Jacob Jankowski is a ninety-something year old man “living” in a nursing home. In his younger days, at the beginning of the Great Depression, he spent seven years traveling with the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. While his mind is no longer as sharp as it once was, he can recall details of those seven years as if they were yesterday. He carries those memories, and a long-kept secret, as he wages a daily war against the indignities of old age.
Sara Gruen’s, Water for Elephants, is a captivating book filled with colorful, complicated characters in a rich, vivid, exotic setting. Gruen has combined a beautiful love story with a page-turning mystery. At the same time, she manages to capture all of the dark splendor and seediness of life under the big top. Gruen takes the reader into the world of the circus, with its peculiar rituals, rules and laws. One can’t help but get swept away with Jacob and his traveling companions as they experience joy and despair in 1930’s America.
Using Jacob’s insightful narration, Gruen also reminds us that an aging body may still house a youthful soul and a passionate spirit. - MM
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
One Hundred Demons by Lynda Barry
Inspired by an ancient Buddhist scroll depicting one hundred demons, the author decided to create her own "scroll" of personal demons from her girlhood. The child-like drawings show old humiliations, thrills and discoveries about family, friends, neighbors, teachers and old boy friends. One by one, each strip seems inconsequential, but as an aggregate, it's a terrific distallation of growing up in the 60's and 70's. - JEP
Blankets by Craig Thompson
This autobiographical novel about first love is set in the context of the author's small-town, repressive Catholic upbringing. It does an excellent job of conveying both the anguish and joy of adolescent love amid flash-backs of Thompson's often-cruel childhood. Through the arc of the story we see Thompson stuggle with his beliefs and develop as an artist. The stark, energetic black and white illustrations are a perfect complement to the powerful emotions this story expresses. - JEP
Fables series by Bill Willingham
This series imagines a world in which all the characters from children's classic fairy tales -- Snow White, The Big Bad Wolf, Prince Charming, Little Red Riding Hood, and many, many more -- populate a world set in the present that's invisible to "normal" people. Legends in Exile is essentially a murder mystery, the heart of which is, who killed Little Red Riding Hood (Rose Red)? Although employing characters from a more innocent time, as well as a lot of humor, these are definitely adult and young adult stories. - JEP
