Brace yourselves, because I'm going to turn up the hyperbole to twelve (yup, I'm even going past eleven)! The Arrival, by Shaun Tan, is one of the most beautifully illustrated graphic narratives you'll ever lay your eyes upon. Everything about The Arrival is a thing of beauty. This is a book that definitely demands the hardcover format it's in and on whichever rack, bookshelf, or table upon which it rests, a person will not be able to resist being compelled to look at it. 
The Arrival is an immigrant story told entirely through lush sepia photo realistic illustrations (it's worldless, but the art speaks volumes). Actually, Art Spiegelman (Maus) describes The Arrival better than I ever could via a quote on the back of the book "Tan's lovingly laid out and masterfully rendered tale about the immigrant experience is a documentary magically told by way of Surrealism."
Just about the only way that The Arrival will not win this year's Eisner (it came out towards the end of last year) for best graphic novel is the sad possiblity that a lot of the stores don't carry this book and or the creative people in the industry (those who vote on the Eisners) will not have seen it. The Arrival is a book you can show anyone (regardless of age or nationality) as an example of what is possible through sequential art.
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