Will Eisner's A Contract With God
This week I chose to read Will Eisner’s A Contract With God I never read this but it has always been on my
list of must reads and for some reason I chose to neglect it. I’ve always had
respect for Will Eisner as a name in the art world and I know of his influence
on modern comics I mean for god’s sake he has an award ceremony for art named
after him. But for some reason I think I shied away from his work because I was
a bit afraid that it would bore me considering the time period it was written in but as always… I was wrong. A Contract
with God is a deliberate attempt, the first attempt actually, of using
words and pictures beyond the realm of fictional strips and comic magazines at
the time to tell a story of human conditions on par with any great literary works
hence he is the father of the "Graphic Novel." It was solely printed
in book form and it was meant to be read that way. Semi-autobiographical, he
told stories of the Jewish slums of New York around the time of the Great
Depression and the amazing thing is that I not being either Jewish, nor from
the East Coast, nor even alive during the Great Depression was completely able
to relate to the characters and conflicts that took place. It stands the test
of time because if I weren’t told when this novel was written I could of never
guessed it was the first graphic novel because it’s as cohesive as any modern
graphic novel I've read. It was entertaining, addictive and enlightening and I can
honestly say that I am a better comic book fan and artist for having read it.
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