Here (Pantheon Graphic Library)

Here is a text unlike anything I have ever "read" and has to be seen to be understood; I unfortunately cannot do justice to describing it as I have not entirely figured out how to describe it. In essence, Here is a graphic novel, wherein each page is a two page spread of the same space shown from the same angle. Each page has a primary backdrop of this space with its year identified, then inserts vignettes of other periods throughout history (and the future) of something else happening in that same space. And through these vignettes, the author is able to comment so much on life, what it means to be human, the importance and meaning of a space, how we all age, love, loss, our habits, and, ultimately, how we are all - in some way - connected through time. There is no narrative in Here, but it is full to the brim with stories. It is non-linear. You could have 5 pages in a row set in 1972, with the main action spanning only a matter of moments - with peeks into other times where something similar (or something irrelevant) were happening in the same space. On the other hand, one page may show 3,000,000,000 BC and the next 1915 and the next 1775. The space itself is the main "character." But through the timestamps, you come to identify other characters and flip back and forth watching their lives progress. Sometimes a vignette covers some detail in the room, to be revealed later by carefully noticing that the time of the setting was the same as something previously glimpsed. It seems every image is extremely deliberate and packed with meaning. Here is driven by subtext and attention to detail - yes, there is some dialogue (sometimes a "conversation" spanning centuries, unbeknownst to the characters shown in the space, but offered clearly clear to the reader), but not such that it is used as the driving vehicle of the text. Spoken word is offered more as a reflection. I could not put this down - when it first arrived I flipped it open and, immediately intrigued by the concept, flipped around a bit. I got home from work and started at page 1. Before I knew it, I was a small chunk of the way through and absolutely needing to attend to something else - I begrudgingly put it down. The next time I picked it up, I did not put it down until it was finished, and I had sufficiently flipped back and forth to get a clear picture. It is a mesmerizing work and it is entirely unlike anything else I know. I have never experienced something where the medium itself plays such a role in the narration, is so defining, and is so unique. There were moments where my jaw dropped out of disappointment of shock at something happening in the space. There were times I would smile as something relatable to my own life was captured. There were moments of deep connection, seeing what life for my parents must have been like (even moments I felt I almost recognized from photos of their youth) or of my more distant ancestors. There were times I chuckled at a clever use of medium by the author, and numerous times I simply had to stop to say "that is brilliant. Simply brilliant." There were revelations, when something was uncovered, or a character reappeared that force deep introspection. The visual medium (and simply, blotchy almost watercolor style artistry) made this a history tangible in ways text alone never could be. And beyond that, given the static viewpoint, the role of perspective, and the way objects appear as different sizes and play with perspective in the space across time, make this a joy to look at and something that makes you want to pay attention to the details. Overall, Here is shockingly powerful and a massively pleasant surprise. It has the emotive force of great art, provided as a collection that I bet will reveal more and more with repeated visits, and which begs to be revisited. It has been a long, long time since something has been so fresh and has so resonated for me.

Minimal words, but the pictures do a great job of telling the story. It felt quite existential for me, but it is a unique perspective on how time works and how connected humans are, all within one room.

Good book. Interesting concept. I think it could have been better if the primary pictures were in chronological order and the inset pictures were placed as they currently are with a bit of randomness. The order of the primary pictures would have allowed the reader to see how the flow of time affected the living space better.

Hey fellow Amazoners. I'd like to start off this review by saying that I'm an avid comic book reader (mostly of DC and Batman stuff). If you read superhero type comics, then this will be a totally different experience than what you're used to. This graphic novel is like nothing I’ve ever read before. it's a seemingly simple concept that manages to deliver a multilayered and intriguing tale that tackles the old thought of “if these walls could talk”. It's a story that follows several narratives over time from the perspective of one corner of a room. These stories, though separated by mass stretches of time, some how interweave and connect on various levels ranging from deeply thought provoking to humorously mundane. There's a certain mystery to some of the stories as elements are revealed in tiny subtle fragments at a time. It is up to you, the reader, to piece these fragments together in order to see the full picture. It was truly a joy to flip though these pages and it was a pleasant break from my fast-paced Batman comics. It's not for everyone since the concept is so unique, but if you’re into unique and original graphic novels, then you will most likely find this enjoyable.

This book is dazzling. If you have heard anything about it or if you are even the slightest bit interested please take the time to read this book. Its incredible what you can do with so little. There are barely any words in this book yet there is such rich context. The book is just a series of pictures displaying what has gone on in a certain space over a very large period of time. A majority of the book exists in a room of a house but the story goes very far beyond this. This is a creative story that is able to display a large amount of information in a very creative way. Check this book out if you are curios.

I’ve never thought of making a story like this where it’s only focused on one area throughout history. I’ve thought about it though while being a kid and looking out the window while on trips. It’s beautifully illustrated and insanely well done.

A new language in graphic novels has arrived. It tells a story by not telling a story. It can explain eternity in a small suburban living room. It proclaims statements on the human condition, precisely by not telling a story about humans. The pages contain mostly a few meagre frames, always of the same threadbare room, tinted in the palette of faded memories, yet the myriad stories they tell us! The way they overflow through time and space, with their unique power to summon our sense of insignificance, and celebrate our uniqueness at the same time, and most importantly, their refusal to be shackled into a single genre: all of these breakthroughs conspire to give us a breathtaking and stunning experience that is Here.

An interesting concept doesn't lead necessarily to an interesting book. I was expecting much more from 'Here' given the very positive reviews from the media. Quite disappointing.

Based on a short story originally published in Raw Magazine, Richard McGuire has created this beautiful meditation on change. It is a lovely formal experiment. Certainly not for everyone, but I appreciate anything that can expand your horizons about what comics can do as an art form.

The room you’re currently standing/sitting/lying down/somersaulting in has been something else before. It might have been a part of a much larger room with no partitioning wall. It might have had a different purpose—say, sitting rather than bedding—or it might not have been there at all. Fly back year after year after year, leap across dozens, hurtle through hundreds and thousands and millions—the very space that you currently occupy might have been home to a mansion, a sprawling field, a murky swamp, dense forest, or perhaps the continents were yet to shift and it was actually in another location entirely. But stop and concentrate on that single room, here, now. What is in it, and how does that relate to what came before, and what will come in the future? Such is the premise of Richard McGuire’s ground-breaking graphic novel Here. Set in a single room, each page offers a glimpse into a scene from its past and future. Every scene is dated with the year, but no single date is highlighted as the present, meaning the reader can come and go as he or she pleases, leaping into a future when students are given a tour of the space and shown holographic representations of what would typically be in a person’s pocket in that decade, or falling into a distant past when two Native Americans shared stories and romance. Such is the reckless motion of Here. Such is the freedom from time in this single space. No single story dominates Here. The reader is given flashes that only continue for a few pages. Just when a house is engulfed in flames and an elderly man falls from his chair, the reader is snatched and thrown else-when, to gaze upon family photos set in the room across generations. When the old man returns, it’s only briefly. The house-in-flames, meanwhile, is re-built, or is it the same house but before it was built? The passages of time and people are dizzying in the extreme—it’s just not possible to gain a foothold. Too much flies past as the pages go on. It’s absolutely wonderful. Equally magnificent are the repetitions and differences in actions and speech. How one family poses for a family photo while another family in another decade does too. How an arrow flies across multiple pages and the reader can’t help but see it travel across the space of the room, even though the room hasn’t been built yet. How the lands before and after time are eerily empty despite millions of years passing between frames. And how the placing of a handful of scenes throughout the graphic novel, perhaps featuring nothing but a solitary figure poised at the window in darkness, grip as they do despair. Here is a photo album that transcends time, respects space and makes a mockery of both all at once. It’s beautifully drawn, wonderfully realised and a must-have for any book collection. McGuire’s a genius.

C est un roman graphique en bande dessinee par un talentueux dessinateur americain. Passionnant et tres novateur. Conseille par Chris Ware .... genie de la bande dessinee amercaine. FAUVE Angouleme. Tres bon.

Es wurde in einer Buchbesprechungs-Website empfohlen. Das Konzept des Buches ist sehr interessant und es verdient mehr Menschen zu lesen. Der Versand und das Paket waren auch in Ordnung.

Capolavoro. Lo regalo a a chi se lo merita ogni volta che posso.