- Library Binding: 96 pages
- Publisher: Candlewick (July 13 2010)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0763647357
- ISBN-13: 978-0763647353
- Product Dimensions: 23.8 x 1.7 x 30.8 cm
- Shipping Weight: 581 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #487,116 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
Review
"Wonderfully imaginative and stylish. . . . A perfect example of the adventurous new directions that comic books should be taking in the future." — Alan Moore, author of WATCHMEN and V FOR VENDETTA — Quote
Product Description
"Wonderfully imaginative and stylish. . . . A perfect example of the adventurous new directions that comic books should be taking in the future." — Alan Moore, author of WATCHMEN and V FOR VENDETTA
A mundane life takes a strange and magical turn in this rich gothic fantasy told with vivid black-and-white art — a graphic novel perfect for a Halloween night. As he twists the key and slowly creeps into the grand mansion left to him in his father's will, Salem Brownstone has an eerie feeling that his world is about to change. First there's the appearance of a beguiling contortionist from Dr. Kinoshita's Circus of Unearthly Delights . . . then a crystal ball . . . then an attack by the sinister Shadow Boys. It seems the father that Salem never knew was actually a powerful magician, and the son has inherited his dark legacy — and an unfinished battle for life or death. With intriguing echoes of Tim Burton, Edward Gorey, H. P. Lovecraft, and Aubrey Beardsley, this album-format, beautifully cloth-bound graphic novel forges a mesmerizing style all its own.
A mundane life takes a strange and magical turn in this rich gothic fantasy told with vivid black-and-white art — a graphic novel perfect for a Halloween night. As he twists the key and slowly creeps into the grand mansion left to him in his father's will, Salem Brownstone has an eerie feeling that his world is about to change. First there's the appearance of a beguiling contortionist from Dr. Kinoshita's Circus of Unearthly Delights . . . then a crystal ball . . . then an attack by the sinister Shadow Boys. It seems the father that Salem never knew was actually a powerful magician, and the son has inherited his dark legacy — and an unfinished battle for life or death. With intriguing echoes of Tim Burton, Edward Gorey, H. P. Lovecraft, and Aubrey Beardsley, this album-format, beautifully cloth-bound graphic novel forges a mesmerizing style all its own.
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Most helpful customer reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Finding Yourself in a Strange Weird World,
By
This review is from: Salem Brownstone: All Along the Watchtowers (Library Binding)
There were two things that first attracted me to this book. The first of these was the purple textured cover with its gothic-style illustration, while the second element was -- I will admit -- a few words of praise from Alan Moore. However, it was only these two traits in conjunction with each other that made me want to buy the book and see what it was about.It is hard to talk about Salem Brownstone's content and plot separate from its structure because both are very interlinked with each other. What first really caught my attention was the way that Dunning started his graphic narrative: in the form of a bit of prose. It is a little narrative description of the protagonist's life so far before this novel begins, and we never see nor hear mention of it again. It is a very irregular way to start a graphic narrative or any kind, but despite some deceptive simplicity and trope, Salem Brownstone is an irregular book. On the same page below the character exposition of Salem Brownstone is a letter addressed to him: informing him about the death of his father and the inheritance of his estate that he has to claim immediately. For a while, you are not sure where the plot is going but then -- after Salem meets another character -- the "real magic show" begins. This book's illustrations are dark and multi-layered with a whole lot of otherworldly ambiance reminiscent of Charles Burns' drawing style and sometimes even the art in Grant Morrison's Seaguy. There are even some innovations with the dialogue, such as the writing of it being upside down when a character is upside down (though it makes for awkward reading on the bus when you keep turning your book up and down in your hands). The characters are varied, eccentric and strange, while the villains are monstrous and creepy in a very dark and elemental way. Salem Brownstone himself deviates a lot from the standard protagonist who should be completely unfamiliar with suddenly strange surroundings, and yet strangely isn't, while his erstwhile companion Cassandra Contortionist is just awesome with her T-Shirts, her manner and ... contortionism. I really like the fact that there is a lot of back-story and strange eldritch lore in this constructed world that are never really explained, but they do not have to be: they just are. This was a very interesting and very surprisingly *short* comic: allowing the way for both sequels or prequels to be made. I think I would definitely be interested to see more.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Beautiful, Creepy & Macabre!,
By
This review is from: Salem Brownstone: All Along the Watchtowers (Library Binding)
Reason for Reading: I was immediately taken with the publisher's eerie plot summary.This is a beautiful book. Oversized like a large picture book with decorated cloth covered boards, it feels like a treasure in your hands. Upon opening the book, the story grips you right away as if something by Poe. Then turn the page where the artwork starts and immediately Gory comes to mind and the further one gets into the story with the mixture of art and text their is a very strong Tim Burton vibe going and I actually started imaging the story being filmed with Johnny Depp as Salem Brownstone. The artwork is truly masterful. Each frame is so detailed, this book could take many readings and each reading would reveal something you had missed the previous times through. How do I describe the art? Outlandish, eerie, macabre, bizarre and just outright fiendishly freakish (in a good way!). Salem Brownstone, a grown man, who hasn't seen his father since he was six receives a telegram that his father has died and left him his mansion and the contents and he must come claim it ASAP that evening at 9pm. Upon arrival Salem finds an old creepy Victorian house and notices a sign announcing a circus nearby. Once inside he discovers his father was a magician and dons the cape, when he hears a noise. As he investigates he happens upon Cassandra Contortionist who has been waiting for him. She has a scrying orb that belonged to his father that she must pass on to him. She takes him down to the circus for further explanation and it is here he learns that he must take over his father's role in keeping the world safe from the evil creatures of another dimension. This is a macabre story and certainly not going to be for everyone but if you like Poe or Lovecraft then this will be along your tastes. The atmosphere is very dark and heavy, the story is very creepy and when you think you've seen it all something even creepier happens. I was engrossed with the story and the whole book itself. A wonderful Hallowe'en read. From the ending, there are hints that Salem may appear in a sequel.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
4.5 out of 5 stars (2 customer reviews)
4.0 out of 5 stars
Beautiful, Creepy & Macabre!,
By Nicola Manning - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Salem Brownstone: All Along the Watchtowers (Library Binding)
Reason for Reading: I was immediately taken with the publisher's eerie plot summary.This is a beautiful book. Oversized like a large picture book with decorated cloth covered boards, it feels like a treasure in your hands. Upon opening the book, the story grips you right away as if something by Poe. Then turn the page where the artwork starts and immediately Gory comes to mind and the further one gets into the story with the mixture of art and text their is a very strong Tim Burton vibe going and I actually started imaging the story being filmed with Johnny Depp as Salem Brownstone. The artwork is truly masterful. Each frame is so detailed, this book could take many readings and each reading would reveal something you had missed the previous times through. How do I describe the art? Outlandish, eerie, macabre, bizarre and just outright fiendishly freakish (in a good way!). Salem Brownstone, a grown man, who hasn't seen his father since he was six receives a telegram that his father has died and left him his mansion and the contents and he must come claim it ASAP that evening at 9pm. Upon arrival Salem finds an old creepy Victorian house and notices a sign announcing a circus nearby. Once inside he discovers his father was a magician and dons the cape, when he hears a noise. As he investigates he happens upon Cassandra Contortionist who has been waiting for him. She has a scrying orb that belonged to his father that she must pass on to him. She takes him down to the circus for further explanation and it is here he learns that he must take over his father's role in keeping the world safe from the evil creatures of another dimension. This is a macabre story and certainly not going to be for everyone but if you like Poe or Lovecraft then this will be along your tastes. The atmosphere is very dark and heavy, the story is very creepy and when you think you've seen it all something even creepier happens. I was engrossed with the story and the whole book itself. A wonderful Hallowe'en read. From the ending, there are hints that Salem may appear in a sequel.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Surreal!,
By Yorik van Havre - Published on Amazon.com
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Salem Brownstone: All Along the Watchtowers (Hardcover)
This is a very, very good and strange graphic novel. The story is well mounted and drives you through that strange world in its own steady pace, but everything is diffracted, stretched, transformed by Nikhil's psychodelic drawing. The combination of both is something very hard to classify, there is something of a classical american comic book in the standard division of the chapters and the story move, there is some early Moebius, some late Moebius, with some depressive, dark, noir tar-like paint in the corners, both in the drawings and the story, and a fantasy feel that is different from both usual american and european graphic novel style...It's not an average good-for-all comic book, but definitely a fine and delicious gem for connaisseurs. |
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