In a world where brevity, speed and conformity are celebrated, Angela is disillusioned by life. She feels disconnected from her family and is questioning the value of the ruling government, the Guarantee Committee. She receives a secret “antique version” (which means paper copy) of a rebellion book entitled “Kick the Boot”. Simply by reading and possessing the book Angela could be imprisoned.
She happens upon an underground community that thrives on slowing life down. Here they use long sentences, take deep breaths and they even take the time to use adjectives. Angela falls in love with a beautiful and mysterious woman and for the first time has a longing to live fully. No sooner than she adapts to the underworld she is sent on a dangerous mission back to the world that she has fled.
Books don’t change lives…people change lives…sometimes, if you’re lucky, if you get things right, a book can say some important things and that’s all fine and good…but a book is just an artifact…a thing that sits on a desk or a shelf…people make the real difference…people and love…
Decelerate Blue is the first graphic novel by author Adam Rapp. This futuristic concept has familiar dystopian tropes while accenting new focuses. Could society force us to speed up every aspect of out life so that we could consume with an increased ferocity? If this were to happen would it be at the expense of art, love and passion? The text is married with stunning visuals by Mike Cavallaro. Most pages are in black and white with a few vibrant exceptions.
This is a worthwhile read and a great introduction book for those wishing to try reading graphic novels. It opens up numerous possible discussion threads and would match well with a variety of traditional novel titles to be included in a larger dystopian discussion.
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Publication date: February 14, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-59643-109-6
Page count: 208
Publisher: :01 First Second
