Curses

Writer(s): Kevin Huizenga
Artist(s): Kevin Huizenga
Publisher: Drawn and Quarterly
ISBN: 978-1894937863
Price: $21.95
Page count: 144
Year Released: 2006
Status: out of print
Original Source: Drawn & Quarterly Showcase Book 1; Kramer’s Ergot 5; Or Else 1
Other Collected Edition(s): n/a
Genres: all ages; fantasy; historical fiction; horror; magic realism; short stories; suspense/thriller
Recommended for Fans Of:
Possible Objectionable Material: *very* mild elements of surreal horror
If You Like This Book, Try: Epileptic
Also in This Series: Or Else, vol. 2: Gloriana; Or Else, vol. 3; Or Else, vol. 4: The Wild Kingdom

Plot Summary
Curses is a collection of nine stories featuring Huizenga's perpetual protagonist, Glenn Ganges. In "Green Tea" Glenn recounts his preoccupation with the idea of visions, as they related to his study of theology and art during his third year in college. As he became increasingly obsessed with his research, Glenn experienced a vision of his own in the form of a dog with a human hand in its mouth. Later, Glenn stumbles across an eighteenth-century correspondence between a Dr. Martin Heselius and a Reverend Jennings, who suffered from visions of an increasingly demonic monkey that tormented him for years. In "Lost and Found," against the backdrop of the Sudanese "lost boys," Glenn ponders the "lost children" fliers that we receive in our mailboxes every week. In "28th Street" Huizenga reimagines an old Italian folktale in a modern setting, with Glenn attempting to track down the Feathered Ogre hiding in the depths of his suburban town. The follow-up story, "The Curse," deals with the fallout of Glenn's quest. And in "Jeepers Jacobs" Huizenga introduces us to the eponymous character, an avid golfer and theologian who's writing a paper on the true nature of Hell. Other, shorter stories in a similar vein round out the volume.

My Own 2 Cents
Curses is a book that almost defies description; particularly in a brief summary as I've written above. As evidenced by the number of genres attributed to this book, Huizenga's stories do not fit neatly into any one category of fiction. (In fact, considering the amount of research Huizenga conducted for the stories "The Curse" and "Jeeper Jacobs," one could argue that Curses fits into some non-fiction categories as well.) But if I were forced to describe the tone of this work, I would say that it is idea-driven fiction that favors moments of sublime magic realism. I can't recommend it highly enough. It is entirely accessible and unlike any other work available in the comic book medium.