The Island by Armin Geder: The Novel Cure for a distrust of outsiders

Greder's book is a powerful study in how easily ignorance of outsiders can turn into fear – and fear into cruelty

Ailment: Distrust of outsiders

Cure: The Island by Armin Greder

That someone fleeing civil war or a natural disaster can start their journey a victim, arousing sympathy, and end it an interloper, arousing distrust, is a tragedy of our age. Mass migrations triggered by conflicts and climate change will only increase over the next 50 years; and though it's not easy for communities to absorb displaced people, good fortune must surely be shared with those who have nothing. The Island, by Swiss-born Armin Greder, is a powerful study in how easily ignorance of outsiders can turn into fear – and fear into cruelty. It is a sobering reminder not to let fear gain the upper hand.

In this picture book for adults, a man is found on the beach of an island, washed up by "fate and ocean currents". Naked, hairless, his arms hanging by his sides, he is far less threatening than the pitchfork-brandishing islanders themselves. When one of the locals suggests sending him straight back out to sea because he "wouldn't like it here", only the fisherman points out that this would mean sending him to certain death – a sentiment confirmed by a wordless, double-page spread showing an immense and glowering charcoal-grey sea and sky.

So they install him in a goat pen as if he were an animal, throw him straw, and get on with their grubby lives. But the outsider has needs. And when one day he appears in town, desperate for food, the islanders panic. Why should they feed him when they barely have enough for themselves? The fisherman argues that now they've taken him in, he is their responsibility.

But what if he murders us all in our sleep, they cry. As the fear gains momentum, the vulnerable stranger morphs into a devil, crouching on their beds at night… and we know there's no hope for him now.

The message is clear: prejudice is a dangerous thing. Nip your own in the bud with this resonant masterpiece.

​thenovelcure.com