Boxers and Saints: A Review

Gene Luen Yang’s Boxers and Saints is a critically acclaimed historical graphic novel set. I like a pretty wide range of fiction, but a magical realist epic graphic novel would not be something I would expect to love. And I love Boxers and Saints. I’ve read it a few times, sometimes dipping in and out, but also straight through more than once. This book review is pretty spoiler free.

One book features a “Boxer” and the other a “saint.” The graphic style is appealing to me, the time period complex and controversial, and the two novel approach compelling and an excellent strategy for addressing differing perspectives. 

This dual perspective approach is central to what makes Boxers and Saints work. Also central is the masterful balance of the individual and small scale with the scope of the Boxer Rebellion. Somehow, I think Yang’s trademark magical realism makes this balance work. 

I would not expect all of this to work, at least not for me: The scale is epic, not something I normally seek out. On top of that, Boxers and Saints healthy dose of magical realism puts it in another genre I do not spend significant reading time exploring. 

For me, the fact that this is a graphic novel designed with a relatively young audience in mind (despite some very violent and disturbing graphic scenes and themes) is probably crucial. Boxers and Saints might be classified as YA.  That means that I can read quickly, and the many references to historical context that I don’t fully understand do not compel me to research. Yang invites readers with little historical knowledge to simply read the story, without requiring them to feel stupid or devote themselves to catching up. Boxers and Saints is great way to learn and teach about the Boxer Rebellion, a significant, complicated, and relatively recent episode of modern Chinese history that many Americans have barely heard of. It is not a comprehensive history, and it does not set out to be. 

What it is is an intimate piece of epic storytelling. We see Little Bao watching his older brothers and seeking to develop his own role. We see peopl desperate for a meager meal and sharing a cup of tea in the night. That balance of the individual and small scale with the scope of the Boxer Rebellion is ambitious. There is a surprising amount of exploration of character, a none-too-subtle but also not overbearing exploration of human motivation, violence, identity, culture, and religion. 

This is a great read for anyone interested in the Boxer Rebellion, Chinese history generally, coming of age, Christianity, or historical graphic novels such as the deservedly popular Maus and Persepolis, or the less well-known Aya and Dare to Disappoint.