Status
Available
Call number
Collection
Publication
Harry N. Abrams (2005), Edition: First Edition, Hardcover, 176 pages
Description
Before she wrote The Time Traveler's Wife, now a bestseller all around the world, Audrey Niffenegger's books were beautiful, handmade, exquisitely illustrated tales, published in editions as small as ten copies. They took many years to create, were bought by collectors and have been seen by few people. At last, as part of its acclaimed and very successful list of graphic books, Cape is delighted to publish The Three Incestuous Sisters in a beautiful edition at an affordable price. It is the story of three sisters, Clothilde, Ophile and Bettine, who live together in a lonely house by the sea. All three are rivals for the love of Paris, the lighthouse-keeper's son. When Paris chooses Bettine, and she becomes pregnant, the other sisters are jealous. Eventually, after the baby is born, they cause Bettine's death. Paris runs away to sea and Ophile, overwhelmed by remorse, throws herself from the lighthouse. Clothilde lives on in the house, sad and alone. Then one day a circus comes to town. In it is an amazing flying boy. She recognizes him as Bettine's child...… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member nomadreader
I stumbled upon this book in the library catalog a few weeks ago. I was frantically trying to reserve a copy of Her Fearful Symmetry so I could read it sometime before Christmas, and I saw that there were two books listed by Audrey Niffenegger I had never heard of: The Three Incestuous Sisters and
As you can see by the cover, the art is beautiful. I knew Niffenegger was an artist, but I somehow missed the news that she wrote these two illustrated novels. Before I read it, I thought "illustrated novel" might be semantics to market a graphic novel to those who might not necessarily read them otherwise (and specifically those who read The Time Traveler's Wife.). I was wrong. I enjoy graphic novels, but this book seems closest to a children's picture book in how it tells a story. The pictures are more powerful than the words, but they two elements work together beautifully.
The Three Incestuous Sisters is lushly illustrated. I read it with nomadreaderboy, and we would gladly purchase an additional copy to cut up, frame and hang all over our home. The art is beautiful. The story is fascinating and very Niffenegger. It has hints of the supernatural, but the sisters are flush with humanity. It's a quick read, but I found myself reading it (and gazing at the art) very slowly. I even read it in two sittings to make it last.
I absolutely loved this book.
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The Adventuress. I immediately requested them both.As you can see by the cover, the art is beautiful. I knew Niffenegger was an artist, but I somehow missed the news that she wrote these two illustrated novels. Before I read it, I thought "illustrated novel" might be semantics to market a graphic novel to those who might not necessarily read them otherwise (and specifically those who read The Time Traveler's Wife.). I was wrong. I enjoy graphic novels, but this book seems closest to a children's picture book in how it tells a story. The pictures are more powerful than the words, but they two elements work together beautifully.
The Three Incestuous Sisters is lushly illustrated. I read it with nomadreaderboy, and we would gladly purchase an additional copy to cut up, frame and hang all over our home. The art is beautiful. The story is fascinating and very Niffenegger. It has hints of the supernatural, but the sisters are flush with humanity. It's a quick read, but I found myself reading it (and gazing at the art) very slowly. I even read it in two sittings to make it last.
I absolutely loved this book.
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LibraryThing member stubbyfingers
Obviously, I didn't get this book. I'm trying to think of redeeming qualities for it and the only thing I can come up with is "unusual." It was definitely not what I expected. This is a picture book, but for some reason I expected more words. This book is about 176 pages long, on the left is a
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sentence and on the facing page is a picture. And honestly, I didn't think the pictures were very good. They were all done through a process called "aquatint," a process involving metal and acid followed by watercolors, which the author explained in an afterword that was the most interesting part of the book. The pictures were done entirely in black and white except for everyone's hair and the green boy so they were very dark and a bit difficult to make out sometimes. Maybe I just thought they were difficult to make out because I wanted them to have more detail, to compensate for the lack of words, and they just didn't. The story, involving murder, insanity, and deformity (but oddly, no incest), was just creepy. It took the author 14 years to complete this book (meanwhile, "The Time Traveler's Wife" was something she did in her spare time), I hope, for the author's sake, that other people out there appreciate it more than I did. Show Less
LibraryThing member rampaginglibrarian
Audrey Niffenegger really wanted to publish this book. As a graphic artist the idea for it came to her long before The Time Traveler's Wife. But once she had that best seller under her belt she had the angle she needed to sell this idea. That being said this fairy tale/graphic novel is fairly
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beautiful and the story is interesting. Show Less
LibraryThing member satyridae
Seems unduly influenced by Edward Gorey. This story is obviously a labor of love, but it didn't work for me at all. Creepy, pointless, and boring.
LibraryThing member hockeycrew
I found this book is rather strange. I found the pictures interesting, but I did not understand the true story behind the images. It's a very quick read, most images are accompanied only by a short sentence.
LibraryThing member MeisterPfriem
Discovering the book by chance, I immediately fell under the spell of this enchanting visual novel, with its dream-like images and the sparse text with which A.N. creates more than depicts a complex world of emotions: of love and jealousy, of hurt and hurting, and of forgiveness. (IV-10)
LibraryThing member mks27
The Three Incestuous Sisters: An Illustrated Novel by Audry Niffenegger is a fantasy about three sisters: one with red hair, one with blue hair, and one with blond hair. The illustrations are dark and mysterious and, after reading the author's note regarding how they were created, quite difficult
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to complete. I greatly enjoyed the art involved in this book, but the story was more difficult to understand, but involves jealousy, remorse, and reunion. I rated this book 4 stars, primarily due to the power of the illustrations. I recommend this book to readers who appreciate illustrations or dark fantasy. Show Less
LibraryThing member BALE
Niffenegger's sister theme, as seen in Her Fearful Symmetry and ghost theme, as found in both of her fictional novels, are repeated here by combining the visual arts with the written word. The two elements present a melodramatic scheme with aesthetic balance.
LibraryThing member mirikayla
It's not like it was horrible, but I don't understand the appeal of this book even a little bit. I didn't think it was elegant, delicate, or any of the other words I've seen used to describe it. A fourteen-year "labor of love," dedicated to her sisters? Um... Why?
LibraryThing member nkmunn
too creepy.
LibraryThing member Charon07
This is a beautiful, artful, haunting illustrated book with a minimalist text. A picture book for grown-ups. With barely one sentence per page, the Gorey-like illustrations carry most of the narrative, which manages to be both operatic and understated, both tragic and charming.
LibraryThing member jennybeast
Another once-an-artist-book. I think I like the Adventuress better, but I dig Audrey Niffenegger's mind.
Awards
Locus Award (Finalist — Art Book — 2006)
V&A Illustration Award (2006)
Original publication date
2005-09-01
Physical description
176 p.; 12.66 x 9.64 inches
ISBN
0810959275 / 9780810959279