Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)
“Her Bark & Her Bite” by James Albon is less than 100 pages long but made me dizzy within its first few pages because of its chaotic artwork. But the only reason I got this book was because I loved reading “The Delicacy” by the author and enjoyed the artwork too. However, the style in this book is very different. It’s a burst of pencil strokes that look like someone angrily scratched a bunch of doodles in their sketchbook at first glance. The artist, however, is clearly inspired by Van Gogh, the illustrations blend elements of impressionism and pointillism.
The story in “Her Bark & Her Bite” follows Rebecca, a young artist comes to the big city to make a career. She meets the wealthy, and flamboyant Victor at an art exhibition and the two soon begin a whirlwind romance, which includes lots of partying, drinking, socializing and having fun. Thanks to Victor’s connections, Rebecca is able to exhibit her artwork too, but eventually, the high-flying lifestyle gets too much for her.
“Her Bark & Her Bite” is a hurried narrative about hedonism, reminiscent of reading a Jazz Age novel featuring a group of affluent individuals indulging in partying, complaining, and becoming fixated on whatever fleeting fascination crosses their path, only to be quickly replaced by the next distraction. Rebecca is the “outsider”, who gets sucked into Victor’s life of easy luxuries, almost losing sight of her art and career goals.
Not only did I fail to enjoy the artwork, but the cursive font, which resembled handwritten text, was difficult to read. Since I was reading the ebook, I frequently had to zoom into the panels to comprehend the text. Let’s face it, nobody wants to exert so much effort to read a novella-sized graphic novel. This was not my cup of tea, but given that appreciating art is entirely subjective, perhaps you might like it more than I did.
Rating: 2 on 5. “Her Bark & Her Bite” is also available on Kindle Unlimited.
Read Next: 5 Authors to Read If You Like Haruki Murakami
Also Read: Wives and Daughters – Book Review (Audio Version Below)
