(I guess it’s odd that I’m an evangelical supporter of an anti-evangelical graphic novel. Oh well…)
Ask and ye shall receive: Eve Tushnet offers her own, as-yet-undecided perspective on Craig Thompson’s magnum opus. I think she hits on one of the most interesting questions about the book, one that I haven’t unravelled despite actually interviewing the guy about it: To what extent is Craig’s narrative voice unreliable? That is, does he really believe everything is as “perfect” as the narrator depicts it? And is he really as sincere in his teen-year convictions as the narrator makes it seem? In addition, she offers some insight into the relationship between evangelical fundamentalism and kitsch art, one I hadn’t thought of before. Finally, it’s always fascinating to hear about what makes for “good comics” for people who aren’t already immersed in the art form. This book has people like Eve and my wife Amy talking about comics, which is a damn good thing for this incredibly insular medium.
Meanwhile, over on the TCJ.com messboard, the illustrious Scott Bukatman leads an exodus from the interminable, intolerable fightin’-’bout-the-Baby-Jesus Blankets thread, and is generating some interesting discussion (provided this one doesn’t get bogged down in a chat about the book’s price point, or the fight Lorna Miller apparently wants to pick with Coop…).