The cover's swirling, foaming sea crashing on the peaceful, summery central image is a taste of the turmoil crashing in on the lives of Chunky Rice and his partner (I have a reprint, hence the new cover with "author of Blankets" on the front).
On first flick you notice something unusual and singularly available to the comic medium, black pages - heavy black borders framing the pages' panels, a sign of the weight of the story, the burden of choices and inevitability.
If you don't have an idea of the tone of the book from the cover, the title, even the body-language and expressions of the characters then Craig Thompson has failed... which he hasn't because he's one of the strongest communicators of the medium I've come across!
I won't get into the story, I'll leave it to you to find and read and enjoy, but suffice it to say that Chunky Rice must gather his life in a box, leave town and depart on a sea-faring adventure...
(Amazon's handy preview here)
The image above is a perfect example of the elegant and succinct style of storytelling that this book excels at. The continuous images through gutters into following panels punctuate and set the pacing. Once Chunky asks a difficult question his frame collapses from what was an open and bright frame to a claustrophobic one, his eyes looking expectantly in the direction of his friend. Following his eye-line leads you directly into the next panel, flipping the perspective but continuing to the object of his gaze. This half body (in both panels), the silence, the continuation of the task at hand without answering, all draw out the tension and lead to the inevitable, heartbreaking response.
These two innocent, beautifully drawn creatures sit together on the beach, and play. The sun sets.
A wonderful scene, what seems so simple and effortless in execution but technically astute, mature and miles ahead of what you'd expect when you pick up a pretty children's book.
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