Description
This is Monica, one ordinary woman's extraordinary journey through the history of comics - from the creator of Ghost World
'Rich, clever... A thrilling read'
GUARDIAN
'In Monica, Clowes reaches a new artistic peak'
VANITY FAIR
A dazzling, spectacular tapestry of interconnected narratives that together tell a life story, Monica is the new graphic novel from one of the most iconic storytellers of all time. This eponymous protagonist is a rag-to-riches character who, after being abandoned by her freewheelin' parents in childhood, succeeds in clawing her way to the top - only to lose it all in a stroke of bad luck. She lives out the rest of her days in search of her parents, encountering a cast of eccentric characters who help to piece together her story.
This graphic novel extravaganza is an unforgettable ode to the many genres that have defined the comics form - from war, romance and horror to crime and the supernatural. Mysterious, uncategorisable and quintessentially Clowesian, here is a multi-layered masterpiece born of a lifetime of inspiration. Monica marks the creative apex of Daniel Clowes' distinguished career, one of the defining voices of the graphic novel boom over the past quarter-century.
About the Author
Daniel Clowes was born in 1961. He is the creator of the comic books Eightball, Ghost World, which was made into a film by the director Terry Zwigoff, David Boring, and Ice Haven. His adaptation of his own Ghost World graphic novel for the screen earned him an Oscar nomination. A regular contributor to the New Yorker, McSweeney's, and the Best American Comics, he lives in California with his wife.
Reviews
It is precisely Clowes's lower-frequency sensitivities toward the suffering of his characters that power what many consider his greatest works - Ghost World, for one - and elevate his latest graphic novel, Monica, to the status of a masterpiece -- Junot Diaz, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao Novel
A master. Perfect fusion of story and art. Clowes is an auteur. Period. A superb narrator -- Guillermo del Toro, creator of THE SHAPE OF WATER
The rare cartoonist whose graphic novels become cultural events * New York Magazine *
A thrilling kaleidoscopic journey... Fans will need little excuse to fling themselves into this genre-hopping work. But casual readers shouldn't fret. Monica's story, despite being told in themed fragments, with gaps that sometimes stretch for decades, is full of drama... A rich, clever work * Guardian *
This strange and gripping book is often frightening and sometimes deeply sad. But it's also wickedly funny at times... A series of pitch-perfect portraits... I could not put it down * Observer *
Clowes' stories demand real attachment, and the more time I spent with Monica, the more I felt moved by the emotional ambition of its decades-long narrative * Atlantic *
Clowes has long been considered one of the finest cartoonists of his generation.... But in Monica, he reaches a new artistic peak... The shifts suit the story but also allow the cartoonist to show off his love for the art form. Each section has a beautifully rendered drawing - whether it be a soldier lighting a cigarette or Monica wiping the steam from a bathroom mirror - that can be held up among the best of his career * Vanity Fair *
No cartoonist alive devotes as much effort as Daniel Clowes to mapping the differences between the way people see themselves and the way they really are * Guardian *
One of the most notable comic artists of our era, a pillar of the '80s-'90s scene who's continued to do great work up to the present day * NPR *
Clowes delights in confounding expectations * SFX *
Book Information
ISBN 9781787334861
Author Daniel Clowes
Format Hardback
Page Count 112
Imprint Jonathan Cape Ltd
Publisher Vintage Publishing
Weight(grams) 770g
Dimensions(mm) 285mm * 216mm * 15mm
