The Amazing, Enlightening and Absolutely True Adventures of Katherine Whaley

by Kim Deitch

This is a story about a girl, born at the beginning of the 20th century. She grows up in a small river town in upstate New York. One day the mysterious Charles Varnay, an eccentric who dresses in the style of an 18th century dandy, comes to town, his sole companion a remarkably intelligent dog named Rousseau. Varnay wants to star Katherine in a movie serial he plans to make, called The Goddess of Enlightenment. Katherine is rather put off when she discovers that he expects her to appear nude in this film. But even more strange is the film’s subject matter: It has to do with seven metal urns that Varnay claims are actual recordings of the voice of Jesus Christ which, he says, contain an urgent message that the modern world needs to hear!

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Fiction, Comix, Adult

177 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 1, 2013

About the author

Kim Deitch has a reserved place at the first table of underground cartoonists. The son of UPA and Terrytoons animator Gene Deitch, Kim was born in 1944 and grew up around the animation business. He began doing comic strips for the East Village Other in 1967, introducing two of his more famous characters, Waldo the Cat and Uncle Ed, the India Rubber Man. In 1969 he succeeded Vaughn Bodé as editor of Gothic Blimp Works, the Other’s underground comics tabloid. During this period he married fellow cartoonist Trina Robbins and had a daughter, Casey. “The Mishkin Saga” was named one of the Top 30 best English-language comics of the 20th Century by The Comics Journal, and the first issue of The Stuff of Dreams received the Eisner Award for Best Single Issue in 2003. Deitch's recent acclaimed graphic novels include The Boulevard of Broken Dreams, Shadowland, Alias the Cat and Deitch's Pictorama, done in collaboration with his brothers Simon and Seth. Deitch remains a true cartoonists’ cartoonist, adored by his peers as much as anyone in the history of the medium.

Reviews

[Sam Quixote · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kim Deitch has always been a rambling storyteller which sometimes isn’t bad when the myriad digressions his tales take are entertaining; but when they’re not, like in the case of The Amazing, Enlightening and Absolutely True Adventures of Katherine Whaley, it can make for utterly tortuous reading.

The story is all over the shop. Set in the early days of filmmaking, Katherine meets a supposedly-Enlightenment-era Frenchman and his wonder dog in a small logging town who has a talking head and supposed recordings of Jeebus’ real voice! Shenanigans ensue with no clear direction or purpose.

Deitch is a cartoonist but this book isn’t a comic – it’s an illustrated novel with the occasional drawing amidst a sea of sprawling text. The writing isn’t very good or focused, the story is largely uninteresting, the characters are barely realised; it’s a convoluted, dreary slog to get through.

Deitch’s art though remains very appealing and skilful. The drawings are lovely, intricate and super-detailed while the page layouts are creative. And, while the various parts might sit awkwardly alongside one another, Deitch is an imaginative storyteller despite not being an especially compelling one.

The Amazing, Enlightening and Absolutely True Adventures of Katherine Whaley is definitely the least impressive Kim Deitch book I’ve read and if anyone’s interested in this creator’s work I’d recommend The Search for Smilin’ Ed and Shadowland instead.

[Still · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful graphic novel with mind blowing ancient movie factoids throughout.
Kim Deitch is possibly my favorite Underground Comix artist/writer. I've worshiped him for over 40 years.
This is a lot of fun and recommended highly.

Plot synopsis?
Go buy the book.

[Stewart Tame · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been a fan of Kim Deitch's work for a long time. He's managed to create an impressive body of work over the years. He likes stories set during the early decades of the 20th century, usually dealing with the early days of movies and/or recordings, often with SF or supernatural overtones. Each book seems to tie in with at least one or two previous ones, so longtime readers are rewarded by noticing recurring characters and artifacts. Katherine Whaley deals with the early days of silent movies as a mysterious gentleman in 18th century garb comes to town and wants Katherine to star in a new serial designed to enlighten mankind. Among his possessions are a set of seven mysterious jars and a statue of the Goddess of Enlightenment who bears a surprising resemblance to Katherine ...

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not sure what to say about this one, as it is a really strange book. The drawings first caught my eye, so I brought it home, knowing nothing about the plot. The book tells the story of Katherine Whaley, a small-town movie accompanist and her adventures with an enlightenment-obsessed, powdered wig-wearing film maker and his learned dog, Rousseau.

It goes into some really bizarre territory, but ultimately was an entertaining story. I'd be curious to see what Kim Deitch's other work is like, since the drawings were really good and his collection of alternate histories is really intriguing to me.

[Nancy Yob · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story was interesting since a lot of historical events and people were included, but for me, the story just made me say to myself, "so what?" I know that the drawings at the end of the book were to let us know what happened, but since everything else in the book was spelled out, why wasn't the ending? It would have been nice to know the rest of the story in words.

Anyway, I think I'm being generous with 3 stars, but I did enjoy the illustrations.

[StrictlySequential ArtNarrative · Rating 4 out of 5]

He must not have been able to put all the pieces together and realized that he had enough to make an entertaining and silly enough yarn.

The character writing is excellent which is a higher compliment to a story with no dialogue . Unfortunately, all of the interest that comes from the action is woefully dependent on the actors since the whole story is within a farcical history that only holds its own because of he contrast. That isn't so bad when you consider how well he reflects it against all of the historical people, places and events which gives the reader pleasure if only depending on how much they know of these in the first place.

I would term at least 25% of the story fluff because the depth he detailed his scenes with does not correspond with that of the finished product. It seems to me like he had the balls to write it without an ending in the hope of one presenting itself or that he had one that flopped at some point. You will be able to tell that there was something that was being driven towards that just didn't materialize.

It's very solid and appropriately funny art with many enjoyable things to notice in the background and having the hand-written words frame it adds up to a very cohesive presentation.

[Julesreads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Deitch is hiding somewhere within his own work. He controls the narrative while pretending—insisting—that he isn’t. It is the magical spell that binds his projects together. Whaley is more whimsy than anything else, though it is at turns a gripping tale, and at others low key kiddie stuff. But Deitch’s obsession with the early 20th century, the mysteries of being human, and how time seems to separate us only aesthetically, swirls together and spirals into something hypnotizing. It doesn’t mean every word or image is superbly artistic, but it is effective cartooning.

[Laura Cushing · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the beginning, this story sets you up to think it will be a historical biography about a small town girl who becomes an actress in the silent movie days. The fantastic elements slip in gradually, and the reader feels an increasing sense of being drawn into a strange and fascinating world. Great artwork throughout.

[Jon Hewelt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Feels like Deitch's most ambitious work, but for me it falls a little flat. Stilted narration, and lofty ideas that culminate in . . . I don't really know. I like the weird avenues Deitch goes down, but the stuff in Katherine Whaley never quite coalesced for me. Just . . . petered out.

[Lisa Macklem · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fairly entertaining and well-drawn. I found the story somewhat unsatisfying.

[Ruth Collier]

Well this is a weird one. There's no one quite like Kim Deitch, although the art is reminiscent of other underground comic artists, this one is more of an illustrated novel. It's a bit rambling, to give a feel of an actual story told from one person to the author, although slightly less so that his other books (although i may be wrong, it's been a while since i read the others). It also goes to some pretty far-fetched places, but again i can't remember how that compares to his other books.
The ending doesn't explain alot, which again is how things work out in real life, but the end certainly left an impression on me

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not sure just how popular Kim Deitch is. I think I was recommended after reading other classic comic stories. Well despite the fact that every character is awkward and a little ugly, this is an example of some of the very best story illustration and writing in the industry. There is so much amazing detail in every panel. Also Deitch seems to enjoy writing stories within stories. Told from a different perspective, this could have been a different book, and every bit as interesting. Definitely on my list of graphic novels to read over and again.

[Derek Royal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great yarn from Kim. And like many of his other works, this one is a series of framed or embedded narratives. Stories within stories. Inventive and unexpected twists, and overall a great read! I'm not sure you'd call this a comic. It's more of an illustrated novel...and an epistolary one, at that.

[Justin Fox · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not Deitch's best book. This lacks the darkness and... comic bookness of his best. But this illustrated book with some panel-to-panel storytelling (and all hand-lettered in Deitch's great hand) is still utterly charming and a perfect blend of the overturned rocks of history and the fantastic. It's pretty great any time we get a chance to dive into that mind of his.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tough one to review. I love Deitch's work and enjoyed the sly look at how religion is co-opted. But I wanted a more active protagonist and a bigger pay-off. Still, Deitch's seedy underbelly of pop culture mileau is endlessly fascinating, and he mixes prose and comics to terrific effect.

[Sonic · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wild and wacky yarn! How much of this is True? I don't know, but I love wondering about it!
Kim Deitch never fails to tell a super strange story, and I love how his stories all seem to interconnect more or less.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

A graphic novel about a young woman in the early 1900s who is entranced by the picture shows. A series of surprising visitors to her small town near Elmira takes her on an unexpected path through Europe.

[Jessica Haider · Rating 3 out of 5]

Strange, strange book...and I tend to like strange books. This one didn't quite completely do it for me though.

More review later...

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

More text than most graphic novels, this has the same voice as "Watchmen" without the graphic grossness. Nudity (though non-erotic) makes this appropriately placed in the adult section.

[Jennifer]

Too damn weird. Tried, but couldn't keep going.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

KD shines like a mystical diamond Charlie Chaplin was born with up his nose.