“Darryl Cunningham distills extensive research into a sharp, accessible narrative that breaks down Elon Musk’s complex and often troubling life story. Elon Musk: American Oligarch offers a stark warning: beware of Musk and his dystopian vision—a techno-fascist future that fuses South African apartheid, Jim Crow racism, and anti-democratic plutocracy, all in service of his personal gain.”
—Mike Konopacki, illustrator and co-author of Howard Zinn’s A People’s History of American Empire
“Darryl Cunningham tells a frightening tale of money and power. And how money can buy power. Elon Musk: American Oligarch is informative and engaging to its very last page.”
—Noah Van Sciver, author and illustrator of The Hypo: The Melancholic Young Lincoln
“The book draws from a bevy of published books, reports, and interviews about Musk and other featured characters. It renders Musk as an enigmatic figure, his motivations unclear and his statements contradictory. Through his past actions and quotations, a compelling, cohesive, and often critical narrative is formed, illuminating the personal life, business ventures, and politics of a person with an outsized influence on the contemporary world. “The art is simple and effective, using panels to convey not just personal interactions, but also maps and informational graphics. Metaphors make dry subjects more interesting: a failed business merger is illustrated as two jigsaw puzzle pieces being forced together. Visual humor lightens the book, seen in a panel that shows a Lord of the Rings-loving business partner in Middle-Earth garb.
“Elon Musk: American Oligarch is a fascinating graphic biography of a controversial man.”
—Foreword reviews