the encyclopedia of early earth by isabel greenberg

Muted grays, whites, and blues evoke the feeling of a cave painting, with clever accents of red or yellow used to develop certain cultures and characters. The panels in this graphic novel are washed out and sparsely colored, but they burst with personality.

I found myself eagerly flipping the page to find out what familiar myth might surface next and how its meaning might affect the overall story. This mixing and matching of mythologies serves to make the world of Early Earth rich and unpredictable. And it is no accident that the boy Storyteller’s quest mirrors that of Odysseus from Homer’s famous epic. Noah’s Ark and the Great Flood quickly turns into an account of scorned love - “because floods, after all, are tried and tested.” A talking whale’s mouth provides well-timed transport, while a greedy mapmaker keeps his city in the dark about the world beyond Migdal Baval’s walls. Greenberg presents a patchwork of cultures and fables, populating them with her own charming cast of characters. His wit and his words are his weapons, but smooth talking can only get you so far when it comes to dealing with the denizens of Early Earth.

Our Storyteller has a knack for telling all sorts of tales. Sausage-hungry giants, malicious kings, and a capricious god named Bird Man challenge the young protagonist, journeying to make himself feel whole again. Like these stories tend to go, the boy embarks on a grand journey that takes him from the cold tundra of his home to the savage wilds of Britankitarka and far beyond the familiar lands of the Frozen Sea. Enter the Storyteller, an unlucky boy split into three physical bodies at birth only to be re-formed years later with a major fault: a piece of his soul is missing. The natives of blistering “Nord” hardly look beyond the light of their fires. The tale doesn’t begin with rigorous terms or definitions instead, the first thing we learn from The Encyclopedia of Early Earth is about the power of love in an era older and stranger than our own. There’s more to gain from her resourceful Wise Old Crone or caring Kiddo than from your run-of-the-mill encyclopedia. Despite what the title might lead you to believe, Isabel Greenberg’s graphic novel The Encyclopedia of Early Earth gives us little in the way of hard facts.

The encyclopedia of early earth by isabel greenberg