Graham RawleReseñas

I loved the graphic novel style - it took Rawle such a heinously long time to write this in magazine clippings. But, I knew the twist to the story by page 20, and it was a bit of a slog once I guessed the 'secret'. A good book, but I couldn't get into it once I had my suspicions confirmed.

Norma, a strange and unreliable protagonist, quite literally pieced together from women's magazines, yearns to burst out of the constrained house-bound life in which she has been forced to live since her "accident". But it soon becomes obvious that all is not as it seems and that, if she succeeds, it could spell disaster for everyone... This is a tragedy, and a farce, and a piece of art. Brilliant.

Woman's World is a marvelous novel constructed completely out of women's magazines from the 1960s. Each page is a collage of words and paragraphs put together in great detail by Graham Rawle. In itself, this is quite impressive. Add in a wonderful plot that flows easily despite the cut-up method of construction, and what's left is a brilliant novel that is just as much art as literary genius.

The story is full of mystery and intrigue, but done in an intelligent manner. Rawle does not half-heartedly conceal various twists in his story. Instead, they are revealed so bluntly that there is a moment of being astounded, then the "Ah ha" and ability to piece previous clues together. However, the novel is not merely mystery, but also social critique of the language used to describe a "woman's world" and gender roles in general. Rawle's ability to work a variety of genre's into one book is what makes it fabulous.

Rawle's Woman's World is simply an incredible piece of visual art and writing that is inspirational in its' creativity and intellectual depth.½

When Gregory joins his local camera club, he decides to keep a diary to record his photographic achievements. Then he finds an old picture, which he is convinced is of an angel, and he is soon in the grip of an obsession. Could a newspaper cutting from 1959 be a clue to the angel's true identity?

What makes this book special is of course that it's cut and pasted together from old women's magazines, which gives the prose a very special, vintage feeling, but it's also a driven narrative and a fun and engaging read.

Woman's World is, without question, one of the most innovative and original books I've ever read. Graham Rawle wrote a general outline of the story, then over the course of five years pieced it together using pictures, words, and phrases from 1960's-era women's magazines. The result is a fascinating story with a modern worldview, but a hauntingly authentic 1960's voice. The story centers around Norma Fontaine, a stylish and modern woman with a keen fashion sense who, for reasons that become clear as the story progresses, is encouraged by her family to remain indoors at all times and avoid being seen by the neighbors. To say any more than that would be to give away the plot, and it's much more satisfying to let Rawle do the storytelling. I'll just say that anyone who is looking for a truly original piece of storytelling, and an amazing piece of artwork, will find it in this one-of-a-kind book.

I'm not usually a fan of "artsy" books. My thought tends to be "if they need an artsy gimmick the writing is probably lacking".

After reading Women's World by Graham Rawle I will not let that keep me away again!

Written entirely with clippings from vintage 1960's women's magazines, the "artsy gimmick" of this book is not only impressive, it is necessary to the voice of Norma (Fontaine) Little who narrates this incredibly original book.

Women's World starts as a humorous character study of Norma who lives with her maid/mother and her brother/...in 1960's Great Britain.

How would one know how to be a lady without the women's magazines guiding her through fashion, hairstyles, poise and etiquette?

Clearly eccentric, Norma rarely leaves the house. But when she ventures out on a long overdue job interview she meets up with a curious man, Mr. Hands, who not only stares at her beauty, as others are want to do, but is bold enough to approach her with a proposition too intriguing for her to pass up.

As Norma prepares for her rendezvous with Mr. Hands, her brother Roy is fresh on the heels of a romance like none he ever thought possible.

Mr Rawle's character study moves smoothly into a mystery that reveals one twist after another as Norma and her brother must come to terms with their relationship.

There is so much more to this story but to say any more would give away too much.

This is the most innovative book I have read and seen. Any aspiring artist or writer can only be inspired by this book.

NoBSBookReviews

This book is amazing! Not so much for its story line, which is amusing and funny itself, but the photo collages create a scrapbook effect that is fantastic.

Any Amount of Books, Charing Cross Road, WC2. 05/08/2021.