A review by proffy
The Eternal Smile: Three Stories by Gene Luen Yang
4.0
The Eternal Smile is a collection of three graphic novels focusing on the nature of reality and fantasy, imagining the blurring of the boundaries between them, and remarking upon the significance of the separation.
The first story, "Duncan's Kingdom", features a classic story of a brave knight determined to win the hand of the queen by slaying the metaphorical dragon...frog, whatever. The second story, "The Eternal Smile", tells the story of Gran'Pa Greenbax, a money-hungry businessman who attempts to cash in on a religious scheme centered on a mysterious smile in the sky. The third story, "Urgent Request", brings readers into a romance which begins when Janet receives an urgent email from Prince Henry of Nigeria. He needs her help in securing his family fortune, and if she provides him with her banking information he will reward her with 350,000,000 dollars.
What I found most fascinating about each of these stories is the way the classic is mixed with the original. The first two stories share basic similarities with traditional tales: stories of men slaying beasts for the sake of a princess are not exactly unique; miserly businessmen undergoing internal transformations have been told and told again. But Yang and Kim really stretch the boundaries of these common motifs, leaving the reader thinking not only about the story but about how it relates to all the stories that came before. Even the third story, while not exactly based on a classic, takes something familiar - we've all received those emails - and defies our expectations even as it meets them.
I wish I could do more justice to these three stories by really delving in to the beautiful and intriguing theme present in each, but to do so would reveal too much of the story. Each one artfully blends fantasy and reality in the search for a deeper understanding of the role imagination plays in our lives. The topic is one near and dear to my heart, and probably to all readers, as we, more than most, find ourselves so entranced by the lives we live in our minds. Yang and Kim deliver stories that entertain and educate, and I find it simple to both enjoy the stories for their entertainment value and to use the stories as a jumping block for further intellectual pursuit.
The first story, "Duncan's Kingdom", features a classic story of a brave knight determined to win the hand of the queen by slaying the metaphorical dragon...frog, whatever. The second story, "The Eternal Smile", tells the story of Gran'Pa Greenbax, a money-hungry businessman who attempts to cash in on a religious scheme centered on a mysterious smile in the sky. The third story, "Urgent Request", brings readers into a romance which begins when Janet receives an urgent email from Prince Henry of Nigeria. He needs her help in securing his family fortune, and if she provides him with her banking information he will reward her with 350,000,000 dollars.
What I found most fascinating about each of these stories is the way the classic is mixed with the original. The first two stories share basic similarities with traditional tales: stories of men slaying beasts for the sake of a princess are not exactly unique; miserly businessmen undergoing internal transformations have been told and told again. But Yang and Kim really stretch the boundaries of these common motifs, leaving the reader thinking not only about the story but about how it relates to all the stories that came before. Even the third story, while not exactly based on a classic, takes something familiar - we've all received those emails - and defies our expectations even as it meets them.
I wish I could do more justice to these three stories by really delving in to the beautiful and intriguing theme present in each, but to do so would reveal too much of the story. Each one artfully blends fantasy and reality in the search for a deeper understanding of the role imagination plays in our lives. The topic is one near and dear to my heart, and probably to all readers, as we, more than most, find ourselves so entranced by the lives we live in our minds. Yang and Kim deliver stories that entertain and educate, and I find it simple to both enjoy the stories for their entertainment value and to use the stories as a jumping block for further intellectual pursuit.