Chapter by Chapter features me reading one chapter of the selected book at the time and reviewing it as if I were reviewing an episode of a TV show or an issue of a comic. There will be spoilers if you haven’t read to the point I have, and if you’ve read further I ask that you don’t spoil anything further into the book. Think of it as read-along book club.
For those of you who missed last week’s reveal, you may find it odd that I’m using a graphic novel. Usually this article series features fictional prose rather than a autobiographical comic. Well, it’s a bit long for me to sit down and read all at once. The size of a usual omnibus trade collection, this was something I ended up with at Free Comic Book Day, a “misprint” edition of an account of the band Pocket Vinyl as they try to break a record by doing 50 concerts in 50 days across all 50 states. Personally I want to see how they got to Hawaii and Alaska and made the deadline.
I’ve been to their website and their music is not to my taste, though the idea that the band performs while the pianist’s wife paints live on stage sound interesting. There’s also a webcomic in the same art style (Elisabeth Jancewicz is the artist and Eric Stevenson the co-writer of the book) but you need to be on Instagram to read it, and it’s just another service I’d do little to nothing with. Scanning these pages is a bit difficult seeing that it’s bound the normal way books are, so unlike a Scanning My Collection article I probably won’t have images. I don’t want to damage the book whether I keep it post-review or not. I got it free and I wouldn’t sell it (unless the misprint edition is somehow worth a ton of money now, it just wouldn’t feel right and even that’s only because I need money right now), but either way having it in good readable condition is important. Maybe I’ll steal a scan from someone else if I have a text wall. Speaking of which, let’s break this one and review chapter 1 of 11.
Even before we get to the chapter number the first two pages starts with a gut punch many artists go through, a thought of failure. “Imposter syndrome” is a real thing. You think you’re terrible and yet everyone else tells you you’re good. It’s a fear that everyone is going to suddenly wake up and realise how badly you suck, or even that you’re being used via your failure. Even I have my moments…and I usually don’t care if I suck or not. If I did I wouldn’t have comics or a prose story section on this site.
In this case, Elizabeth is brushing her teeth in another building, goes to wherever her husband Eric is, and finds him crying over his laptop, insisting he just ruined everything. So we see the words in her head via text in the background as she blames herself for something that she doesn’t even know what it is until taking a breath in the third panel. Something is wrong somewhere, but first we need to flashback 10 months earlier at their Connecticut farm. Hey, they live in my state. Hi!
Eric is looking up world records and out of curiosity checks out the record for doing all fifty states for a musical tour. 50 is the current record but they’re sure they can beat it. Problem is doing it officially would be difficult for a indie band that consists of two people, one of whom does live painting and the other doing the actual songs. They’d have to host a record keeper, do venues larger than they’re used to that charge for admission, and while the events are open to everyone, they’re DIY venues that don’t qualify for the official record. So they’ll do 50 states in 45 days unofficially. What could go wrong?
According to their friend, enough that they think the couple are crazy. But they do it anyway, mapping out and setting up their venues, figuring out how to do the two unconnected states (would have drove them nuts if Puerto Rico decided to finally become a state during their trip), and loaded up their car, a 2003 Toyota Camry they named “Dr. Periwinkle”. I would have gone with an RV for this trip, even if it would cost a little extra but…let’s be honest. I wouldn’t do this at all. I’m not a travelling man and just going to the conventions was a hard trip for me. I still miss them, mind you.
It’s here we get to the first in a series of “fourth wall breaks” talking about their processes, a nice addition to the story. Eric gives tips for contacting venues for musical performances. Apparently they describe themselves as “piano slam rock”. We get a brief bit of story as Eric finishes booking the events, but Elizabeth is starting to have second thoughts as to whether or not this is a good idea, excited as she is by it. Eric is sure everything will be find, and convinces her as we get to the next break. In this one they describe “bullets”, a way of folding their outfits for easy travel. I do a clutter project on weekends, and I don’t think I’ll be following their method, but since space is going to be an option in that car and they need room for his instruments and her painting supplies I can see the benefits.
Elizabeth meets with her friends, still confused why they’re doing this, especially now that it won’t be official. The usual George Mallory and Mount Everest response is given and they’re on board. Not that the couple has a choice. The tickets are all booked, Mr. Periwinkle is loaded up (the final break of the chapter shows us how they packed it), and the adventure is about to begin.
This was a fun start to the story. The presentation is light, though we see some danger up ahead thanks to the prologue. I’m rooting for them, and of course we have some idea how it ended. They’re still together and performing. Did they make their goal and what did it do to them? We’ll find out over the next ten chapters. I’m invested and be it prose or comic, that’s a good start to a novel.
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