272 pages
English language
Published Feb. 17, 2020 by Top Shelf Productions.
A page-turning, Kafkaesque dark comedy in brilliant retro style, this graphic novel watches one man try to keep it together while everything falls apart.
Upon the publication of his latest novel, G. H. Fretwell, a minor English writer, embarks on a book tour to promote it. Nothing is going according to plan, and his trip gradually turns into a nightmare. But now the police want to ask him some questions about a mysterious disappearance, and it seems that Fretwell's troubles are only just beginning...
In his first book for adults in many years, acclaimed cartoonist Andi Watson evokes all the anxieties felt by every writer and compresses them into a comedic gem of a book. Witty, surreal, and sharply observant, The Book Tour offers a captivating lesson in letting go.
Quite marvelous ... really.
[Reminiscent not only of Kafka but also Ishiguro's The Unconsoled, another masterpiece.]
1) "'Rebecca?
'Darling?'
'Yes?'
'I'm leaving now.'
'Leaving?'
'The book tour?
Remember?'
'Of course, the book tour.'
...
'Should I wake Oliver?'
'He has games this afternoon.'
'I shan't wake him then.'
...
'Rebecca?
I'll call you when I arrive at the hotel.'
...
...
'Bye.'"
2) "'You were alone in the shop together?'
'Yes, but that's hardly—'
'I understand you were conducting a book signing?'
'Yes.'
'So there were witnesses?'
...
'Mr. Fretwell?'
'It was not well attended.'"
