The Higher Bookshelf Review: Notes For A War Story
Before i get into this week's review, I wanted to ask for feedback from readers. What books would you like to see reviewed in the future? Is there any feature you'd like to see in these reviews? Let us know, we're listening.
Our second review involves the theme of adolescence and transition into adulthood. It's a short, beautifully illustrated graphic novel by the artist known as Gipi.
Gipi’s Notes for a War Story is one of those books that you have to read more than once in order to appreciate its intricate themes of war, adolescence, and society. The book portrays the story of three childhood friends in an unnamed Eastern European country torn by war and is painted in beautifully austere watercolors. The entire war happens off panel, but its repercussions are felt in the main story of these three adolescents.
Hit the jump for the full review:
I admit to being a bit of a speed reader, so my first read through the book left me with a huge feeling of disappointment, as I rushed through the ending. I didn’t realize the book’s impact until I started thinking about Notes throughout the day…questioning behaviors of characters and the symbolism at the very end of the novel. So I sat down and read it slowly (a difficult thing to do in these days of RSS aggregators and instant updates). In the tradition of J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye, Notes tells the story of emerging adolescence and rebellion against society (or what little is left of it).
The teenagers (Giuliano, Little Killer, and Christian) wander around the ruined countryside in search of…well, it’s never really stated. We are left to assume that at some point, their homes ceased to exist (be it by bomb, or other factors) and we begin the story in medias res. Their wanderlust eventually leads them to working for a militia, as they immediately find a father figure in Felix, the militia’s leader. Their work involves a life of crime, as they work on collecting debts, and eventually, they find their way into the mythical capital city: a place untouched by war and full of temptation.
As they travel further into the life of crime, the boys begin to change as they develop their own unique views on the war: Little Killer becomes more violent as he works to impress Felix, Christian struggles to find a substitute for the home he never had as an orphan, and Giuliano begins to question the meaning behind the war.
The eponymous war never makes an appearance; instead, Gipi focuses on the way the protagonists shape themselves in order to fit the war. It becomes a story of personal change and self revelation as a necessity for survival.
Then only problems I had with this book is that occasionally, the translation to English makes the dialogue a little weak (Giuliano’s dream sequences come to mind) and at roughly 112 pages, the story ends all too soon.
Discover this powerful story for yourself.
jonostarsmore
Posted to Review on 10 January 2008
· Comments (3)
Other stuff like this: Gipi, graphic novel, Notes for a War Story, The Higher Bookshelf Review
Seems an interesting read, so is this a recent release?
How about a review of the original run of Hellboy and a comparison against the garbage that is being churned out to follow the new movies.
@Michael:
It's actually been out since August of last year. A lot of the titles reviewed here are going to be a mix of contemporary books and classics from the past.
To be completely honest with you, my only exposure to Hellboy has been watching the first movie, but I may check out the very early stuff. Any recommendations on where to start?
Well you may want to start off with either "The Chained Coffin and Others" or "The Right Hand of Doom". Both have really good stand alone stories along with one of the main story arc pieces.
The reason I despise the newer issues is the total removal of Mignola's style which is really what lets the originals stand out.