In 2012, Lonnie Mann visited Iceland for a brief four days to create this comic of his experiences. He doesn’t do a whole lot on his trip. He hikes a glacier and falls over - that’s the drama - and then spends the rest of the time in cafes sampling fancy coffees and treats!
The drawing style is pleasant with its very colourful look and each day is accompanied with photo references. Also included is Mann’s second trip to Iceland (this time he went for a whole week!) which is covered by watercolours and paragraphs rather than as a comic strip.
To be fair to Mann, you do get a strong impression of having visited the place after reading this (Iceland seems charming and peaceful) as well as a good idea of Icelandic snacks! He’s an affable, enthusiastic host to listen to and there’s enough of a personal touch to the book to make it stand out individually. But the whole thing is a lot like watching a slideshow of someone’s holiday - and unfortunately not a terribly interesting one at that!
Perhaps some readers of slice-of-life comics and/or travelogues will get something out of this though I’d say this one has a very limited appeal even within those niche sub-genres.
Thoughts From Iceland
No comments:
Post a Comment