David Axe is a journalist and with that you’d expect going to shit holes around the world would deliver stories that are absolutely amazing and made for the pages of a graphic novel.  Instead War Is Boring just teases that excitement and instead shows a life that’s pretty unglamorous.

As a correspondent for the Washington Times, C-Span, and BBC Radio, Axe flew from conflict to conflict, reveling in death, danger, and destruction abroad.  Meanwhile, back in D.C., his apartment gathered dust, his plants died, and his relationships withered.  War reporting was physically, emotionally, and financially draining – and disillusioning.  He had begun his sojourn as a “war tourist.”  But the next four years turned David into a deeply political man – his work became less about him and more about the true victims of the world’s conflicts.  Loosely based on the Web comic of the same name, with extensive new material, War is Boring takes us to Lebanon and Somalia; to arms bazaars across the United States; to Detroit, as David tries to reconnect with his family; and to Chad, as David attempts to bring attention to the Darfur genocide.

I could come up with all kinds of metaphors for this graphic novel based on journey’s but Axe’s story isn’t really about the wars he’s covering but instead a look at his growth as a person.  His relationships suffer, his money situation doesn’t improve and much like the victims he covers his life goes more to shit the more he covers them.

It’s a fascinating spiral of a war correspondent.  He might have started as a tourist but in the end he’s as emotionally invested as those involved in the conflicts he covers.  There’s a great story here and fascinating tale for those interested in politics, war and journalism.

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