 Castle Waiting Vol. 1 Buy at Amazon.com |
Linda Medley’s Castle Waiting is one part fairy tale and one part domestic drama. There is some mystery, sure, but mostly, it deals with the day-to-day lives of those left behind after Sleeping Beauty departs with her prince.
It may sound kind of quiet and boring, but it’s not. It’s delightful and sweet and constantly surprising. Medley handles the fantastic elements with such grace that it’s easy to forget you’re reading a book that has anthropomorphic bears and bearded nuns. They may be living in a castle, but the interpersonal relationships feel very genuine.
Her art takes its cues from Arthur Rackham and other turn-of-the-20th-century illustrators, but it still feels very modern. Her faces are lovely (even on the more fantastic characters, like the horse-headed Chess) and her page compositions are compelling and diverse. I’d still be recommending this book if it was just her drawings. It’s incredibly lovely to look at.
My only complaint is that I want more (I’ve been assuming volume 2 is going to be collected … at some point) and I think after reading this, so will you.
Comicsgirl:
I’m a librarian and is trying to invite Linda Medley to a big event sponsored by our library system. I love her work, the Castle Waiting so very much and would love to have her as a graphic novel panelist. Do you know her contact? I was digging online, but couldn’t find anything. Help.
Thanks.
Tracy
No, sorry, Tracy, I don’t. She doesn’t seem to have an individual website. I would try to contact Fantagraphics and see if they can help you out. Good luck.