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A review by jasonmehmel
Finder Library Volume 1 by Carla Speed McNeil
5.0
Finder Volume 1 Review:
Sometimes the inability to easily synopsize a work is a sign that it's not being clear. But that's not the case here. It feels like Carla Speed McNeil (CSM) is telling exactly the kind of story they want to tell.
Some general notes? It's set in a distant future, where much of history has been forgotten. There's high-tech computers, and there are itinerant traders riding enormous pseudo-dinosaurs, probably part of a kind of genetic manipulation experiment in the past. There are people with animal features; there are lion people. Very little of this is explained, it's simply presented as part of the world... you just accept it and move on.
The title: Finder is a role or group in this world, but we only learn about it obliquely. One of the main characters, Jaeger, is one, but he doesn't talk about it much.
I've heard that this is a work exploring indigineaity, though by setting this in an unexplained future, CSM avoids trying to take any particular tribe's stories inside this narrative, which is probably for the best.
This aspect of the book itself isn't delivered directly, but it is present. There is a kind of quiet wisdom of both the book and it's characters, and this feels drawn from the traditions CSM is connecting to.
CSM is a storyteller focused on the characters and lived-in nature of her world. As strange as it all is, the characters feel so naturally fit within it. The feeling is that the story happens to be observing the moments in the lives of these characters, instead of something deeply orchestrated as part of an overt plot.
Jaeger as a character is a great example. We follow him through much of this volume but I hesitate to call him a 'main character' so much as one we happen to be following... his reluctance to explain himself or his choices helps us lean deeper into the world because we want to know more about how everyone else interacts with him.
I will also note that Jaeger became something of a personal inspiration while reading this. Not fully, because the life he lives is too far beyond where I'm comfortable, but there is a calm and focus this character has, and a sense of living in a very present, mindful experience. As someone who often gets lost in overthinking and being distant, trying to channel a little of that element of his character really helped me.
I haven't even talked about the art... CSM's art is stunning. All rendered in black and white, it is by turns incredibly detailed (with lots of cameos and references buried in the backgrounds) and very simple. The characters are incredibly distinct yet with minimal linework. Part of the setting involves whole clans of people who look alike, and CSM's ability to both represent this WHILE making important characters be instantly recognizable is very impressive, and probably deceptively hard to do.
Much like my note about their skills as a storyteller, the art is such that it tries to avoid getting in the way of the narrative. It's a simple style, elegantly used to create a lot of expression, but never so expressive as to clumsily guide the emotions of the audience; always to help us get deeper into the story and world.
I think making a book like this takes a lot of work: thinking through all the characters, how they fit, the details of the world, etc. and then the artwork, representing all these details and qualities with a detailed craftsman's touch. It's the kind of work of a modelmaker, trying to get every detail perfect, so that it seems it could turn alive when you turn your back. The work is clear, but it doesn't feel overwrought or too much, like they're dragging you through every detail they've thought up. It's that every bit of that effort feels like someone who cares deeply for their world, and your passage through it.
A new favourite and a deeply loved reading experience.
Sometimes the inability to easily synopsize a work is a sign that it's not being clear. But that's not the case here. It feels like Carla Speed McNeil (CSM) is telling exactly the kind of story they want to tell.
Some general notes? It's set in a distant future, where much of history has been forgotten. There's high-tech computers, and there are itinerant traders riding enormous pseudo-dinosaurs, probably part of a kind of genetic manipulation experiment in the past. There are people with animal features; there are lion people. Very little of this is explained, it's simply presented as part of the world... you just accept it and move on.
The title: Finder is a role or group in this world, but we only learn about it obliquely. One of the main characters, Jaeger, is one, but he doesn't talk about it much.
I've heard that this is a work exploring indigineaity, though by setting this in an unexplained future, CSM avoids trying to take any particular tribe's stories inside this narrative, which is probably for the best.
This aspect of the book itself isn't delivered directly, but it is present. There is a kind of quiet wisdom of both the book and it's characters, and this feels drawn from the traditions CSM is connecting to.
CSM is a storyteller focused on the characters and lived-in nature of her world. As strange as it all is, the characters feel so naturally fit within it. The feeling is that the story happens to be observing the moments in the lives of these characters, instead of something deeply orchestrated as part of an overt plot.
Jaeger as a character is a great example. We follow him through much of this volume but I hesitate to call him a 'main character' so much as one we happen to be following... his reluctance to explain himself or his choices helps us lean deeper into the world because we want to know more about how everyone else interacts with him.
I will also note that Jaeger became something of a personal inspiration while reading this. Not fully, because the life he lives is too far beyond where I'm comfortable, but there is a calm and focus this character has, and a sense of living in a very present, mindful experience. As someone who often gets lost in overthinking and being distant, trying to channel a little of that element of his character really helped me.
I haven't even talked about the art... CSM's art is stunning. All rendered in black and white, it is by turns incredibly detailed (with lots of cameos and references buried in the backgrounds) and very simple. The characters are incredibly distinct yet with minimal linework. Part of the setting involves whole clans of people who look alike, and CSM's ability to both represent this WHILE making important characters be instantly recognizable is very impressive, and probably deceptively hard to do.
Much like my note about their skills as a storyteller, the art is such that it tries to avoid getting in the way of the narrative. It's a simple style, elegantly used to create a lot of expression, but never so expressive as to clumsily guide the emotions of the audience; always to help us get deeper into the story and world.
I think making a book like this takes a lot of work: thinking through all the characters, how they fit, the details of the world, etc. and then the artwork, representing all these details and qualities with a detailed craftsman's touch. It's the kind of work of a modelmaker, trying to get every detail perfect, so that it seems it could turn alive when you turn your back. The work is clear, but it doesn't feel overwrought or too much, like they're dragging you through every detail they've thought up. It's that every bit of that effort feels like someone who cares deeply for their world, and your passage through it.
A new favourite and a deeply loved reading experience.