to childhood recollections, his artistic journey and his ideological battles, Kichka tells it all with humor and tenderness, with clear, expressive strokes (I love his style!) but also with a subtle bitterness and nostalgia for an ideal Israel that never existed. And yet, he never loses hope. And that, along with his honesty, is what makes the book so interesting. A paper voyage for a better understanding of Israel, Palestine and the world today.

Disclaimer: I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review. This didn't influence my opinion in any way.

“Make comics not war!”

Europa comics never dissapoints!

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with this arc in exchange for my honest review.

Michel Kichka grew up in Belgium (where I’m from :) ) and lives in Jerusalem now. I can only be proud that our little country brought forth such an amazing talent like Kichka.

This had the most beautiful illustrations I have ever seen in a graphic novel. Beautiful little painting and drawings in natural colors. I could have easily just looked at all the illustrations, without reading a thing and give this graphic novel 5 stars. But I’m glad I didn’t because I really enjoyed the story too.

How Kichka talks about different subjects and keeps the story flowing so smoothly. He takes us on a nice stroll , often quite literally, through his career, his life and his country. 3 paths, each with its own difficulties, hopes and dreams but what I remember most is the small joys. Enjoying a bird feeding in your garden, a painting, a baked potato given to you by a stranger, a child loving your drawings, taking a picture of a cloud,…

This was fascinating, beautiful, clever and funny and he didn’t shy away from telling us how he feels about harder subjects. He always sees the silver lining, likes to make people smile (yes he made me smile too) and is an advocate for peace.

“In Jerusalem, it snows an average of once a year. But it only sticks for 24 hours. The city is so peaceful covered in white. One day of peace a year,,. It’s a good start.”


Michel Kichka always did what he liked and liked what he did and it shows!

I really liked this ;).

This is an autobiography by the Belgian/Israeli graphic novelist Michel Kichka. It shows the stages and directions of his career and also reflects upon the Covid Pandemic. It is light and a quick read, but it has a lot of first hand information on the life of a graphic novelist. It is a must read for budding cartoonists. It is also a very timely book at this time in history with an insight into the peace and reconciliation movement in Israel which Kichka is an advocate for.

The Other Jerusalem was a really compelling tale about being secular in such a religious city. I liked Kichka's approach to using cartoons as a way to understand and sometimes protest the current state of the world. He dealt with dual identites (being born in Belgian but living in Israel). It was well illustrated and thoughtful.

The other Jerusalem is a autobiography of the author. The COVID-19 pandemic boosted his creativity and resulted in this masterpiece that talks about his life and shares information about Jerusalem. The artwork is absolutely amazing!

It is a book that takes us on a journey from the author's house to the streets of the city, and from there we explore a whole life together with a country and religion.
All accompanied by beautiful illustrations that relate to the lightness of the text and integrate us more into the story.

Like in his previous books, Michel Kichka is an artist who is very detailed in his frames. But surprisingly, you will not find them packed and crammed. There is a serene clarity that pervades his art, which is pleasing to the eye and the mind of the reader. Even the most disturbing images have a humane quality that makes his work endearing. He finds humour in the most unlikely of situations and conveys it to the reader convincingly. The Other Jerusalem is another triumph that underlines the need for sane and composed minds while discussing geopolitics and the importance of humanistic solutions for its problems.