Overview
No job, no girlfriend, no home, no future. In 2001, cartoonist K. Thor Jensen had nothing. So he packed a bag and jumped onto a Greyhound bus, circling the United States on a 10,000-mile road trip. In this "joyously bleak handbook for the post-911 generation," Jensen tells his story and the stories of the people he meets on the way, in a tale that veers from the hilarious to the tragic. In over 300 pages of comics, you'll see flaming furniture, replica genitals, ghosts, fights and more of America than a graphic novel's ever dared to show.Synopsis
No job, no girlfriend, no home, no future. In 2001, cartoonist K. Thor Jensen had nothing. So he packed a bag and jumped onto a Greyhound bus, circling the United States on a 10,000-mile road trip. In this "joyously bleak handbook for the post-911 generation," Jensen tells his story and the stories of the people he meets on the way, in a tale that veers from the hilarious to the tragic. In over 300 pages of comics, you'll see flaming furniture, replica genitals, ghosts, fights and more of America than a graphic novel's ever dared to show.
Publishers Weekly
September 2001, New York City: in the space of a few days Jensen loses his girlfriend, his apartment, his job, his grandmother and a local landmark. He decides to buy an Ameripass on Greyhound and travel around America by bus for the next two months, staying with people he knows only via the Internet, in a bid to find himself... or at least the secret of life. Instead of any such easy tropes, Jensen finds "the common man" of today-an America of decent enough Gen-X and Gen-Y slackers. This graphic novel is mostly their little oddball stories-a woman whose co-worker wears her aborted fetus as a necklace; a childhood quest for Bigfoot that turns up a bum; a sloppy roommate from hell. Jensen's own quest is mostly a litany of uncomfortable bus rides and the constant need for a shower. His journey is portrayed as surprisingly mundane except for a surreal stop in a Southern town whose residents amuse themselves by pulling flaming sofas behind trucks. Jensen resists all attempts at sentimentality; similarly, the rough, blocky art makes no pretense at beauty for its own sake, but gets across these sympathetic, quirky tales with brisk efficiency. (Feb.) Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information.
Editorials
Publishers Weekly
September 2001, New York City: in the space of a few days Jensen loses his girlfriend, his apartment, his job, his grandmother and a local landmark. He decides to buy an Ameripass on Greyhound and travel around America by bus for the next two months, staying with people he knows only via the Internet, in a bid to find himself... or at least the secret of life. Instead of any such easy tropes, Jensen finds "the common man" of today-an America of decent enough Gen-X and Gen-Y slackers. This graphic novel is mostly their little oddball stories-a woman whose co-worker wears her aborted fetus as a necklace; a childhood quest for Bigfoot that turns up a bum; a sloppy roommate from hell. Jensen's own quest is mostly a litany of uncomfortable bus rides and the constant need for a shower. His journey is portrayed as surprisingly mundane except for a surreal stop in a Southern town whose residents amuse themselves by pulling flaming sofas behind trucks. Jensen resists all attempts at sentimentality; similarly, the rough, blocky art makes no pretense at beauty for its own sake, but gets across these sympathetic, quirky tales with brisk efficiency. (Feb.) Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information.School Library Journal
Gr 10 Up
Jensen, a New Yorker, went through a lot in the span of a few short days: the turmoil of 9/11, losing his apartment, getting dumped by his girlfriend, and getting fired from his job. Instead of falling into a depression, he saw an opportunity. Dubbing himself a professional hobo, he bought an Ameripass and journeyed from New York City to Seattle and back, making stops in just about every major city along the way. He used the Internet to find people to stay with, and he retells the stories of the Gen X slackers who hosted him. Jensen shies away from idealizing anything or anyone, but gives odd anecdotes about those he met. Jensen went through plenty of adventures of his own as he discovered the local color of each city. Slightly edgy in content, with a number of references to alcohol, drugs, and sex, the story is best suited for mature readers who like the same free-wheeling spirit of Jack Kerouac's On the Road (Viking, 1957). With its hard outlines and slightly cartoon faces, the drawing style is deceptively simple. Subtle details are skillfully worked into the background, lending his adventure-memoir an odd sense of realism. Originally published online as a serial comic, Red Eye, Black Eye lacks the large narrative arc with a strong ending many readers crave, but lovers of well-crafted indie-comics like Craig Thompson's Blankets (Top Shelf, 2003) will find much to enjoy here.
—Matthew L. MoffettCopyright 2006 Reed Business Information.