Number 43 - The Books of Magic-Bindings - Jon Ney Reiber

 

Collecting issues 1-4 of John Ney Reiber's run on The Books of Magic, this is a reread for me after nearly 30 years (back when I used to buy this particular comic. I wish I knew where the original comics were now)

For a series I  liked as much as this, I remembered absolutely nothing of this storyline.

Tim Hunter is a 13 year old boy who recently was visited by most of DC Vertigo's range of magic users in a mini series by Neil Gaiman.  This was the start of a new continuing series created for Vertigo under the talented hands of John Ney Reiber.

In this volume we discover hidden truths about young Tim's past and, most importantly, his parentage. At the same time he finds himself caught up involuntarily in the affairs of a decaying and withering Land of Faerie, facing a foe who strikes fear into the hearts of the bravest warriors.

The story was as intriguing and magical as I remember (I remember how much I enjoyed it but no details), but the artwork was not as good. In places, the best that can be said is that it's functional.

I stopped buying the comics for financial reasons back in the 90s. I will be trawling the comics fairs for the omnibus editions to try to complete the series.  Then I'll start on the new series that came out more recently which has been confusing my efforts to track down these volumes 

Meanwhile, this is a nice wander down a forgotten alley of memory lane.

Number 104 - The Swallowed Man - Edward Carey

 

After reading Heap House a few books ago, I went online and bought several more Edward Carey novels. I will return to the world of the Iremongers early in the new year, but this book caught my eye for a more immediate read - mainly for it's relatively short length and the Max Porter quote.

It tells the story of Gepetto (yes, that Gepetto) trying to eke out his remaining life after being swallowed my the giant sea creature. It starts with a brief retelling of the more famous story of Pinocchio from Gepetto's point of view and explaining how he came to be where he is before embarking on less familiar fare.

To be fair, even his retelling of Pinocchio feels fresh since it's not from the usual viewpoint.

By some miracle, Gepetto has managed to land inside a ship previously swallowed by the shark/sea creature.  The ship is reasonably sturdy, but, just as importantly, it contains candles, food and the captain's logbook and ink where our narrator writes his weird history.

After the familiar story, we learn about Gepetto's early life and loves. We also learn how he tries to survive the loneliness of his captivity in the stomach of the creature. However, his supply of candles is running low, as is his food, and something is scuttling in the recesses of the ship.

The prose is scattered with more of Carey's rather distinct artwork, and assorted strange photographs that complement the narrative perfectly. The tone of the book is as weird and wonderful as Heap House was even though this is aimed at an older demographic. He managed the almost impossible and surprised me with the final chapter of the book.

I can't recommend this too highly to those people who like a skewed take on familiar tales.