The Nightingale That Never Sang
The Nightingale That Never Sang
a (graphic novel) short-story collection by Juliana Hyrri
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For children, the world is possibility. But grown-ups would do well to remember that possibility extends to places full of light and steeped in darkness, with plenty of other spaces in between. Children are human after all, and as such, they are sometimes innocent, sometimes cruel, and frequently impossible for others to truly understand.
In her debut graphic novel, The Nightingale That Never Sang, Juliana Hyrri gives us stories that are stolen from real life, seen through a child’s eyes—and which do not look away when it comes to the scary parts. If it can happen out there, it can happen within these pages, too.
Her visual style comprises the smudged, scribbled, and smooth lines one might expect from a (very) young artist, but also pulsing, boundless backgrounds painted with near-manic energy. If there is any true purity to be found here, it’s only in the reflection of how a child feels, before those feelings are tempered with adult ideas of what ought to be revealed in polite conversation.
Nightingale takes us along for the ride as children discover and dream their world, through glimpses of tadpoles and tent forts, field trips and forest ventures, stray cats and sleepovers. On the surface, these are scenes anyone might recognize from their own childhood, but it’s really a book filled with the blank spaces that grown-ups won’t talk about, scribbled over with childhood logic.
Size: 7"x10"
Pages: 152
ISBN: 9781943888269
Publication date: February 22, 2022
Praise for The Nightingale That Never Sang
“A miraculous achievement, one of the most impressive works of comic art of the year.”
“Gentle, beautiful, and at times chilling, Juliana Hyrri conjures childhood with all its complications.”
“[The Nightingale That Never Sang] looks at the world through the eyes of a child and an adult at the same time. The end result is an exceptionally-close blend of innocent beauty and miraculous cruelty.”
“There is poetry and magic and weird ambiance in her work.”
Table of Contents
The Blue Swimsuit
Wild Roses
The Sleepover
The Nightingale That Never Sang
Being Selfish Is a Sin
The Clambox
About the author
Juliana Hyrri was born in Kohtla-Järve, Estonia, and moved to Helsinki, Finland, when she was little. In addition to being a cartoonist, Juliana is a painter, illustrator and experimenter. Her work has been exhibited in Finland and internationally, and includes public artworks such as murals and spatial comics.
She was awarded the Critics’ Award by the Finnish Association of Critics (SARV), given annually to just one artist of any field for the best artistic breakthrough of the year.
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edited by Hunter Kennedy
