Customer Reviews

The Complete Essex County

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I saw some of the original, uncollected "Essex County" comics in the comic stores when they came out and I remember flipping through them from time to time but never really piquing enough interest to bring me to purchase them. Then I heard the collected graphic novel version had made it onto "Canada Reads" and I wondered what I had missed. Since reading the entire thing, I now understand that the effect of this work is slow, elegantly understated and cumulative, so it is hard to "get it" on a casual glance through a single storyline.

There is such melancholy, such dignity and a quiet joy in the little things in this work. So much love and regret, isolation and loneliness and longing for the traditions of the past. I love the artwork in the series. It says that the story is anything but "super," that you'll have to look and listen closely to these lines. I love the feeling of personal histories being present with us all the time and having their influence on the events of our lives even as they happen. The inability to escape the past is a comfort and a curse to these characters.

Lemire is very adept at allowing a moment to happen without dialogue, sometimes from behind a window, where we can't "hear" what's being said. The effect is haunting in that it allows for quietness and gravity in what are often mundane details in the characters' lives. The book is also wonderfully steeped in Canadiana--from hockey to rural farming life, from Leamington to Toronto, in the inevitable "eh?" after each sentence, through five generations of characters' lives, whose stories are sometimes told all at the same time.

A beautiful, heartbreaking work of graphic storytelling.

If it wasn't for the closed-minded attitude of some panellists on "Canada reads", this book would have won. It is as touching in the writing as it is excellent in illustration. Almost each page deserves to be framed and put up in a museum. The intertwined stories are heart-wrenching and beautiful. An essential read for lovers of books.

Spanning over a century, Essex County tells the various life stories of one farm town's inhabitants and how human lives can often intertwine with one another in unexpected ways. Heartfelt and sincere, this book accomplished the rare feat of causing me to tear up while reading it. I don't have enough praise for graphic novel, but I do know I'm now a Jeff Lemire fan for life.

My one "nitpick" however, is the art is so raw and imprecise that it might scare off some people. Don't prejudge the style as it wonderfully compliments the story and sucks the reader right in after only a few pages.

Beautifully written, beautifully drawn, this is the work of a true master of the form. One of the best recent graphic novels I have read, ever. The emotional weight that the story and art work are able to convey was really surprising and powerful.

Jeff Lemire crafts an enthralling story of the people living in Essex County over the course of decades. Like some of the masterpieces of literature (eg. Gabriel Garcia Marquez) this work transcends time, building a family and community history that leaves you wondering just what will happen next for the residents of Essex County. I really enjoyed reading this graphic novel and truly recommend it to anyone.

Most people aren't going to take a chance on this one simply because it's a graphic novel. You might be put off by the stark, black and white sketchy nature of the artwork. But if you don't read this, you're missing out on something special. The book has wonderful characters, plot and intertwining stories. The artwork perfectly captures the sense of place and the bleakness of the surroundings. There is warmth and heart at the soul of these stories and the way their plots intertwine means you'll want to go back and read them again with what you now know about the relationship between the characters and their century-long history together. This got nominated for Canada Reads 2011 and lost out to The Best Laid Plans, by Terry Fallis. This is the better, deeper, more meaningful book. Give it a chance, even if you don't usually read graphic novels. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

Essex County is artistic in both a literary and visual sense. A real throw back to earlier, but not simpler times.

Deserves all the praise it has received for its fine feeling for people, place and history, and for technically brilliant storytelling. But even Expressionist art doesn't have to be as ugly as this. Despite all the good buzz, I hesitated for weeks before buying the book because I found the drawing just so repellent. That said, if it had been drawn in Hal Foster's style it would have been less, not more effective than it is, and on a second reading, the drawing - though I'll never love it - is beginning to grow on me. The (section containing a deliberately badly drawn) parody of a child's first attempt at writing and drawing a comic book is bang-on accurate and hilarious.

This was a wonderful experience for me.. I strongly recommend to anyone to embrace this book and the message here in.. The graphics are amazing,, I loved it , and am in the process of ensuring my family experiences this too.
My pic for Canada Reads 2011!!!

A fantastic graphic novel, I strongly recommend it to anyone looking for a poetic and moving read. This is a unique book, narrated and illustrated with a self-conscious touch about painfully frail characters in a cold and desolate landscape. Though the stories could easily turn to melodrama, the author carefully juggles emotion with humor to create a perfect balance. Well done, Mister Lemire.