* "In this fast-paced story, each decision the characters make is critical. Despite the difficult situation the kids are in, Neri provides small pockets of hope and light. Brame's evocative digital black-and-white illustrations bring the setting to life, emphasizing the emotional intensity and high stakes. Somber with a sprinkling of optimism and a firm grounding in unconditional familial love." -- Kirkus Reviews , starred review " Safe Passage is brutal, beautiful, and mercilessly necessary. It's a love letter to the City with Big Shoulders and a reminder that once it had to rise from its ashes. Neri and Brame do a delicate dance of text and image that expose the dangers of the street mixed with the hope and innocence that Black children have to fight to protect. It's an amazing achievement and is a prime example of what the comics medium can do when true masters are at the height of their craft.
" -- John Jennings, award-winning comics creator and scholar "Honest and essential, Safe Passage is a harrowing look at a stark reality many Americans don't see. In a country so willing to look away from the real struggles of its young people, Neri and Brame ask us, with beauty and compassion, to pay attention." -- A.S. King, Printz-winning author of Dig "This book is incredible, from one page to the next, I couldn't put it down." -- Raúl the Third, creator of the World of ¡Vamos! "These two ingenious creatives get us deep into the human heart and human mind of young people. What is depicted are not just throwaway statistics and future fleeting hashtags, but flesh and blood Black children full of pain, longing, desperate dreams, intelligence, and good humor" -- Tony Medina, author of I Am Alfonso Jones "Neri and Brame have crafted a masterpiece where every twist is unpredictable, uneasy, and unrelenting. Your heart should not beat this fast reading a graphic novel, but in this adventurous, all-too-real tale of tension, it will!" -- Stacey Robinson, illustrator of I Am Alfonso Jones and Across the Tracks: Remembering Greenwood, Black Wall Street, and the Tulsa Race Massacre "There's a crime drama nestled in this rich and expressive story of Chicago's South Side, but the real stars are the characters.
The dangerous canyon of threats Darius and Cissy must navigate and survive is as breathtakingly vivid as the emotionally infused line work of the art on each and every page. In Safe Passage , the medium of comics is in full throttle, singing its pure song, in its truest voice, one page at a time." -- Greg Ruth, New York Times -bestselling creator of The Lost Boys and Indeh: A Story of the Apache Wars.