The Werewolf at Dusk: And Other Stories

Confronting “the beast within” us all, The Werewolf at Dusk celebrates the singular genius of David Small, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Stitches.Long celebrated as a modern master of graphic literature, David Small has elicited in his work comparisons to Stan Lee and even Alfred Hitchcock. His internationally acclaimed graphic memoir, Stitches, told the story of a childhood in disarray. Werewolf at Dusk, appearing nearly fifteen years later, turned its attention to the twilight of life and to aging, gracefully or otherwise.Eerily striking and mesmerizing, the three stories in this collection are linked, as Small writes, by the dread of things internal. In the title story, an adaptation of Lincoln Michel’s classic short piece, the dread is that of a man who has reached senility with something repellant in his nature. He—an impotent werewolf, no longer able to hunt—confronts the terror of obsolescence. What do I even look like now, he wonders, when the full moon draws out the wolf inside me? The specter of old age also haunts the semiautobiographical story “A Walk in the Old City.” Brain matter cascades and spiders loom as a psychoanalyst, self-assured in his practice, wanders along empty streets, reality warping into the irrational with the insouciance of a dream.In the final story, a reinterpretation of Jean Ferry’s “The Tiger in Vogue,” this dreamscape gives way to the ominous environs of Berlin in the 1920s. When a peaceful evening at the music hall is interrupted by a garish surprise act, only the protagonist seems to notice. Yet he, too, is transfixed by the performance, watching as a little man with a moustache, pale skin, and tired eyes wills a tiger into submission. With its sharp lines and vibrant blues and oranges, the artwork recalls Edvard Munch’s anguished The Scream, likewise capturing the moment—the dread—before disaster.As fluid as Japanese manga and rife with unsettling imagery, Werewolf at Dusk is a testament to the singular dark genius of David Small.

Jules Feiffer, author of the best-selling Kill My Mother trilogy, on David Small's Stitches

"David Small presents us with a profound and moving gift of graphic literature that has the look of a movie and reads like a poem."

Kirkus Reviews, starred review

"The collection is more adult picture book than graphic novel and is immensely enjoyable. Small’s linework is striking in its expressiveness and energy, figures and forms leaping across the page while eyes and lips simmer with emotion. Broad patches and layers of color imbue the illustrations with a gorgeous painterly quality . . . Surreal and searing."

Robert Crumb, on David Small's Stitches

"Capturing body language and facial expressions subtly, Stitches becomes in Small’s skillful hands a powerful, an emotionally charged autobiography."

Jack Gantos, winner of the Newbery Award and author of Hole in My Life, on David Small's Home After Dark

"The silence of Small’s masterful drawings has put words in my mouth―words that recapture the inchoate chaos of youth."

Roz Chast, cartoonist for The New Yorker, on David Small's Home After Dark

"The drawings are gorgeous and expressive―Small’s facial expressions alone filled me with awe. A wonderful book."

Brendan Tynan Buck, New City Lit

"Dread is a constant companion in illustrator and writer David Small’s new book... Michel’s witty writing has our Werewolf lament at the prey he wishes he could still catch, but it’s Small’s illustrations, which capture the Werewolf’s frailty as both man and wolf, that elevate the material into something haunting.... Whether it is fascism unchecked, or just age, it’s the promise of the unavoidable that causes the dread for what lies certain in our path."

Library Journal

"Small’s fluid linework and exceptional visual storytelling result in a compelling, deeply affecting collection."

About the Author

David Small, author of the #1 New York Times best-selling Stitches, is the recipient of the Caldecott Medal, the Christopher Medal, and the E. B. White Award. He and his wife, the writer Sarah Stewart, live in Michigan.

Reviews

News