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pastel_princess's review against another edition
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Lets review the blurb:
The town of Large Mouth never saw much excitement - until the arrival of a stranger wrapped head to toe in weird bandages. (This happens)
Driven by curiosity, a young loner named Vickie discovers the tragic story of the bizarre accident that left him horribly disfigured. But do his bandages hide more than just his scars? (What scars?? He's INVISIBLE. Also, Vickie never actually discovers this, nor does she hear his story. She is confused by his sitch for the WHOLE book. It literally ends with Vickie talking about how they found the guy Griffin killed and they ALL thought he was Griffin so that's what even she went with. SHE NEVER EVEN KNEW HE WAS INVISIBLE!)
When a series of crimes unfolds, the quiet townsfolk turn on the stranger and hunt him down. (AKA Kill him for absolutely no reason, as no crimes have actually unfolded that they know of. He DOES kill one dude, but no one is actually aware that he did. The other crime is a tramp of a wife going missing, but it's made very clear it happens ALL THE TIME and they are just being dramatic. She literally comes back right after they shoot him.)
THE NOBODY takes on H.G. Wells timeless character of 'The Invisible Man' and brings him to a small modern town, using him as a cipher to explore themes of identity, fear, and paranoia, and how they can turn a small town community in on itself and destroy even the most pure of friendships.
This book had potential to be really good, but it feels like I've read an incomplete outline and the blurb on the book doesn't even match the story. Which sucks, because I actually really like Griffin.
The town of Large Mouth never saw much excitement - until the arrival of a stranger wrapped head to toe in weird bandages. (This happens)
Driven by curiosity, a young loner named Vickie discovers the tragic story of the bizarre accident that left him horribly disfigured. But do his bandages hide more than just his scars? (What scars?? He's INVISIBLE. Also, Vickie never actually discovers this, nor does she hear his story. She is confused by his sitch for the WHOLE book. It literally ends with Vickie talking about how they found the guy Griffin killed and they ALL thought he was Griffin so that's what even she went with. SHE NEVER EVEN KNEW HE WAS INVISIBLE!)
When a series of crimes unfolds, the quiet townsfolk turn on the stranger and hunt him down. (AKA Kill him for absolutely no reason, as no crimes have actually unfolded that they know of. He DOES kill one dude, but no one is actually aware that he did. The other crime is a tramp of a wife going missing, but it's made very clear it happens ALL THE TIME and they are just being dramatic. She literally comes back right after they shoot him.)
THE NOBODY takes on H.G. Wells timeless character of 'The Invisible Man' and brings him to a small modern town, using him as a cipher to explore themes of identity, fear, and paranoia, and how they can turn a small town community in on itself and destroy even the most pure of friendships.
This book had potential to be really good, but it feels like I've read an incomplete outline and the blurb on the book doesn't even match the story. Which sucks, because I actually really like Griffin.
nichole1988's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.5
eskaybooks's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
karliclover's review against another edition
3.0
This was a very interesting book. It reminded me a lot of one of Lemire's other books, The Underwater Welder. They both deal with mysterious things and disappearances. I enjoyed this book, but I do wish it would have given me more. I want to know more about the main character. It was only three issues long (they were longer than normal-length issues, but still), and I feel like there should have been at least one more. As for the art, I do really like Lemire's art, but all of his characters, unless they're meant to stand out, look the same. Especially the women. I'd have to look back, but Vickie's mom in The Nobody looks just like the wife of the main character in The Underwater Welder. She probably looks like Jeppard's wife from Sweet Tooth, too.
saidtheraina's review
3.0
I'm not in love with Lemire's illustration style. I've read several of his GNs, and there's something about the angularity of his drawing that feels a little unfriendly to me. It certainly communicates the story sufficiently, and is even aesthetically pleasing a lot of the time.
Anyway, this is the story of a mysterious man, covered in bandages, who shows up in a small town and confounds the inhabitants. I like that Lemire kept the big reveal mysterious for most of the story, and the reactions of the people seem realistic. I wasn't enraptured, but I never thought about putting it down.
Anyway, this is the story of a mysterious man, covered in bandages, who shows up in a small town and confounds the inhabitants. I like that Lemire kept the big reveal mysterious for most of the story, and the reactions of the people seem realistic. I wasn't enraptured, but I never thought about putting it down.
joshgauthier's review
4.0
Bringing the character of the Invisible Man into Lemire's effective small-town aesthetic, The Nobody is a simple story that nevertheless captures the complexities of loneliness, fear, and prejudice--our desire for connection and the ability of mistrust to fracture relationships with disastrous consequences.
cuddlesome's review
4.0
This is sooo good. I'm a huge sucker for slice of life stuff with a bit of the strange/supernatural thrown in so this is right up my alley.
It features one of the coolest extended metaphors I've seen in an Invisible Man story: "You don't understand. It poisoned me. It took my mind. And then I took her... by the time I knew what was happening, she was gone... and so was I." I'm not even really doing this part justice because it features a really great illustration, too.
The vintage-style suspense comic covers as the chapter breaks are also really cute.
The only thing keeping this from five stars is the way that the art style kind of broke my suspension of disbelief sometimes. When it came to Griffen (yeah, with an "e") everything was on-point but the faces of the townsfolk could be a little distracting.
It features one of the coolest extended metaphors I've seen in an Invisible Man story: "You don't understand. It poisoned me. It took my mind. And then I took her... by the time I knew what was happening, she was gone... and so was I." I'm not even really doing this part justice because it features a really great illustration, too.
The vintage-style suspense comic covers as the chapter breaks are also really cute.
The only thing keeping this from five stars is the way that the art style kind of broke my suspension of disbelief sometimes. When it came to Griffen (yeah, with an "e") everything was on-point but the faces of the townsfolk could be a little distracting.