Dead Memory » (Not Appropriate For Children)

A haunting and powerful look at modern society and our reliance on structures - both physical and suggested - Dead Memory represents some of the best published work of one of France's most highly acclaimed graphic novelists, Marc-Antoine Mathieu. Beautifully illustrated in high-contrast black and white, and published in an oversize, hardcover format, Dead Memory is both an allegorical study of a Kafka-esque society under the control of real-time information and a thoughtful treatise on cities, walls, languages, and other elements that both define and confine humanity.

Library Journal

This strange and haunting absurdist fable is set in "The City," an urban area of such vast range that even telescopes cannot see beyond it. Every citizen of the City carries a Black Box that connects him or her to the mysterious, omniscient Rom. Firmin Huff, manager of the Land Registry, which is attempting to map the City, is directed to investigate a puzzling phenomenon: walls are appearing overnight all over the City, separating groups in conflict with one another. But as the walls proliferate, memory loss begins to spread, leaving the citizens unable to communicate in words. This black-and-white oversized hardcover combines bold and towering renderings of architecture with more abstracted, cartoony figures. The story brings to mind Jorge Luis Borges's "The Library of Babel." Dealing with the nature of language and humanity's reliance on technology, while incorporating observations on democracy, bureaucracy, and history, this unusual book is recommended for all collections; it will probably interest adults most. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.