Kafka by Crumb

Here's an excellent book my dad picked up last November. Kafka, illustrated by R. Crumb and written by Zane Mairowitz, is a biography/tale about Kafka. The writing is great, superbly weaving between fiction and non-fiction, sticking Kafka in his own stories then pulling back for a bit. The real star of this novel, however, is the work of Crumb and the general book design.

Crumb shares many of the demons that Kafka was known to possess and this is clearly evident in the work. Crumbs illustrations are pulsing with neurotic energy, with an outsiders fire. I love his work, and respect his line work immensely.

The book is also very well laid out. The cover and back are both unique and communicative of Kafka. The page design weaves graphic novel conventions with text in very interesting ways.

I highly recommend picking it up or heck, I'll lend it to ya'.


What a great first page.