I'm glad this exists, anything that reminds people of the transcendent Neil Young album it's based on can't be all bad. But it didn't grab me in anything like the fashion that good old Neil's record/CD did. Check that musical masterpiece out asap if you haven't already. To my mind it's a great Northern California novel that is up there with Thomas Pynchon's Vineland, and with much more satisfying noisy guitar work. I have to admit, I've never listened to the Greendale album, but this graphic novel makes me curious to listen to it. Greendale covers a brief span in the life of Sun Green, starting with glimpses of her as a child. The meat of the of the book takes place over a few days, with Sun beginning to ask questions about her family's past. She's caught the notice of a mysterious & sinister man who seems to have some sort of supernatural powers. Sun has to figure out what exactly is going on as well as try to find her own place in the world as every she previously knew begins to shatter around her. The artwork is easily the best part of this graphic novel. It is beautifully done & there's nice detail to everything. I really enjoyed pouring over the artwork in this book & reread it a few times just because the artwork was that nicely done. Unfortunately, the weak point is the storyline. It really could have been fleshed out better- the graphic novel just seems to flash over some topics, spending little time on them when more definition would have been nice. It isn't difficult to figure out what's going on, but I really think that if the book had been better done it would have been a more satisfying read. Don't get me wrong, this is a nice read. It just isn't a great one.Fans of Neil Young might like this because of the album, but I don't know if it will appeal to all graphic novel readers. It just doesn't bring anything new to the medium.(ARC provided by amazon vine)
What do You think about Greendale (2010)?
You're better off reading Wildwood by Charles de Lint or anything by Sheri S Tepper.
—bill
Kind of cool, though still a bit superhero, though in a hippy kind of way.
—Tia
