A NEW ANNE RICE BOOK?
No, it's not. When I first heard about this book some time ago, I don't think it said it was a graphic novel, and I thought it was a new book by Anne Rice. Instead, a talented artist has adapted a part of
Interview With The Vampire
to graphic novel form. Some reviewers are put off by this. If you would like to review Claudia's story from her perspective, and enjoy looking at a lot of nicely penned drawings to illustrate it, with cartoon balloons for dialog, you might like it.
THE STORY
The story is something like the middle third of Interview With The Vampire, focusing on Claudia, a little girl who Lestat (an older vampire in a young man's form) turned into a vampire. It is a tragic story; a great deal of Claudia's problem is that her body remains in the form of a little girl, yet her mind grows up, and her plight makes her increasingly angry.
I suspect that if you have not read Interview with the Vampire but pick up this graphic novel, you will totally understand the story and find it complete, but will be left with a lot of questions. Reading the original novel will answer most of them and add a lot to the experience.
I don't have a copy of the original novel handy, so I don't know just how much of the dialog came from the original story. I suspect that a lot of the words in this graphic novel, possibly most or all of them, were written by the artist. In that sense only, you could say this is not an Anne Rice book. On the other hand, the story is true to the original book, with some enhancements for revealing Claudia's perspective (since the original was from Louis' perspective). The added ideas are in the spirit of the original.
THE ART
One reviewer said this was nothing more than a comic book; having read comic books produced from 1950's on, I really don't agree.
I have seen a few graphic novels, so I am aware of how they differ from comic books: they are generally written for an adult audience and have a deeper plot. Some have a lot of frames that have no dialogue, or (as in this one) an empty speech balloon with an elipses (...) in it. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then truly these stylistic features add tremendous expression to the story.
Books that Anne Rice write often feature characters who are young, beautiful, and rich. This book is no exception. Claudia, Louis, and Lestat are beautiful people, and the artist conveys this in each frame. They are also vampires and sometimes monsters, and this comes across very strongly. Some of the background characters are drawn as more ordinary people, perhaps to emphasize the beauty of the lead characters.
Rather than black and white, this book is done in sepia tones, perhaps to make it look old. I thought my copy was flawed, because I kept seeing these little water spots appearing in places that should be white or nearly so. But as I looked closely, I noticed that these spots were not flaws, but in fact part of the art: I could easily see the rosette patterns used in the printing process for mid-tones.
The near-total use of sepia tones servers very well to bring out the shock value of blood when it appears; it is the only time red is used, and while it is not extensive, it jumps out. Orange is used in the scene of a fire with the same results.
MY REACTION
Before ordering the book, I wasn't sure I would like it; in a way I did not want to. Curiosity got the better of me. Having read it now, I am astonished at what a beautiful creation and labor of love this book is. It is clear that the artist/author has a deep appreciation for the original book. I can't imagine how much thought, creativity, planning, and time must have gone into drawing all these beautiful pictures.
For me, overall it is a startling, unexpected, enormous success. I could imagine the demand this book creates starting an entire line of books covering all of The Vampire Chronicles and even The Witching Hour and its sequels. In fact, I'd like to see that happen; it would be a chance to revisit all of these books from a new perspective.
BOTTOM LINE
Amazon says five stars is "I love it". I don't give five stars often or easily, but this one was so unexpected and fun, and a wonderful tribute to the original story, that I must. Bravo, Ms. Witter!
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Reviews with images
Beautiful
The art style is beautiful and if you loved Interview With The Vampire this may be the book for you. My very few issues with it are Louis’s hair length (it’s supposed to be to his chin) and I wish Claudia’s hair had more of a ringlet style to it rather than the curly waves in this. But nonetheless, it is a a very beautiful book and is to me worth 5 stars.
Top reviews from other countries
Brianne
The artwork is absolutely stunning!
Reviewed in Canada on December 27, 2016
