Graphic novels are really not my thing. But this is the first one I've read that *felt* more like an illustrated novel than a comic book. Or at least, illustrated short story. It might be because this one has as much narrative structure as dialogue and very little action, so the artwork seemed more for building atmosphere and mimicking a sort of stop-motion movie drama, like extreme closeups, rather than depicting characters in action with voice bubbles over their heads.

The artwork is strange but compelling. The story is strange but compelling. And the ending is... unsatisfactorily unresolved.

Paperback, picked up on a whim at a Friends of the Library sale, because the author is Neil Gaiman.

I read this for the 24 Festive Tasks 2019 for Door 2 Japanese Culture Day (Nov. 3): Read a graphic novel or a book set in a school or academic setting. ( )

Disegni egonschileiani... (a parte i nasi da coniglio).

Ogni immagine porta con sé
un senso di perdita, anche se
la perdita è venata, non importa
quanto lievemente, di sollievo.
(da qualche parte nel libro)
(Rilke?)

Ma non devo rimuginare. Il sentiero della
memoria non è né diritto né sicuro, e noi
lo percorriamo a nostro rischio. E' più facile
fare brevi viaggi nel passato, ricordando
in miniatura, costruendo recite di minuscoli
pupazzi nella nostra testa.

E' così che si fa.
(da qualche parte nel libro)

Ossia: dalla mano che ci guida (burattini) alla nostra mano nella quale, forse, leggiamo qualcosa.
( )

2.5
The artwork is incredibly beautiful and very different from any other graphic novel I've read. However I found the story a bit confusing and the characters were boring. Not my cup of tea...





( )

An adult nostalgically recollects childhood events that seem mysterious...could be [b:The Ocean at the End of the Lane|15783514|The Ocean at the End of the Lane|Neil Gaiman|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1351914778s/15783514.jpg|21500681], right? Well, no, because this story is not fantastical and is very short, not to mention being in the form of a comic book.

For me, the atmospheric, almost disturbing illustrations by McKean were the best aspect of the book. The story itself I found uninspired and just as with [b:The Ocean at the End of the Lane|15783514|The Ocean at the End of the Lane|Neil Gaiman|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1351914778s/15783514.jpg|21500681] the childhood nostalgia aspect was detrimental. I'm not quite clear why this is, since I find it a strong positive in [b:Dandelion Wine|50033|Dandelion Wine|Ray Bradbury|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1170366282s/50033.jpg|1627774], for example. ( )

The essence of memory is that we rarely get right to the heart of the matter. Something floats up into our thoughts and teases out a recollection. If that recollection has an emotion attached, then we are pulled down deeper towards other memories. As those memories gather about us, the world is recreated for us as it once was. Or at least how we saw it once upon a time. Neil Gaiman & Dave McKean’s MR. PUNCH is all about how we access memory. The story starts with shallow memories, brief bits about his grandparents. Each round of memories adds depth, and soon they begin to connect. There is a wonderful sense of tension built up as the story progresses. The traditional puppet show of Punch & Judy is retold in various forms and fragments--working like memory does in bits and pieces. The puppet show acts like a mirror of the memory that we are eventually being drawn toward. The wonderful illustrations are dark like half remembered images and many contain bits of this and that tossed together like disorganized thoughts. The images become more detailed and tangible as we get deeper but seldom is there anything particularly bright to hang hope on. There is no hope in memory, they are what they are. We can glean some understanding, but must be concerned about them taking over our lives—a point the book makes very well. MR. PUNCH does not seem like much at first and it knows this. Sparse at the dialogue keeps you moving until it knows it has you hooked. This is a wonderful creation starting like a light mist until by the end it has become an emotional downpour. ( )