The House that Groaned

The last graphic novel I read was Karrie Fransman's The House that Groaned, a thoroughly enjoyable and bizarre work that swings from straightforward comic realism to lurid surrealism. It's made up of the intertwined stories of the six residents (and six flats) in a London house. It works very well, and my only criticism is that sometimes Fransman sometimes doesn't quite trust her art to tell the story on its own, even though it actually does so very well, and adds the occasional redundant bit of text to spell out that which is already clear (see the splendid sequence where a photo retoucher deals with a model's errant pubic hair as an example of this).

The book also has a fine cover...

..an illustration of the house with die-cut windows that opens to reveal the lives within...

Click for much bigger versions to see all the details.

The book itself is printed in moodily effective black, white and shades of blue-green. It's very nicely produced, so all credit to Square Peg, the imprint responsible, for giving Fransman's work the production qualities it deserves.

Part of the "pubic hair" sequence referred to above.

The newest resident meets the downstairs neighbour.

How to enjoy your food.