Woman's World by Graham Rawle

Woman's World
A Novel
By Graham Rawle

When I first read about this book over a year ago in Bitch Magazine, I was so intrigued by the description, I went on a immediate search. At the time, it was mysteriously hard to find, and even Amazon.com claimed to be "out of stock" indefinitely. I think what was happening is they were republishing the book, and changing the book's image from "graphic novel" to straight-up "novel", and I can see why. When the fan boys picked up the "graphic novel" they must have been disappointed to find themselves embroiled in a pseudo mystery in the language of 1960's women's magazines. I, on the other hand, was thrilled.

The book is art, to be sure. I have never seen anything like it. Collaged entirely from women's housekeeping, fashion and some romance magazines from the 1960's there are many passages left intact, just punctuated with the appropriate name or pronoun. It is so expertly put together however, that you often forget it is constructed that way, until a hilariously placed bit of advertisement, or a well-meaning generally dated bit of advice to the "girl on the go" slips out. That said it is a well told, simple but haunting story in it's own right and once you are in a few pages the device is clear, and feels less like a gimmick and more like an incredibly creative way to tell a very unique story. In fact, now that I have read it, it is hard to imagine the story told any other way. I will admit for a few pages, I was jealous of the crafting ingenious of it, and devising my own plans to put an original spin on this amazing idea. But by page 200, I was exhausted by the sheer energy that must have gone into the cutting and collection of each phrase that went into the story. My hands cramp just thinking about it.

I won't say too much more, because I don't want to give away any of the twists and turns (which there are few that you can see coming to different degrees), but I will say that the main characters are among the most fascinating, funny and heartbreaking I have encountered in a long time.

I highly recommend this book.
Check it out online at amazon.com or in Canada at amazon.ca

Next up: The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb