Title: One Week in the LibraryAuthor: John Amor, Kathryn Layno, Tom Muller, W. Maxwell Prince
First Published: December 13, 2016
Publisher: Image Comics
Pages: 96
Genre: Fantasy, Horror, Paranormal, Science Fiction, Short Stories
Format: Paperback
Source: Library
Rating:
Synopsis:
Welcome to the Library. It's here that every story ever written is catalogued and monitored by a single man, who's begun to notice something strange: the books are rebelling. Image Comics proudly presents this experimental graphic novella from writer W. MAXWELL PRINCE and artist JOHN AMOR, which recounts a troublesome week in the Library via seven short stories—one for each day—that use comics, infographics, prose, and poetry to play with the graphic medium and explore the multivalent world of living narrative.
Get the Book: AmazonReview
W. Maxwell Prince writes some truly experimental stories, they’re so wild that I’m never really sure what I’m picking up. One Week in the Library is an ambitious story, and the vague synopsis, unfortunately, summarizes this slim graphic novel well—it’s vague. The plot and even the setting of this graphic novel appear to be a hodgepodge of ideas that never came together.
There are seven short stories altogether, one for each day of the week, the only connection between them being the librarian, yet none of the stories feel all that complete. There are a ton of references to classic literature and pop culture. My favorite was easily the nod to Charlotte’s Web, one of my favorite movies from childhood, which gave me a good chuckle. By the end it all blends together, some references being no more than a panel with no real bearing on the story. The one chapter about the man in the library was a fun twist in the narrative, and while there is some mild commentary about boring work culture it never goes anywhere. At least the art is good, but that’s about it.
It’s clear that the author had an idea and just went with the flow, and the commentary in the last story make it clear that the author had given up once he ran out of steam. I had seen the average ratings for this graphic novel so my expectations were not that high. I still wanted to give it a shot since I had been enjoying the Ice Cream Man series, but this one was just a swing and a miss for me.
Quote
“Oh, to be aloft on a tightrope, hovering over the cheering crowd! Yes, it’s dangerous. But it’s also beautiful: complete vacancy of mind, to hell with the troubles of before and tomorrow.”
Content Warnings
View Spoiler »About the Author
About John Amor
John Amor is an Eisner-nominated artist with works published by Webtoon, Image Comics, IDW, and Zuda Comics. He is a dungeon master with 18 Charisma. He lives in the Philippines with his beloved wife and two dogs.
About Kathryn Layno
Kathryn Layno is a comic artist from Cebu, Philippines.
About Tom Muller
Tom Muller — a Belgian award-winning graphic designer and creative director who has worked across graphic, digital, brand, and product design for more than 20 years. He works with technology startups, movie studios, publishers, media producers, advertising agencies, and film makers; among them Marvel Entertainment, Image Comics, Rebellion/2000AD, DC Entertainment, Sony Pictures, Hivemind, Éditions Kinaye, Valiant Entertainment, 2 Miles Entertainment, Google, WIRED, Paramount Pictures, Protozoa Pictures/Darren Aronofsky, Universal Pictures, Disney, Lion Forge, TV Guide, StudioCanal, Muse Productions, Hearst Publishing, Sony Electronics, Flipboard, WGSN, SCEE/PlayStation, and MTV.
Named as one of the top 100 designers working in the UK today by The Drum; he regularly speaks at design events worldwide (OFFF, Reasons, FITC, Glug, the Apple Store), while his work has been recognised by The Eisner Awards, The Harvey Awards, Entertainment Weekly, Wired, New York Magazine, Boing Boing, The Guardian — and featured in over 100 design & industry publications worldwide including Computer Arts, Design Week, Creative Review, Design Boom, Grafik, Computer Arts, and Varoom.
About W. Maxwell Prince
W. Maxwell Prince writes in Brooklyn and lives with his wife, daughter, and two cats called Mischief and Mayhem. He is the author of One Week in the Library (Image), The Electric Sublime (IDW), and Judas: The Last Days (ibid). When not writing, he tries to render all of human experience in chart form.
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