A review by thevampiremars
Stages of Rot by Linnea Sterte

inspiring mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? N/A
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I read Stages of Rot a few days ago but I’ve been struggling to write a review. Where do I begin? Perhaps I should start with this: what is Stages of Rot about? I could talk, as other reviewers have, about the circle of life and about change being the only constant – these readings are valid but somewhat lacking.
Yes, it’s about the objectification of nature, broadly speaking, but it’s also about the objectification that comes with death and objectification in life when living as a woman. Gender (specifically womanhood) is at the heart of this graphic novel, and any analysis which fails to realise that will only ever fall short in my eyes.
But maybe I’m going about this all wrong. Towards the end of the book, there’s a scene in which
the pilot has been captured and is being displayed as the crown jewel of an exhibition. Patrons are captivated by her beauty in a leering sort of way, wishing she would smile for them. When the entomologist realises she can speak, he asks her “Why are you shaped like this – like a woman? What does it signify?” to which she responds “Oh. I wouldn’t know.” There are a few ways to look at this. Maybe the pilot is making a sly reference to how she’s assumed to be naïve and unintelligent. Perhaps she doesn’t see herself as a woman at all, which is why she feels she “wouldn’t know” the significance of a female form.
I could write paragraphs and paragraphs dissecting that brief exchange, but to do so I would have to ignore what’s right in front of me on the page: pushback against the very concept of interpretation. So... maybe I should just let it speak for itself.

It’s easy to get lost in the philosophy of this book, but the artwork is just as enthralling. Sterte captures a simultaneity of cellular and cosmic, organic and technical, spiritual and visceral. Mundane animals like black-headed gulls thrive alongside extinct Orthoceras and alien fauna unknown to our taxonomy. The skies are filled with birds and fish alike, creatures that should not coexist but do so anyway. It’s truly surreal. The minimal use of text only heightens the ambiguity as the book audaciously refuses to explain what’s going on or construct an easily digestible narrative for the reader to follow.

Stages of Rot paradoxically invites and rejects interpretation, and I love it for that. I’d recommend it purely for the art, but I also think there’s more literary substance to it than some give it credit for. 
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