{"id":16476,"date":"2017-02-11T08:00:15","date_gmt":"2017-02-11T08:00:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/?p=16476"},"modified":"2017-02-10T18:41:51","modified_gmt":"2017-02-10T18:41:51","slug":"dreams-in-thin-air","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/2017\/02\/11\/dreams-in-thin-air\/","title":{"rendered":"Dreams in Thin Air"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\nBy Michael Magnus Nybrandt<\/strong> & Thomas Engelbrecht Mikkelsen<\/strong> translated by Steffen Rayburn-Maarup<\/strong> (Conundrum Press)
\nISBN: 978-1-77262-010-8<\/p>\n

Fantastic battles against overwhelming odds and magnificent, unlikely victories are the lifeblood of graphic narratives – and most of our popular fiction these days, I suppose – but seeing such triumphs in our own mundane mortal coil is barely credible in the real world.<\/p>\n

Happily, miracles do occur, and one such forms the basis of this stunningly engaging chronicle of a good heart and love of sport defeating the political skulduggery of an oppressive yet publicity-shy superpower.<\/p>\n

Delivered as a sturdy and compelling full-colour landscape format hardback, Dreams in Thin Air <\/strong>details the struggle of a young Danish man whose life was changed by a pre-college visit to Tibet: the things he saw and the people he met\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

To make the story even more accessible, the man at the centre of events tells his own story, teamed here with Danish comics superstar and educator Thomas Engelbrecht Mikkelsen (Wizards of Vestmannaeyjar<\/strong>, Einherjar<\/strong>) who adds zest, verve and spectacular imagination to the already heady mix\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Following a Foreword<\/em> by His Holiness, the Dalai Lama, the story opens near the end as impassioned, frustrated Michael Magnus Nybrandt<\/em> paces outside the Chinese Embassy in Copenhagen. We don’t know it yet but Michael has gambled years of hard work, devious conniving and soul-destroying dedication on a true long shot\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

‘Chapter 1: Towards Tibet’<\/em> then takes us back to 1997 when Michael and his friend Thomas<\/em> land at Lhasa Airport and are only saved from disaster by the quick thinking of Tibetan guide Jamphel Yeshi<\/em>, who rescues the idealistic Scandinavians from a potentially lethal encounter with bribe-seeking Chinese Guards.<\/p>\n

As they ride away from the airport the Europeans observe over and again the brutal results of China’s annexation and systematic eradication of Tibetan culture begun in the aftermath of the 1950 invasion. Of course, the gun-toting occupiers called it an act of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153liberation\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

The white boys’ feelings as they contrast the broken relics of a glorious past with the urbanised concrete wastelands inflicted by two generations of self-serving Chinese occupiers are obvious and exceedingly painful, and before long they check out of their state-sponsored hotel and go on a trans-Tibetan tandem ride, looking for the real country\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

In ‘The Easy Way’<\/em> that joyous if exhausting excursion brings them into constant contact with the earthy, gregarious Tibetans and solidifies a feeling in Michael that he must do something to help them. The revelation of exactly what that might be comes after they arrive at a shattered temple and meet Lama Tsarong<\/em>.<\/p>\n

During their stopover, the Europeans meet young monks in training and discover the Tibetans’ abiding passion for football – the proper \u00e2\u20ac\u0153beautiful game\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and not the dandified Rugby played by Americans\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Later, Michael endures a bizarre dream in which he is the coach of a Tibetan National Team. That’s clearly an impossible notion. Thanks to China’s political clout and annexation policy, there is no such nation as Tibet, only outlaw enclaves of dispossessed Tibetans living as exiles in well-wishing countries such as India and Nepal.<\/p>\n

No politically expedient government on Earth recognises the annexed but unforgotten land and it has no official national standing in any arena\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 even sports\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

In August 1997 Nybrandt returns to Denmark and resumes his education in Aarhus. He is part of the landmark radical education initiative dubbed Kaospilot<\/em>, but despite all his studies cannot shift his focus away from that vivid dream\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

At that time privately-sponsored Kaospilot trained less than 40 students per year in leadership, business design, process design and project design. The private school’s educational philosophy stresses personal development, values-based entrepreneurship, socially-responsible innovation and – above all else – creativity.<\/p>\n

Although Michael strives to adapt to the program, eventually he gives in to his obsession and retools his lessons and educational modules to the ultimate goal of creating a Tibetan National Football team and getting them international matches\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

And that’s when his problems really begin, as the full political might of the People’s Republic is brought to bear, not just on him but also on Denmark itself. In ‘Dharamsala’<\/em> that subtle, silent opposition becomes far more overt, even as Nybrandt tirelessly works with Tibetan bigwigs – in the conquered mountain country itself and throughout the rest of the world.<\/p>\n

Undaunted, he sources players, finds sponsors bold enough to buck the Chinese government; sidestepping petty-minded obfuscations like visa-sabotage and rescinded travel permits and even terrifying physical assaults from thinly-disguised political bully boys in China’s pay\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

The tide starts to turn in ‘Dharma Player’<\/em> after a meeting with the Dalai Lama and the arrangement of an international fixture against Greenland’s national team. With the threat of public legitimisation of a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153non-country\u00e2\u20ac\u009d, China begins turning the geo-political screws: threatening economic sanctions that might bankrupt Denmark and even more dire unspecified consequences\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

On the brink of defeat, Michael thinks furiously and realises that although the prestige of international sport has caused all his problems, it has also provided a once-in-a-lifetime possible solution. All he has to do is confront the Chinese ambassador and not blink first\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

The result was a milestone in the modern history of oppressed, subjugated Tibet and resulted in ‘Ninety Minutes of Recognition’<\/em> as China was forced to climb down and allow the match to take place\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Being a true story, this gloriously inspirational tale can also offer a photo-reportage-packed ‘Epilogue by the Author’<\/em>, geographical and socio-political synopsis on the country at ‘The Roof of the World’<\/em> and a heartfelt ‘Acknowledgments’<\/em> section dedicated to the brave souls who made the miracle happen and brought this book into print.<\/p>\n

Compelling, hugely entertaining and astoundingly uplifting, Dreams in Thin Air<\/strong> is a wonderful tribute to the power of sport and the resolve of good people. Don’t wait for the inevitable feelgood movie: read this magnificent graphic testament right now and experience the all-too-rare joy of good intentions triumphing over smugly overwhelming ensconced power\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6
\nEnglish Edition \u00c2\u00a9 Michael Magnus Nybrandt, Thomas Engelbrecht Mikkelsen and Conundrum Press 2017.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Michael Magnus Nybrandt & Thomas Engelbrecht Mikkelsen translated by Steffen Rayburn-Maarup (Conundrum Press) ISBN: 978-1-77262-010-8 Fantastic battles against overwhelming odds and magnificent, unlikely victories are the lifeblood of graphic narratives – and most of our popular fiction these days, I suppose – but seeing such triumphs in our own mundane mortal coil is barely … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Dreams in Thin Air”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[104,122,210],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16476","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-graphic-autobiography","category-historical","category-sport"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4AFj-4hK","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16476","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16476"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16476\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16476"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16476"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16476"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}