From the internationally acclaimed and award-winning creator of The Arrival and Tales from Outer Suburbia comes a glorious graphic novel about belonging and identity, family and the power of 'home'.

'A masterpiece. An artist at the height of his powers.' - NEW YORK TIMES

You need to know who I am.
What I think and how I feel.
Then you'll know why I did what I did.

Imagine living in a perfect world.

You have a loving family, a beautiful home and awesome friends. Everything is just as it should be. Until one day, when a stranger arrives. A stranger who looks just like you. A stranger with a troubling message ...

From the creator of The Arrival and Tales from Outer Suburbia comes a visually stunning, moving and humorous meditation on all the things that make us who we are and how we choose to live.

PRAISE FOR HOMETOWN

'Loved it!! Chockfull of magic!!' - Guillermo Del Toro

'I can't overstate how much Shaun's work has meant for me and my family over the years. And now, his latest is a passionate, clever and inspiring tale about how we choose which family to love. I am so excited to share this one with mine.' - Darren Aronofsky

'Where The Arrival was about leaving home for the strange but hopefully welcoming new world, Hometown is about what makes us what we are-family, friends, environment. A joyful, surprising, marvellous book.' - Kelly Link

'Here is a cornucopia of a world to set beside the densely realised imaginings of Topor or Miyazaki - a many-splendored thing.' - Dave McKean

'A spectacularly surreal coming-of-age story about choice, family, and the gravitational pull of belonging.' - Kirkus, Starred Review

'Hometown is a visually stunning book that will resonate with children and adults alike.' - Books & Publishing


'I read this graphic novel several times, and with each reading my sense of wonder and admiration grew. My connection to the girl and her world still linger in my mind. Just read it.' - Good Reading

Details

ISBN13: 9781761180811
Format: Hardback
Number of Pages: 144
Edition:
Publication Date: 29 Sep 2026
Publisher: A&U Children's
Publication City, Country: Australia
Dimensions (cm): 26(H)x21.5(L)826
Weight (gm): 826

Author Biography

Shaun Tan is an artist, writer, and filmmaker from Perth, Western Australia, the recipient of an Academy Award, the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award and the Kate Greenaway Medal. He lives in Melbourne with his wife, two children and various plants, animals and machines.

Reviews

STARRED REVIEWS

'An empowering, thought-provoking tale' - Booklist
'A spectacularly surreal coming-of-age story'- Kirkus
'Both artistic and emotional' - Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
'An essential purchase' - School Library Journal
'Breathtaking, fantastical' - BookPage
'Exquisite' - Foreword Reviews
'Surreal' - Horn Book
'A visually stunning allegory' - Publishers Weekly