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CBG SATELLITES
The ADD Blog by Alan David Doane
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Happy Birthday, Anyway
That’s exactly the way Lucy and her boyfriend feel. They fill up their days with school, rides on the subway and dreams of running away from it all. But over the course of one of these afternoons, Lucy re-evaluates her life and discovers that she might be running away from the wrong things.
With Happy Birthday, Anyway Aussie writer/artist Matt Huynh has crafted a story of love, loss and acceptance. His words flow like only the best of poetry can; expressive and sensitive without feeling pretentious. The art is cinematic yet maintains a dreamlike quality, making it feel equal parts fantasy and reality. It’s all very touching, really. Huynh’s work here is not only inspirational, it’s one of those rare books that could very well change the way you view life.
Along with the comic I received the press release for it, which is just as thought provoking as the comic itself. In it Huynh talks about the Australian comic book scene. Not an industry, just a group of self-publishers. He talks about it being a vehicle for “unfiltered communication” between unique voices. It’s an interesting concept to consider on a grander scale than we have here, where those voices are often drowned out by a constant stream formulaic unoriginality. “Formulas in art”, Huynh warns “are in danger of diminishing an appreciation of life.” I couldn’t agree more. Of course, that doesn’t mean the Australian comic book scene isn’t more or less like the one here in America, I can’t rightly say. It’s just a very fascinating thing to think about.
The book can be purchased through Huynh’s website for $6.50 Australian; it includes shipping and is well worth it. While you’re there you can check out much of Huynh’s other work as well as a behind the scenes look at the creative process of this book. It’s one of the best comic-based sites I’ve visited by far. There’s even a secret slideshow for eagle-eyed surfers.
I’m ashamed to admit I had very low expectations for this book. I expected a very small mini comic that does what most mini comics do; tell simple slice of life stories. What I got was 52 pages of illustrated poetry that challenged the way I look at the world around me. I doubt I’ve ever been this elated about being wrong.
-- Logan Polk
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I suppose everyone has, at one time or another, felt trapped under the weight of their own existence. Or that the people and places that surround us somehow keep us from some fictional life that waits beyond them.