1984 has been on my TBR since 2010. I was excited to finally read it, and in graphic novel form. There’s not much to say that hasn’t already been said. Bottom line: I highly recommend it.

Note: If you want to read this graphic novel, be aware that the print is very small.

Sometimes the voices in a story draw you in so much, it’s like they’re asking you to keep reading, to keep listening to them. That’s the way I felt about this book. It felt different from what I usually read: slower, more atmospheric, almost mystical at times, and I might have put it down if not for the quality of writing, which was excellent. And to top it off, it’s based on a real story. I have a lot of appreciation for the research that Luis Alberto Urrea put into this novel, and for putting a spotlight on a specific time in history that I knew nothing about.

This detective novel is part of a popular series in Japan (this is the third book, but the first translated into English). If you enjoyed Agatha Christie’s “Murder on the Orient Express” with its iconoclast lead detective, clues dropped along the way, and twists that you do not see coming, I would highly recommend this book. Thanks to the Currently Reading podcast for recommending this one.