Merry Wanderer of the Night:
anthology

This review is actually two reviews in one. I read I Saw You over the last couple months and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz last month. These two graphic novels could not have been more different, but I enjoyed them both tremendously.

I Saw You...: Comics Inspired by Real-Life Missed Connections

is an anthology edited by Julia Wertz which has short comics inspired by Craigslist's Missed Connections section. It is totally black and white and a couple of my favorite comic artists, Liz Prince and Lucy Knisley, were featured in the anthology. I must say that anthology was a bit hit and miss. The missed connections that actually happened to the comic artists tended to make better comics than the ones based solely off advertisements. It also felt like the same trope was repeated: old creepy guy after hot young girl. It seemed a little too easy. The comics that stood out made this one worth reading, and I love the "Me too!" moments I got when the artists talked about love. I'd say this is one to check-out from the library if you can, unless you're really interested in missed connections like me. If nothing else you'll learn a lot about comic artists you've never heard of before. I'll definitely look for Julia Wertz's look in the future, as her comic (on the cover) was one of my favorites.

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz graphic novel could not be more artistically different from I Saw You. Skottie Young's artwork is extremely colorful and detailed. This is one example were the artwork worked perfectly with the story, always the happy medium in graphic novels. I read The Wizard of Oz when I was a kid but I don't remember it too well since I've seen the movie many more times. As far as I can tell the graphic novel sticks with the story of the book. The pictures add a lot though. Shanower is great at combining cute and creepy, which I think describes The Wizard of Oz extremely well. The Scarecrow was my absolute favorite character-- he is totally creepy but in this adorable cuddly way.

My only complaint about The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is it relied too much on the reader's presumed familiarity with the story. I'm familiar with the story and I still felt like there were some plot holes. Overall it's a good story and I felt the artwork added more to the story than the imagines in the film did. Definitely a must-have for any Wizard of Oz fan or anyone who enjoys Tim Burton-esque artwork and storytelling.

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I really enjoy writing and I like to read what other people think about their writing practice, so when I saw Views from the Loft: A Portable Writer's Workshop

available on Netgalley I decided to try it out on my nook. This book is a series of short essays and interviews by authors who have attended the Loft Literary Center in Minneapolis. I gather that these all came from a literary journal the Loft publishes under the same title. A lot gets covered in this book, including several genres within nonfiction, fiction, and poetry. Most of my favorite essays were about memoir writing, and particularly enjoyed reading writers thoughts about fair representation in memoir writing.

If I read the interviews in a magazine, I might have enjoyed them more, but it seemed like a lot of the same questions were asked of the writers and several of them gave similar answers. I think the pacing in the book could have been a little bit better, with similarly written things spread out a little more... or perhaps omitted. My biggest problem with this book was that it was really too much information all together. After finishing it was hard for me to come away with the book with any real clear ideas on how I could improve my writing or for things to try. I think this book is better for dipping into from time to time, rather than to try and read straight through.

I do think this book is worth a look if you love to write. I wouldn't recommend it for a reader who just wants to hear about writers writing. And if you love to write, I would recommend this book as inspiration and not as a guide to read cover to cover. Find a topic that interests you, there are some nice subject divisions in the book, dip into that subject for awhile and then turn to writing with those ideas in mind. If you get stuck, come back to the book if you want.

I give this book a C.

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I have never read Love Letters of Great Men, but when I saw Love Letters of Great Women in the store I really could not pass it up. It was on the table for Valentine's Day. It had a pretty cover. Quite a bit of white space when I was looking for a quick read. And a quick look at the back flap assured me that I would find at least a few good letters in this collection. But what I found wasn't quite what I was expecting. In fact, I think it was better.

I was looking for a gushy romantic collection of letters from women to their loved ones, but many of the letters in this book are business like. The women in this collection might be in love, but they are also serious, assertive women with thought provoking ideas. Ursula Doyle's introductions to each woman left me asking thousands of questions and wondering why I had never heard of some of these women before. When I read her introduction to the book I wondered if I was going to enjoy it, mostly because of this:

For the Great Men of history, the matter of who they loved and who they might marry was but on aspect of their lives; their Greatness rested on their achievements in other spheres: scientific discovery, exploration, conquest, political triumph, artistic endeavour. These avenues were not open to most women until shockingly recently, and it is a sad fact that the Greatness of many of the women in this collection rests either on who they married or to whom they gave birth... (2)

But after considering, I realized that this is mostly true. It's a great introduction as well, because Doyle spends the majority of her introductions talking about what these women did outside of their marriages. She does allow their accomplishments to come out, and the romance takes a backseat. So is this the ideal read for Valentine's Day, or a romantic weekend? Probably not. But it is an ideal read for anyone interested in women's history and relationships. Doyle is honest too, which makes the book that much better. I particularly enjoyed her honesty about Emily Dickinson's relationship with Susan Gilbert. No need to skirt around the corners people. Emily loved Susan.

Other women I particularly enjoyed in this book were Lady Mary Pierrepont, Abigail Smith Adams, Manon Jeanne Philipon, Marie-Josphe-Rose Tascher de la Pagerie, Maria Branwell Bronte, Claire Clairmont, Queen Victoria, and Katherine Mansfield.

This collection earned an A.

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