For the Graphic Novel Challenge!
The Unwritten is about a guy called Tom whose father – long since disappeared without a trace – wrote an incredibly popular series of books about a character with Tom’s same name: Tommy Taylor. However, it turns out that all the paperwork proving Tom is his father’s son has been forged. At first it is theorized that he is a fraud, the son of Romanian peasants; then people begin to believe that he is, in fact, Tommy Taylor, brought into existence by the stories themselves. The word made flesh.
The Unwritten is set in London, a place with whose literary history Tom is very familiar. His father was always telling him stories about the places in England and how they connect to books and authors – this plays into the unfolding of the plot and will, I expect, do so more and more as the series goes on. There is one scene that is set at the Globe, the Globe that I love, you don’t even know and words cannot express how much I love the Globe Theatre. It is like Mike Carey wants to say, “I love literature and I know that you do too!” If fiction is going to be meta, it should be meta exactly like this.
The final issue included in this first volume of the graphic novel is all about Rudyard Kipling and Oscar Wilde. While not closely connected to the main plotline, it does give us a glimpse into the means and methods employed by the villains and how it relates to stories and literature. Also? It has Oscar Wilde in it. Oscar Wilde! I love him so! He was such a dear darling when he wasn’t being awful!
Two things that I like a lot are Oscar Wilde and London. And metafiction – three things. The three things that I like a lot are Oscar Wilde, and London and metafiction, and fictional characters coming to life. Four – no. Amongst the things that I like are such elements as Oscar Wilde, London – I’ll come in again. (Sorry, XKCD. I know you don’t like it when people do that.)
I have given in to temptation and subscribed to this comic on HeavyInk. I know I shouldn’t be spending money on single issue comics, given that I will probably end up buying the collected volumes as proper books when they are released, but I cannot resist the alluring notion of getting comics each month, all wrapped up in crinkly brown paper. Oh, HeavyInk, you seduce me with your sexy packaging.
Other reviews:
things mean a lot
The Literary Omnivore
Adventures with Words
Bibliofreak
Tell me if I missed yours!