Robert Mgrdich Apelian makes his debut with the tantalizing YA graphic novel Fustuk, a sumptuous fantasy likely to be devoured by readers.
"I never knew my father, but I have dreams of him.... like memories that don't belong to me." Unlike his older sister, Talar, and older brother, Garaked, 19-year-old Katah was too young to know their father, a chef whose food was so good it "won the heart of a div" (a creature from Persian myth). Additionally, Katah is the only child who didn't inherit his father's skills; although his aging mother needs more help as she suffers with a long-term illness, Katah can't make even simple food. But the young man's "really specific" dreams feel remarkable and he begins to wonder if he has jadoo (magic). When the dreams ultimately lead Katah to Az, a powerful div who knew his father, Talar, Gara, and Katah ask Az to try to save their mother. Az, however, is mischievous and unpredictable: it will save her "if--and only if--you can feed me a dish at least as good" as their father's.
Fustuk is a fascinating fantastical blend of Armenian and Persian culture in which Apelian displays the hybridity of the Middle East through traditions, lifestyle, food, and family. Each chapter is named after a food, and the family's identity as an ethnic minority is made visible through multiple languages and scripts. The blend of timelines and languages can be disorienting at first, with the layered narratives identified primarily by color palette. Once readers locate themselves within the story, though, the narrative is multifaceted and as fulfilling as khoresh-e gheysi. --Michelle Anya Anjirbag, freelance reviewer