Streak of Chalk

"What an idiot. Making life so complicated."

Two thirds of the way through this book, the heroine Ana observes that "We just acted out a really strange story full of absurdity and nonsense." That's entirely true, but it was wonderful absurdity and fascinating nonsense.

This graphic novel is celebrating its twenty-fifth year and it's hard to overstate its importance in terms of graphic arts and the establishment of graphic novels as legit art forms and narrative vehicles. That said, to me the book remains most powerful from the point of view of the artwork. Moody, brilliantly composed and colored, every panel is worth close examination. From grand perspective landscapes to close attention to each character's expressions and presence, this book illustrated the possibilities of the medium. It captures the haunting isolation and humid oppression of a morality play being enacted by three lost and haunted characters. In a sense you could just erase all of the lettering, follow the sequential art, and put in your own story to match the images.

As to that story, it's all about the atmosphere, and the ebb and flow of the three main characters' interactions. An isolated, tiny, weird island, (that seems to consist only of a long narrow pier, an accompanying white wall, one building, a towering pile of rock, and an abandoned lighthouse), is always and oppressively at the heart of all of the dreamlike action. Heat, humidity, blinding daylight and cloaking darkness inform everything. The characters are like ants on a sidewalk, randomly crawling over each other to get nowhere in particular.

Commentators have drawn parallels to twin goddesses, various mythologies, the works of a wide range of authors, and even more fanciful interpretations. I think it's an allegory and a romance about a broken love affair, but hey, it can be whatever you want it to be. (Even the publisher's blurber gave up and just observed that the book "can be read a number of ways".)

So, beautifully rendered and haunting, this is a marvelous example of what the graphic novel can be. A superior find for either the newbie or the experienced reader of graphic novels.

(Please note that I received a free advance will-self-destruct-in-x-days Adobe Digital copy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book. I am, though, bummed that this is going to expire and disappear from my reader.)

This is a beautifully with a haunting mysterious story. The story centers around a small island with an abandoned lighthouse and the strange characters that wash ashore. There is a reason why this graphic novel is a classic. The artwork perfectly suits the story. Enjoy