Dear Billy, Please Read This
_
Young Bill Young here. My friends have basically two reactions to my recent rediscovery of comic books and graphic works. They either think it’s cool, or kinda odd. The ones who think it’s odd may have trouble envisioning a satisfactory reading experience from those glossy, colorful covers that stare out of the shelves at comic book shops and bookstores. The ones who think it’s cool may also not appreciate all the rewards that can come from the genre. But graphic works can be every bit as rewarding as traditional literature. Yes, I said “literature.”
Case in point: Garth Ennis’s Dear Billy, the second three-issue arc of his WWII Battlefields series of comics. Dear Billy is like reading an exquisite, life-changing short story. You know, the kind where you put the book down and take a deep breath, amazed at the talent of the author, perhaps startled by something you’ve learned about the human condition, and then composing yourself so you can get on with life.
Like all good literature, it weaves the big themes into the lives of protagonists we come to care about—in this case, a nurse who suffers rape and attempted execution by the Japanese in Singapore, and the wounded flying ace named Billy who she comes to love.
It ends as it must end, even though we’re surprised, even though we should have seen it coming. And like all good literature, it demands a discussion of its themes and characters. Dear Billy. Please read this. Then we’ll talk.
If you enjoyed this post, please consider to leave a comment or subscribe to the feed and get future articles delivered to your feed reader.
Comments
No comments yet.
Leave a comment