The Bottomless Bellybutton by Dash Shaw

*****

This behemoth of a graphic novel is a new favorite of mine. I have a weakness for attractive book covers (see previous entry for example of unattractive book cover).

Exhibit A:  *Maps and Legends by Michael Chabon. I saw this book when it first came in and purchased it immediately with only my 30% discount when in the past, I usually waited until a used one came in so that I could use my 50% discount.

Exhibit B:   **Acme Novelty Library #18 by Chris Ware. To be perfectly honest, all of Chris Ware's books are gorgeous. 

Exhibit C: Anything (and I do mean anything) published by McSweeney's.

I have rarely been disappointed interestingly enough. So perhaps the old adage should be more specific. It should probably be Just because a book was poorly marketed doesn't mean it's a bad book. Not as catchy I guess. Anyway, The Bottomless Bellybutton did not let me down. Dash Shaw's illustrations are inked in a light brown that is soft and complimentary to his sparse style. He includes some really beautiful and poetic textless images at the beginning of each section that were charming and set the tone for this somewhat melancholy tale.

It's the story of the Loony family, and all of thier individual emotional and physical trials are displayed here for public review. Mom and Dad Loony are getting a divorce after forty years of marriage. They invite all of their children for a week to spend their last days of marriage together as a family. The children (Claire, Dennis, and Peter) bring their respective spouse and/or children for one giant family reunion they will spend at a potentially haunted beach house with ***secret passages and mysterious keys. The dialogue the characters have is so perfectly realistic. Shaw points out at the beginning that this could be any family, and it's true. The Loony family could be my family or yours. Their feelings are all universal. Shaw has made sure of this by allowing us to spend time with each family member and experiencing their personal form of greiving. In particular, Dennis' feelings are so raw that his sections are difficult to read. Shaw also uses the surreal skillfully without drawing a lot of attention to it (Peter is drawn as a frog, and it is only ever once addressed. Peter asks if he looks like a frog, and the other person looks at him for awhile and says...no). Shaw explores the nature of love and marriage and what those things can mean to a spectrum of ages and types of people.

tags: the  bottomless  bellybutton  dash  shaw  

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