Sleepwalk: and Other Stories [Paperback]

Adrian Tomine (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1998

Collecting the first four issues of Adrian Tomine's acclaimed comic series optic nerve, this book offers sixteen concise, haunting tales of modern life. The characters here appear to be well-adjusted on the surface, but Tomine takes us deeper into their lives, subtly examining their struggle to connect with friends and lovers.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Tomine is a master of pseudorealistic stories in the tradition of raymond carver. This understated, black-and-white collection should satisfy fiction aficionados in any medium." --Library Journal

"Brilliant... we know we're in the hands of a major young comics artist--visually gripping and emotionally challenging." --Kirkus Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 102 pages
• Publisher: Drawn and Quarterly; First Edition edition (October 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1896597122
• ISBN-13: 978-1896597126
• Product Dimensions: 10.5 x 7.5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #132,408 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #30 in Books > Comics & Graphic Novels > Publishers > Drawn and Quarterly

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliantly Heartbreaking, April 9, 2002

By 

A. Ross (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Sleepwalk: and Other Stories (Paperback)

The sixteen stories contained here are predominantly quiet angst-ridden portraits of young men and women who are experiencing some kind of loss. Several lurk in the disorienting and heartbreaking wake of breakups. "Six Day Cold" is perhaps the most touching of these, showing a young man with a severe cold encountering his ex-girlfriend on the street. She takes care of him, bringing him soup and whatnot-and the way Tomine captures the unseen wistful looks he gives her is shattering. It's an awkward emotional terrain he captures with equal precision in the title story.

Indeed, awkward situations are Tomine's forte, from threatening teenagers on a bus in "Hostage Situation," to a family vacation in "Dylan & Donovan" to the realization of shifting friendships in "Hazel Eyes" or a supermarket worker encountering a blind customer out on the street in "Supermarket." Tomine's ability to rapidly capture the exact right emotional tone of each situation and character is amazing. The longest story, "Summer Job" is pitch-perfect in showing a slacker-punk middle class kid on summer vacation from UC Berkeley (A Berkeley resident, Tomine sets many of his stories in and around Bay Area.). The kid's arrogant disdain for the Kinko's-like job he takes and his complete obliviousness to the economic realities of his co-workers is dead on and enraging.

Another common theme is loneliness, from the difficulty in long-distance relationships in "Long Distance" and "Layover" to an old widow remembering better days in "Lunch Break" or the creepy tale of a young woman who's stalked via the personal ads in "The Connecting Thread." Thus, it should come as no surprise that on the whole, the collection can be rather depressing (apparently Tomine's other collection, 32 Stories, is more upbeat). Of course it should be noted that the artistry is consistently graceful and real over the 102 pages, and the book's design and production is lovely and understated. This is the graphic novel to give people who would never consider picking one up.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Disparate, July 25, 2003

By 

All-access Customer "veloman27" (Baltimore, MD) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Sleepwalk: and Other Stories (Paperback)

"Disparate" is really the only word one could use to describe Tomine's writing style. His depictions of the inner pains that many of us know, especially from our late teens and early twenties, are almost painful to read with all of the insecurities that they bring flooding back. This angst ridden collection of stories is the collected works of his first eight editions of the comic book "Optic Nerve" which Tomine produces yearly.

Sleepwalker is an excellent introduction to his work, where as his other trade paper back "32 stories" is a collection of his earliest work and while some of the stories are very amusing, it's also very raw, and out of the normal vein of work Tomine is known for.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars good good good, March 21, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Sleepwalk: and Other Stories (Paperback)

there's only one word for adrian tomine-- good. he is so good. his comics are wonderful. the drawing is great, and the stories...well, the stories generally deal with relationships gone bad, in one way or another. although his comics can be very sad, they are also very very good. most of the stories in "sleepwalk" are pretty morose, check out "32 stories" for more funny, upbeat material. "sleepwalk" contains the first four issues of "optic nerve." overall: fantastic.