Israeli cartoonish Asaf Hanuka wrote the weekly Realist comic in 2010. It is a collection of autobiographical comic strips that were originally published in the Israeli newspaper Calcalist. These single page comic strips explore Hanuka's home life, art job as well as his medical and financial issues. The pressure of life in a country with alot of civil unrest is also shown. The comic strips were finally put together in this 192 page book in 2015 and was translated into English.
Hanuka writes about problems that many of us have gone through: having to move ASAP because of the sale of his home, not connecting with his son, avoiding family by always being on the phone, having a distant marriage, dealing with technology advances and his personal feelings of insecurity. I found it difficult at times to read. It took awhile to figure out that these were separate comic strips that were put together in a book. There is no notice given to the reader defining that book as such. However, the illustrations were gorgeous.
It does pose a question: is the glass half full or half empty. I have mixed feelings about the book but perhaps my problem with it is that it is a collection of single page comic strips. That is nothing to fault Hanuka over. 3 out of 5 stars.
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