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hinoki's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
4.0
I just finished Little by Carey, so it was fun to continue to hang out in the author's head and recognize his drawings.
portybelle's review
4.0
I thoroughly enjoyed leafing through this book and I do feel that it is a book which needs to be enjoyed in its physical form. In the pieces of writing interspersed throughout the book, the author refers to his illustrations by number and it makes sense to be able to turn to the relevant drawing at the appropriate point.
There is almost a strange sense of nostalgia when reading this book, looking back at what has happened over the part 20 months or so. Although, as the author acknowledges, it most certainly is not over. Many of the drawings will evoke memories, such as the goats in a Welsh town or the everyday wildlife which so many people rediscovered during their short walks outside. The literary heroes of lockdown made me laugh such as Lady MacBeth, “who knew how to keep her hands clean”. There’s a common lived experience which will resonate with many of us. A few of the drawings bring a lump to the throat as we remember the passing of notable figures such as Captain Tom Moore, Olivia de Havilland, Christopher Plummer and Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Other significant events are marked such as Joe Biden’s election, the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, a winter storm in Texas, the impeachment of Donald Trump.
This book is an unusual way of chronicling a most remarkable time in our recent history. When Edward Carey casually said he’d do a drawing each day until this was all over, he would have had no idea of just how many drawings that would mean! Or how many of his beloved Tombow B pencils – the Goldilocks pencils – he would go through. The illustrations are excellent and many inspired me to go and find out more about the person or creature depicted. The writing was equally compelling and though I have to confess that I haven’t read anything by this author before, I now intend to rectify that.
B: A Year In Plagues & Pencils is a unique book which will be relatable to so many people. I certainly appreciated the talent of the author both with his words and his illustrations. The hardback edition of the book would make a beautiful addition to any book shelf as a Christmas gift but you may just want to buy an extra copy and savour it yourself.
There is almost a strange sense of nostalgia when reading this book, looking back at what has happened over the part 20 months or so. Although, as the author acknowledges, it most certainly is not over. Many of the drawings will evoke memories, such as the goats in a Welsh town or the everyday wildlife which so many people rediscovered during their short walks outside. The literary heroes of lockdown made me laugh such as Lady MacBeth, “who knew how to keep her hands clean”. There’s a common lived experience which will resonate with many of us. A few of the drawings bring a lump to the throat as we remember the passing of notable figures such as Captain Tom Moore, Olivia de Havilland, Christopher Plummer and Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Other significant events are marked such as Joe Biden’s election, the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, a winter storm in Texas, the impeachment of Donald Trump.
This book is an unusual way of chronicling a most remarkable time in our recent history. When Edward Carey casually said he’d do a drawing each day until this was all over, he would have had no idea of just how many drawings that would mean! Or how many of his beloved Tombow B pencils – the Goldilocks pencils – he would go through. The illustrations are excellent and many inspired me to go and find out more about the person or creature depicted. The writing was equally compelling and though I have to confess that I haven’t read anything by this author before, I now intend to rectify that.
B: A Year In Plagues & Pencils is a unique book which will be relatable to so many people. I certainly appreciated the talent of the author both with his words and his illustrations. The hardback edition of the book would make a beautiful addition to any book shelf as a Christmas gift but you may just want to buy an extra copy and savour it yourself.
jengeraedts's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
5.0
math4all's review
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
3.5
Quick read. A drawing a day by the author as the plague starts up. Some commentary in between. The drawings sparked in me some memories of that first year in pandemic and all that happened, those we'd lost, and things we suffered.