Monica

Daniel Clowes

Hardcover

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Do you recommend this book?

Yes!

Reader Score

80%

80% of readers

recommend this book

Critic Reviews

Great

Based on 8 reviews on

Nominee:PEN/Faulkner Award -Fiction (2024)

2024 Pen/Faulkner Award for Fiction - Longlist

2024 Mark Twain American Voice in Literature Award - Longlist

2024 Fauve D'Or WINNER Angoulême Comics Festival

New York Times Best Graphic Novels of 2023

Forbes Top Ten Best Graphic Novels of 2023

Washington Post Best Graphic Novels of 2023

Library Journal Best Graphic Novels of 2023

Kirkus Reviews Best Fiction of 2023

The Guardian Best Graphic Novels of 2023

New York Public Library Best Comics for Adults 2023

Monica is a series of interconnected narratives that collectively tell the life story -- actually, stories -- of its title character. Clowes calls upon a lifetime of inspiration to create the most complex and personal graphic novel of his distinguished career. Rich with visual detail, an impeccable ear for language and dialogue, and thrilling twists, Monica is a multilayered masterpiece in comics form that alludes to many of the genres that have defined the medium -- war, romance, horror, crime, the supernatural, etc. -- but in a mysterious, uncategorizable, and quintessentially Clowesian way that rewards multiple readings.

Five years in the making, Monica marks the apex of creativity from one of the defining voices of the graphic novel boom over the past quarter-century.

Book Details

Publisher: Fantagraphics Books
Publish Date: Oct 3rd, 2023
Pages: 106
Language: English
Edition: undefined - undefined
Dimensions: 11.10in - 8.40in - 0.80in - 1.85lb
EAN: 9781683968825
Categories: • Literary• Fantasy - General

About the Author

Clowes, Daniel: - Daniel Clowes is a Harvey, Eisner, Ignatz, and PEN America Literary Award Winner whose comics and graphic novels have been translated into over 20 languages worldwide. He is also an Academy Award nominated screenwriter (for Ghost World), and retrospectives of his work have appeared at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, the Oakland Museum, and the Wexner Center in Columbus, OH. He lives in Oakland, California, with his wife and son.

Critics’ reviews

Praise for this book

Daniel Clowes is the rare cartoonist whose graphic novels become cultural events.-- "New York Magazine"

Daniel Clowes may be one of the most notable comic artists of our era, a pillar of the '80s-'90s scene who's continued to do great work up to the present day.-- "NPR"

No cartoonist alive devotes as much effort as Daniel Clowes to mapping the differences between the way people see themselves and the way they really are.-- "The Guardian"

DAN CLOWES. American. A master. Perfect fusion of story and art. Clowes is an auteur. Period. A superb narrator.--Guillermo Del Toro

Clowes's formal ingenuity, meticulous attention to psychological and visual detail, and masterful sense of narrative and tone combine to create an emotionally resonant and unforgettable opus, reaffirming his place among the greatest storytellers of our time.-- "Library Journal, starred review"

This eloquent end-times tale about a woman's search for herself takes its time winding up to terror....Lucky new initiates to Clowes will want to dive into his backlist after this unnerving introduction to his oeuvre; for fans, it's a must-have.-- "Publishers Weekly, starred review"

Chilly and remote his sympathies might be, they are nevertheless deep and affecting. It is precisely Clowes's lower-frequency sensitivities toward the suffering of his characters that power what many consider his greatest works -- Ghost World, for one -- and elevate his latest graphic novel, Monica, to the status of a masterpiece.--Junot Diaz "New York Times Book Review"

Clowes has long been considered one of the finest cartoonists of his generation, grouped with the likes of Chris Ware and Adrian Tomine, but in Monica, he reaches a new artistic peak. Each chapter has its own distinct feel and calls back to genres that were popular when Clowes started reading comics but have all but disappeared today, like war, romance, and horror. The shifts suit the story but also allow the cartoonist to show off his love for the art form. Each section has a beautifully rendered drawing--whether it be a soldier lighting a cigarette or Monica wiping the steam from a bathroom mirror--that can be held up among the best of his career.-- "Vanity Fair"

Clowes' latest graphic novel weaves nine interrelated stories into a tale of curiosity, corruption, and humanity's addiction to significance. ...A timeless nugget of polished pulp.-- "Kirkus Reviews, starred review"

In classic fashion, Clowes offers another devastating, surreal examination of human nature... A hauntingly precise and compellingly strange study of the human struggle to reconcile a decentered past with a path forward.-- "Booklist, starred review"

Her journey takes many surreal twists: Ghosts are involved, as is a bizarre California cult and--because this is a Clowes story, where doom is never far off--the literal apocalypse. For a book that's barely 100 pages, things get a little hectic. ...Clowes' stories demand real attachment, and the more time I spent with Monica, the more I felt moved by the emotional ambition of its decades-long narrative.-- "The Atlantic"

It's a genre-bending meditation on familiar bonds, a dazzling testament to Clowes' skills as an artist, and, quite possibly, the cartoonist's single greatest work to date.-- "San Francisco Chronicle"

A new Daniel Clowes release is always a cause for celebration -- and with Monica, it's another career highlight.-- "NYLON"

This is a comix novel about aging and disappearance, with a penumbra of a malevolent world just beyond reason....I started reading and did nothing else for the rest of the day. I didn't want it to end.--Greil Marcus (Substack)