Intimate reflections and powerful visual elements combine in an exemplary work of graphic nonfiction.
Kurzweil continues to expand the possibilities of the graphic memoir with an exploration of her patrilineal ancestors.
Braiding together the stories of her paternal grandfather, an Austrian conductor and pianist who narrowly escaped Nazi-controlled Vienna, and her father, an early innovator in artificial intelligence research, New Yorker cartoonist Kurzweil, author of Flying Couch, navigates the complexities of recollecting and framing pieces of her family history. Pages expand with maximalist detail that reflects a true-to-life experience of digging into the past, where insights are dispersed between various family memories and physical artifacts often nestled in dusty storage facilities. Stunningly re-created archival materials, from newspaper clippings to handwritten letters, lend visceral impact to each discovery. The story of the Kurzweil family’s innate connection to the vanguard of technology also breaches questions of collective memory and the ways in which technology might become a new conduit for the voices of the past. When do our loved ones really pass into the beyond? Is it when they die or when those who remain no longer remember them? How much can we learn from what remains of our ancestors? An AI chatbot trained on the correspondences of her late grandfather becomes a sometimes-inadequate interlocutor for Kurzweil as she reflects on her own influences and navigates her family’s desire to maintain a connection with the past. Nonetheless, these interactions bear fruit as new questions arise. Couched in the casual conversations among family and the genuine desire to connect and preserve specific memories, these inquiries avoid becoming overburdened by stodgy philosophical ramblings or overly enamored techno-proselytizing. The deeply personal and sometimes frenetic energy of the book delivers an intimate and cohesive vision of the past as well as life lived in the influence of parents and ancestors.
Intimate reflections and powerful visual elements combine in an exemplary work of graphic nonfiction.Pub Date: Oct. 17, 2023
ISBN: 9781948226387
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Catapult
Review Posted Online: July 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
An erudite and artful, though frustratingly restrained, look at Old Testament stories.
The Book of Genesis as imagined by a veteran voice of underground comics.
R. Crumb’s pass at the opening chapters of the Bible isn’t nearly the act of heresy the comic artist’s reputation might suggest. In fact, the creator of Fritz the Cat and Mr. Natural is fastidiously respectful. Crumb took pains to preserve every word of Genesis—drawing from numerous source texts, but mainly Robert Alter’s translation, The Five Books of Moses (2004)—and he clearly did his homework on the clothing, shelter and landscapes that surrounded Noah, Abraham and Isaac. This dedication to faithful representation makes the book, as Crumb writes in his introduction, a “straight illustration job, with no intention to ridicule or make visual jokes.” But his efforts are in their own way irreverent, and Crumb feels no particular need to deify even the most divine characters. God Himself is not much taller than Adam and Eve, and instead of omnisciently imparting orders and judgment He stands beside them in Eden, speaking to them directly. Jacob wrestles not with an angel, as is so often depicted in paintings, but with a man who looks not much different from himself. The women are uniformly Crumbian, voluptuous Earth goddesses who are both sexualized and strong-willed. (The endnotes offer a close study of the kinds of power women wielded in Genesis.) The downside of fitting all the text in is that many pages are packed tight with small panels, and too rarely—as with the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah—does Crumb expand his lens and treat signature events dramatically. Even the Flood is fairly restrained, though the exodus of the animals from the Ark is beautifully detailed. The author’s respect for Genesis is admirable, but it may leave readers wishing he had taken a few more chances with his interpretation, as when he draws the serpent in the Garden of Eden as a provocative half-man/half-lizard. On the whole, though, the book is largely a tribute to Crumb’s immense talents as a draftsman and stubborn adherence to the script.
An erudite and artful, though frustratingly restrained, look at Old Testament stories.Pub Date: Oct. 19, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-393-06102-4
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Norton
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2009
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A beautifully drawn book, rich with insight, humor, and hard-won knowledge.
A graphic memoir explores the author’s experiences with and understanding of racism.
When he was 6, Bell, a contributing cartoonist to the New Yorker and recipient of the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for his editorial cartoons, was playing with a neon-green water gun when a policeman told him to drop his weapon. Earlier that day, he’d asked his mother why his toy had to be green. “That’s what’s going to keep you alive,” his mother, who is White, told him. “The world is…different for you and your brother. White people won’t see you or treat you the way they do little white boys.” The author continues, “If they see me with [the gun], they’ll see a menace. A thug. A threat to be dealt with.” Throughout this powerful graphic narrative, the author traces pivotal events in his life and career that were in some way connected to this conversation. As a kid, he encountered racist teachers, one of whom tried to fail him despite his high grades. In college, he sat with White classmates who argued “that colonialism was GOOD for Africa.” “I bite my tongue,” he explains, “because I’m tired of being ‘The Other.’ ” Bell’s story reflects his awakening to—and gradual comprehension of—the realities of American racism. At first, he didn’t want to believe what he saw. Composing an essay for his college application, he wrote, “I am not a ‘Black’ American. I am not an ‘African American.’ I am not any sort of hyphenated-American. I am not even an ‘American.’ For these are all social constructs.” Bell’s deft drawings perfectly complement the text, with a watery blue wash and panels of varying sizes and shapes matching the contemplative mood. Funny and nerdy—note multiple references to Star Wars—the book is also deeply moving. Part memoir and part intellectual awakening, Bell’s memoir is a triumph.
A beautifully drawn book, rich with insight, humor, and hard-won knowledge.Pub Date: June 6, 2023
ISBN: 9781250805140
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: Jan. 30, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2023
PERSPECTIVES
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