I know from class Wednesday that a lot of people didn't really like The Rabbi's Cat that much especially not the art style. As for me I really liked the book and the art style and I think it's my favorite thing that we've read so far.
One thing I like about the art style is that the characters all look so different from each other. The one thing I found confusing about Maus was that all the characters looked so much alike and I found it difficult sometimes to keep track of what was happening to which characters and who was saying what. I also like the amount of detail that he includes in so many of the pictures. There are some drawings that are very flat looking and not as developed as the others but I like these as well. It seems like in these drawings he is more interested in showing the facial expressions of the characters because this is more important that what's going on around the figure. It also gives your eyes a chance to rest since there is so much going on in the other pictures.
I also really enjoy the colour that is used in the art work and I don't think it would be the same book if it wasn't in colour. There are so many scenes that give you a certain feeling or emotion because of the colours that are used. For example, I think part of what makes the cat's dream so effective is the fact that a lot of light blues and other muted colours were used. It gives the reader a kind of dreamy feel when they see these colours especially compared to the bright warm colours that are used in the majority of the book.
I liked The Rabbi's Cat too. As you mentioned, the colors do give it a dreamy feel, but also a Middle Eastern/Orient twist. It makes the book more lively and colorful to read. Also, the color somewhat personifies the cat-colorfuly creative in a relaxing and dusty climate. The handwriting was interesting too, since it made the reader read more "closely" since can be cursive a difficult script to read and understand.
ReplyDeleteI came down with another bug this week, so I didn't make it to class :( Really disappointed to hear that many students didn't like the book. I really enjoyed it. I thought the art and colors were interesting and added so much to the story. I think that some really interesting issues are brought up, Judaism, colonial powers and everything that comes with that, familial ties and community ties. Not to mention the fact that the book depicts a Jewish rabbi and a Muslim man practically partying together. Its refreshing to hear/read about these two particular culture groups getting along and without any effort. So often (thanks to the media) we are led to believe that Jews and Muslims are ALL like oil and water. Anyway, glad I wasn't the only one who enjoyed it.
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