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Graphic Novel
Homeless persons. New York (State). New York. Biography. Comic books, strips, etc.
Homeless persons as artists. New York (State). New York. Biography. Comic books, strips, etc.
Homelessness. New York (State). New York. Comic books, strips, etc.
Subways. Social aspects. New York (State). New York. Comic books, strips, etc.
This short, collaborative graphic novel introduces teens to a life unheard of by most. While riding the subway in New York City, Landowne met Horton and began talking about art and life. Soon Horton tells his life story. He was homeless most of his life. After living in a shelter that felt more dangerous than the streets, Horton left to try to survive on his own. Running away from a police officer introduces Horton to the subway tunnels and the people who lived in there. Learning to live in the pitch black lifestyle of the tunnels gave Horton the strength to know himself and his art. Sharing his story in this full-page graphic novel style helps the reader perceive the darkness surrounding HortonÆs life and the light that his artwork gave him. The artwork done in black, white, and gray watercolor tones is realistic and sparse with subway details illustrating a wide range of multicultural characters riding the subway. Hardcore graphic novel enthusiasts might not be the real audience for this title because it has little in common with manga or superheroes. Handselling or booktalking to readers who like true life stories or gritty fiction will find this special title and format an audience.ùKristin Fletcher-Spear.
Kirkus ReviewsA white, female artist looking at subway posters meets an African-American man, and they strike up a conversation about life and art as they ride the subway up and down the line. He tells her the story of his life: He was given up for adoption as a baby, but his adopted family didn't want him and he found himself on the streets, which, although harsh, were preferable to the shelters. "That is where the real pain started. People died there every day. And every day they came back." Sleeping on subways lasted until the cops chased him into the tunnels, where he found a whole new way of life. Muralist and book artist Landowne met Horton shortly after the release of her 2004 picture book Selavi ; the two collaborate here to bring Horton's story of perseverance and hope to print, and the fluid black-and-white sequential panels tell it well. The horrors attendant on homelessness are not sugarcoated, and the language is as raw and gritty as one might expect. Powerful. (Graphic memoir. YA)
School Library Journal Starred Review (Wed Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2009)Gr 8 Up-After meeting on a subway platform in New York City, Landowne and Horton share a conversation about art and life while riding uptown and downtown. Youme listens carefully as Anthony tells his story of living on the streets after being abandoned by his adoptive family. At first he stayed at a homeless shelter where he witnessed, "things no kid should ever see." He discovered a city below the city when one day the police chased him into a subway tunnel. In these dark passageways, Anthony built a makeshift home and found a canvas for his artwork. After showing Youme his life six stories below the city, the two artists begin a collaboration that ends in this beautiful, gritty biography. Both Youme and Anthony contributed text and art to the book-their black and gray watercolors are tender and raw, their words spare and poetic. This book's unflinching look at homelessness and the ability to find hope and inspiration in the dark will appeal greatly to teens. Lauren Anduri, Brooklyn Public Library, NY
Voice of Youth Advocates
Library Journal
Kirkus Reviews
School Library Journal Starred Review (Wed Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2009)
Landowne and Horton] collaborate here to bring Horton's story of perseverance and hope to print, and the fluid black-and-white sequential panels tell it well. The horrors attendant on homelessness are not sugarcoated, and the language is as raw and gritty as one might expect. Powerful.-- Kirkus Reviews On the subway, do ever notice that people are always looking, but they only see what they want to? Things can be sitting right in front of them and still they can't see it. That's your guide Anthony speaking. He'll show you how he lives in the tunnels underneath the New York City subway system--that is, if you'll let him. Which is exactly what Youme decided she would do one afternoon when she and Anthony began a conversation in the subway about art. It turns out that both Youme and Anthony Horton are artists. While part of Youme's art is listening long and hard to the stories of the people she meets, part of Anthony's is making art out of what most people won't even look at. Thus began a unique collaboration and conversation between these two artists over the next year, which culminated in Anthony's biography, the graphic novel Pitch Black . With art and words from both of them, they map out Anthony's world--a tough one from many perspectives, startling and undoing from others, but from Anthony's point of view, a life lived as art. Youme Landowne (known as Youme ) is a painter and book artist who thrives in the context of public art. She studied cross-cultural communication through art at the New School for Social Research and Friends World College. She has interned in public schools and has been a student at the Friends World College at the Nairobi and Kyoto campuses. Youme has lived in and learned from the United States, Kenya, Japan, Haiti, Laos, and Cuba. She currently lives in Brooklyn, New York. Anthony Horton lived most of his life as a homeless artist, surviving and creating in the secret underground tributaries of the NYC subway system. On February 5, 2012 Anthony died in a fire in an abandoned subway room under the city. Mr. Horton found solace in the blackness of the tunnels. He made the subway the subject of his canvases, the muse for a graphic novel that he co-wrote, and the place he called home for the better part of his adult life, even when he had other places to stay. -- New York Times, Feb. 6, 2012