The Trial
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
“In the end, the only thing is to accept the way things are. Above all, don’t call attention to yourself! Keep your mouth shut, however much this goes against your grain! Understand that this great legal system is in a state of delicate balance.”
The Trial, reinvented in this striking graphic novel, is the bleak tale of Joseph K – arrested one morning for unexplained reasons – struggling against a bewildering judicial process. K finds himself thrown from one disorientating encounter to the next, becoming increasingly desperate to prove his innocence in the face of unknown charges. In its stark portrait of an authoritarian bureaucracy trampling over the lives of its estranged citizens, The Trial is as relevant today as it has ever been.
“As bold type, jagged balloon shapes and other graphic elements collide and collage, Mairowitz and Montellier make their pages reverberate with symbolism and paranoia. This Trial is a triumph.” – Paul Gravett
“An uncompromised success - As much as anyone can expect from literary adaptation” – The Guardian
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In Kafka's famed story, bank clerk Joseph K is arrested for a crime that didn't take place and put on a trial that never occurs. This faithful graphic novel adaptation depicts not just the comical, nightmarish and absurdist themes explored by Kafka but also his gravitation to and mistrust of women. Artist Montellier's heavy shadows cast The Trial in a dark world framed with detailed embellishments that spill out of panels, creating a dreamlike (albeit a nightmare) quality. The surreal feeling of the story, and Kafka's absurdist view of reality, make this adaptation a dense read, full of strange imagery and, overall, a bit overwhelming. Although a clear, visual rendering of the feeling kafkaesque, a new, grotesque element is added with every scene, making it difficult to digest the events of the plot. Likely good supplemental reading to Kafka's actual novel, this graphic novel may serve as a useful entry point to his writing for teachers and librarians.
