Corman, from her website
Jarod Roselló sent The Well-Dressed Bear Will (Never) Be Found to Leela Corman, author of the graphic novel Unterzakhn as well as an illustrator, radio host, and dancer. She responded with this blurb:
“A line-drawn tragedy of dual identity, code-switching, and hiding in plain sight. Rosello’s story made my heart break a little bit.”
The three elements that she pulls from the book really resonate. “Dual identity” and “hiding in plain sight” were clear to me the first time I read it, but I never would have thought of the term code-switching, which is something that happens when a speaker uses two languages in one context. Now I’m thinking about all the ways that applies to the Well-Dressed Bear, who is constantly so displaced.
I think a fundamental question about the book is whether questions of the bear’s identity come from the outside—the woman who calls him on the phone and insists that he is someone named Jonathan, the neighbors who follow him around and want him gone—or from within himself. Probably both things are there.
Anyway, I ramble. You can find out more about Leela Corman at her website.
In other WDB-related news, we’ve got two events planned for the book: a release party in Tampa on October 2, and then on October 15 Jarod will be here in Atlanta to have a joint launch party with Matt Bell and his new novel, Scrapper.
And if you haven’t yet, don’t forget to read this interview with Jarod that we just posted.
