The Bookshelf

Editor’s Note: Far from being a single genre unto itself, graphic novels have a little something for everyone. The Spotlight is an occasional look at specific styles within the realm of pictorial literature.

It’s a great time to be a fan of graphic novels. More writers and artists are getting known, and a variety of styles and stories are beginning to emerge. Of particular note is the crime genre, which has been enjoying a particular renaissance of late. If you’re a fan of crime writers like Richard Price, Elmore Leonard, and Donald Westlake, there are a variety of titles that may be right up your noir-tinged alley.

This new wave of crime stories may have begun with 100 Bullets, the epic series by Brian Azzarrello and Eduardo Risso that recently concluded its 100-issue run. The premise is catchy enough: Shadowy figure Agent Graves appears at the doorstep of various hard-luck cases with a very special briefcase. Inside is a gun, 100 untraceable bullets, and indisputable proof of another person’s crimes against them. What begins as an episodic morality play (what would you do if you knew you could get away with anything?) turns into a much larger story, as we learn of a much larger conspiracy at work governing the fate of the world. All 13 volumes of this series are available now.

But maybe you’re not looking for such a dense plot from the get-go. If that’s the case, then the anthology Noir (coincidentally edited by Azzarrello) may be a better introduction to the genre, offering a tasting platter to 100 Bullets’ full-course meal. Featuring some of the standout creators in the field (including David Lapham, Jeff Lemire, and M.K. Perker), these gritty stories of justice, betrayal and The One Last Score may be just the thing to get you hooked.

Do you perfer your crime stories taken from reality? If so writer/artist Rick Geary is your man. He has covered everything from Lizzie Borden to the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and his detailed, expressive linework brings to mind the penny-dreadfuls of the Victorian era. It’s all a bit reminiscent of Edward Gorey’s art, albeit with a less fanciful mindset. If you enjoy historical thrillers like The Devil in the White City or Manhunt, Geary’s journalistic style is just for you. In addition to his contributions to the true-crime field, Geary has also applied his considerable talents to other fields, including biography and adaptations of literary classics.

Those looking for something more fanciful might enjoy Bryan Talbot’s Grandville. Billed as “Scientific-Romance Thriller,” the story combines a Sherlock Holmes-ian mystery with a retro-futuristic art style. The story is set comfortably in the “steampunk” world, where all scientific and technological innovations utilize pneumatic tubes and hydraulics, rather than microchips and circuitry. It’s a little bit Arthur Conan Doyle, and a little bit Terry Gilliam, all with a gorgeous Art Noveau-inspired art style. And did I mention all of the characters are talking animals?

Moving back to more traditional visions of the shady underworld, we have the series Criminal, by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips. Like 100 Bullets, Criminal takes many of the standard noir tropes – the ex-con struggling to stay on the straight and narrow, the double-crossing femme fatale – and pushes them to extremes. Each of the stories works as a own singular plot, but over time certain characters begin to pop up in other stories, eventually creating a world that feels wholly fleshed-out. Like a George Pelecanos novel or an episode of The Wire, you’ll begin to feel like these characters have lives beyond what you read on the page. There are currently 4 volumes, with a 5th due out by the end of the year.

Finally, you have adaptations of true crime masters. Richard Stark’s (the pseudonym for Donald Westlake) Parker novels helped to create the template by which we’ve come to recognize crime fiction. Darwyn Cooke’s adaptation of the first Parker story The Hunter is nothing short of a masterpiece. Cooke takes Stark’s uncompromising prose and blends it with his signature early-60’s art style. This title made my top 5 last year, and I’ve got high expectations for the followup, an adaptation of The Man With the Getaway Face,  due out this summer.

And this is only the tip of the iceberg! What are your favorite crime stories, in graphic novel form or otherwise?

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind by Hayao Miyazaki

Not just because it’s Earth Day – really. This comic book series and animated feature length film are highly recommended at any time!  Nausicaä has a strong ecological theme. So it seemed appropriate to write about it today. The message is timeless and important. Read the graphic novels, watch the DVD.

My movie review: In the post-apocalyptic future, pacifist and environmental warrior Princess Nausicaa lives in Valley of the Wind, a small rural territory at the edge of an expanding wasteland. When a ship carrying a weapon from a long-gone industrial age crashes nearby and soldiers come to retrieve the cargo, she and the people of the Valley struggle to prevent conflicting nations from destroying one another and the declining planet.  (read more)

See a selected list of environmental-themed documentaries.

Since this is already the worst-kept secret in all of contemporary literature, I’ll start this post by saying it right out: Joe Hill is Stephen King’s son, and let’s just say the apple doesn’t fall from the tree as far as his writing style goes. I imagine that statement alone helps divide the Constant Readers from those who wouldn’t be interested.

Hill has already had success in as a teller of short stories (20th Century Ghosts), and as a novelist (Heart-Shaped Box), but Locke & Key showcases a wholly different talent – writing for comics.

Contrary to what you might think, this isn’t a skill that transfers easily. Jodi Picoult wrote a story for Wonder Woman that didn’t quite impress, and comic book writer Warren Ellis failed to stick the landing with his debut novel Crooked Little Vein. The form requires the author to pair concise dialogue with a knack for description – and do both without sacrificing your story. Add in the need to work with an artist (in this case, the exemplary Gabriel Rodriguez), and you’re exercising a completely different writing muscle. With Locke & Key, Hill just finished a literary triathlon.

Follow the Locke children as they move with their mother to Lovecraft, Mass. following the shocking murder of their father. Keyhouse is the name of the creepy old mansion that’s been in their family for decades, and it’s filled with secrets.

Did that strange black key actually turn young Bode into a ghost?

What’s with the strange voices coming from the well in the backyard?

Will Keyhouse keep the Lockes safe from their father’s killer?

These answers are only the beginning in this first volume of Locke & Key.