I asked for Jim Woodring’s ‘Congress of the Animals’ for my birthday. It’s a wordless graphic novel that follows Woodring’s main character Frank on a fantastical journey that eventually finds him some sort of love and affection, but for the most part is full of disaster, hard labour and general grotesqueness. 

I really want to like Jim Woodring’s work and in a way I do- I admire both his imagination and technical skill as an artist. However I’m just a really, really sensitive person when it comes to disturbing imagery and general grossness- I can’t handle it. Reading Congress of the Animals reminded me of being given the ‘Twisted Tales of Felix’ video as a child and being completely sickened by it’s weirdness. Unfortunately for me my little sister loved it, and toddlers can happily watch the same thing over and over and over again! It’s pathetic I know, but I had to read this book in small doses, and I especially had to take a break after the ‘faceless men with intestines’ incident. 

At the same time, however, I can see that this book is not just about grossing people out- there’s a number of ‘deeper’ themes running through the storyline. Though to appreciate these in full I’d prefer to read Woodring’s (surprisingly comprehensive) summary on the dustjacket than pour over the imagery for too long- but that’s just me!