A gentle and philosophical look at the events of 2020, and how we can deal with the challenges that life throws us in general. A book to share with the friends and family that we have been missing.
A beautiful book to connect us after such a challenging time.
'Dark clouds were looming in the distance. We watched them gather, and we wondered... When will it come? How long will it last?'
A monumental storm brings huge and sudden change. We follow a man and his dog through the uncertainty that it brings to their lives. Through their eyes, we see the difficulties of being apart, the rollercoaster of emotions that we can all relate to, and the realisation that by pulling together we can move through difficult times with new perspective, hope and an appreciation of what matters most in life.
An older lone man and his dog. This is their 2020. Just one of the stories of the year of the COVID19 Pandemic. Told, to a degree in a philosophical manner, with sparse but meaningful words. The standout for this book, and deliberately so is the captivating monochromatic art of Luke Adam Walker with great attention to detail and a wonderful use of multiple shades of grey. But how do I judge a book that took me less than 10 minutes to read? I don't know. The images are very much worth looking at, as is the Pandemic overview, but I couldn't help but think, I needed more? 7 out of 12. I was #gifted this interesting book by the writer Marianne Laidlow, for the second successive book, a writer who didn't ask for a review in exchange.
Beautiful and poignant, this story is shared through illustrations and the thoughts of one man and his dog as their journeys take them through these pandemic days when life has been turned upside down. Illustrated by Luke Adam Hawker, and with writing by Marianne Laidlaw, this shares the worries as well as the beauty of these days. The NYC dwellers who gathered each day to applaud the ever-weary health care workers, even while wondering how long this will last, when it will be over. How it changed our world, and the way we see it. The panic as grocery store shelves were quickly depleted, the confusion on how to maneuver through these days, this new way of life.
‘Quiet, where once there was an orchestra of noise. The busiest of places stood empty and still. Normal things began to feel strange. Strange things began to feel normal.’
Simple, if occasionally profound moments are shared. Walking in the rain in side-by-side illustrations of the man and his dog walking as the rain pours down. In the first illustration, the man is holding an umbrella over himself. ’In slowing down, we woke up… On the next page, he is shown holding the umbrella over his dog - ’to the most important things of all.’
A lovely book that shares the frustrations of being separated from those we love, as well as a new appreciation for those we love and have been separated from during this time, the perceptions gained over the last two years, and a new appreciation and hope for the days ahead.
E agora... olhamos com esperança o futuro. Ainda que outras nuvens possam se juntar, ainda que possam chegar novas tempestades,...
Colhido hoje, na Biblioteca Municipal de Barcelos, este livro fala de pessoas com vidas comuns, que andam absorvidas no rame-rame do dia-a-dia. Até que uma tempestade as assola e faz com que abram os olhos para o que se passa à sua volta e vejam as coisas de forma diferente, com mais calma, paciência e empatia.
Bem, todos achavam que a epidemia nos ia mudar, e talvez por uns tempos tenha mudado, mas creio que foi sol de pouca dura.
A retired man and his dog experience lockdown together. They observe the changes in society and sometimes feel lonely and sometimes feel the opposite of loneliness, which I suppose must be togetherness.
The illustrations are lovely and my favourite part was the way the relationship between the man and the dog was portrayed. The most profound feeling this story gets across is not about lockdown or human nature but what wonderful companions animals can be.
This book contains beautiful, well crafted imagery, and it is probably worth buying just to view that, but as for the written content, I feel something was lacking slightly.
This book is based on the pandemic, and the social distancing that has been put in place with that. I feel Hawker was trying to tell us within this that the pandemic has changed people, some for worse, some for the better. I know personally, I have found more comfort in nature and the outdoors than ever before.
This book doesn't contain many words, but with the lovely drawings, I'm not sure there needs to be. This is a beautiful hardback book, that definitely looks grand in one's bookcase, that's for sure.
Herinneringen aan de eerste lockdown in heel fijne en erg mooie tekeningen van Hawker. Het enige dat ik jammer vond was dat tussen de beelden korte wat al te zoete zinnetjes waren geschreven, zonder was krachtiger geweest denk ik en had meer ruimte gelaten aan eigen gedachten bij de beelden.
31/03/22 Uma história sobre nós, sobre um passado muito recente, e sobre a pandemia. Frases pequenas carregadas de mensagens e ilustrações lindíssimas. Gostei muito, encantou-me a beleza da simplicidade das palavras e dos desenhos.
Um bonito livro com belas gravuras representativas de um sentimento que nos tocou a todos, especialmente nestes últimos dois anos: A Solidão. Um livro emotivo.
Drawings of a man and his dog exploring the neighborhood being alone and isolated in the community created by the Corona virus and the hope of being together in the future. 3.5 stars.
This is my first experience of reviewing a book of illustrations and I have to admit to being a little daunted at the prospect. It was reading the following details about how the book was produced that gave me a clue to a possible approach.
‘Together is very much a product of the new ways in which many of us have learned to work during lockdown. Having seen a beautiful depiction of the 8pm applause for the NHS, Editor Marianne Laidlaw approached Luke, asking him to illustrate the emotional rollercoaster we were all on. They started collaborating on the book, Luke mapping out images and Marianne writing words, while not having met – everything took place over Zoom for many months. The book’s creation mirrors its message that we are better joining forces and working together through adversity. Even in difficult times, there are silver linings, and beauty can be found.’
Inspired by the collaborative process described above, I concentrated first on the illustrations alone, reflecting on the feelings and thoughts they evoked. Then I returned to the beginning of the book, this time reading the words and looking at the accompanying illustrations together. By the way, I highly recommend checking out Luke’s Instagram feed where he shares insights into his work and the inspiration behind some of the images in the book. For example, I learned that one of the drawings, of people gathered outside a brightly lit store window, is a homage to Edward Hopper’s painting Nighthawks (held by the Art Institute of Chicago).
The publishers summarise the themes of the book as empathy, kindness, an appreciation of nature and of the people around us. Unfortunately, it doesn’t start out that way, as a striking drawing near the beginning of the book shows which depicts people wheeling loaded trolleys as supermarket shelves are emptied.
Scale is a frequent theme of the illustrations with tiny figures shown against a background of towering building or tall trees. I also liked the use of contrasts – between light and dark, empty and full. A good example of the latter is a drawing of people crowded together on the platform of an underground station and then in a tube carriage (I think it will be a while until we experience that again!) followed by the image of a deserted tunnel. This is reflected in Marianne Laidlaw’s words which accompany the illustrations. ‘Quiet, where once there was an orchestra of noise. The busiest of places stood empty and still. Normal things began to feel strange. Strange things began to feel normal.’
My favourite drawings were the double page spreads because they were so rich in detail. I enjoyed spending time observing the individual figures and spotting the little touches included by the artist. A good example is a drawing showing people at their windows, as happened during the weekly ‘Clap for Carers’. Luke Hawker’s background in architectural design is clear in the details of the windows: their different shapes – square, round, arched; or their decorative features – shutters, balconies, porticoes. Another drawing I particularly liked was a full page one humorously depicting some of the activities people have taken up to occupy them during lockdown. Pillow fight anyone?
Throughout the book, the figures of the old man (inspired by the artist’s grandfather) and his dog (inspired by the author’s own dog, Robin) evoke a sense of companionship and generosity. Occasionally, they appear as a solitary pair of onlookers or observers, such as a drawing in which they are seated on a bench high above a city.
The joyful final illustration encapsulates the book’s title and the anticipation of long-awaited reunions.
Together is a short book but one well worth lingering over. It is beautifully produced and would make a wonderful gift. It’s certainly going to be a treasured addition to my own book collection.
This graphic novel about a man and his dog has wonderful prose and beautiful pictures. Simplistic, yet telling a story of loss, loneliness and redemption.
É sem dúvida dos livros mais bonitos da minha estante. Pela mensagem que transporta e a importância dos afectos e da forma como durante meses fomos privados de pequenas liberdades que tinhamos como garantidas. Ilustrações maravilhosas que saltam à vista e enchem o nosso coração. Um livro que nos remete ao silêncio e as lágrimas rapidamente saltam porque a memória causa um arrepio na pele e um aperto no peito. A minha opinião em vídeo em Livros à Lareira com chá em breve. Por favor leiam este livro que se lê em menos de 10 minutos e qye nos perdemos horas a analisar cada ilustração.
Nagyon jók a grafikái, finomak, érzékenyek, szeretem. Sokáig lehet barangolni egy-egy rajzában, finom vonalakkal, szépen dolgozik. Aki szereti az ebeket, azon belül is a vizslákat, annak nagyon fog tetszeni a könyv. Maga a történet nem egy nagy was ist das, viszont nagyon kedves. Vihar-allegóriával operálva a koronavírus okozta - a mi generációnk számra hatalmas - változásokat lapozza végig és hát oda lyukad ki, ami itt, brit földön tapasztalható is, hogy egy pici kedvességgel (kindness) és odafigyeléssel mennyi minőségi változást tudunk előidézni mások életében - egyúttal a sajátunkban is, nyilván. Reflektál a mentális egészségre is, ez a téma fokozottan fontos akkor, amikor az ember karanténokban és lockdown-okban ücsörög lassan egy éve, azoknak a terheléséről, akik az egészségügyben dolgoznak, nem is beszélve. A halál soha nem könnyű. Beszél a természet újrafelfedezéséről, aminek csak szegény természet fogja meginni a levét, viszont ami hasznos is lehet: még több pénzt zöld felületek, parkok, életterek kialakítására, a járványban betöltött benefikus szerepük tagadhatatlan. Nálunk nemhogy tiltva volt a mászkálás, de minden lockdown alatt nagy hangsúlyt fektettek arra, hogy az ember mozogjon - kocsi nélkül. A konzekvencia, amit levon, szintén nem meglepő, viszont megfontolandó: együtt minden könnyebb. Azt már csak én fűzöm hozzá, hogy a családon kívül is van élet, a tegnap még idegenek ugyanolyan fontos alkatrészei lehetnek az életünknek mint az eleve adottak, csak nyitni kell, közeledni és elfogadni. Nem olyan nehéz ez.
Uma verdadeira obra de arte. Um livro para ler em todos os momentos em que precisamos de motivação e esperança. Mostra-nos que mesmo nos tempos mais negros temos a capacidade de nos adaptar, estar próximos, criar novas paixões e valorizar o outro, dar mais importância às coisas simples da vida e ao que realmente merece ser amado e estimado.
A parte mais bonita de se ser humano é aprender a sê-lo juntos. Todos estamos a descobrir pela primeira vez como é que se vive. Este é um livro que nos relembra da importância das relações e da conectividade humana.
Having to live through this pandemic made me realise how much I took for granted not going outside and talking to people. This book perfectly illustrates that.
The art in this book is jaw-dropping. I am a lover of black, thick contours of people and objects in visual arts, and that’s part of the charm of Hawker’s art.
The book is a very poetic look at the recent pandemic.
There is one big problem: perspective. Anyone with serious geographical and historical perspective cannot seriously say that the 2020 pandemic entailed “very hard times” for all of us. Despite the tragic handful of deaths, most people were absolutely fine, and some even had more free time, while they pretended to be working from home.
The problem with labeling the Covid pandemic as “very hard times” is that if you do that, it means you have no idea what real “very hard times” actually feel like.
The Covid pandemic was not hard enough for people to actually grow wiser or find unity - at least in the West, everyone kept hating each other remotely, just like before. Covid was not hard enough to actually generate collective psychological growth, the way that often a war or a much worse pandemic has been able to do throughout history.
So, for these reasons I don’t buy this metaphor of the great terrible storm as portrayed in the book.
Together isn't really a book you can rate in the usual way as it's a very short book mainly composed of stunning artwork and sparse captions. Chronicling the difficulties of 2020 through the life of a man and his dog, the artwork is a philosophical reflection on what we've lost and found in adversity. The artist explores our busy lives, that swept us along before the pandemic and the cessation of "normal" life. Normal became strange and vice versa.
Included in the book is a heartfelt thanks to all NHS staff and the courage they showed in unprecedented times. Whilst the pandemic upended our lives, it also brought us together in new ways and united us. Moments of happiness are still possible and some of us have discovered new meaning in our lives. The story ends on a note of hope for the possibility that we'll emerge from this as better human beings, valuing the knowledge that we're stronger together.
This is oddly like a memento of the pandemic and the upheavals we've all been through. Inevitably, it will be compared to The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse but this lacks the emotional punch to compete. However, it's a book that's powerful in its simplicity and one sure to resonate with many people.
Een uitmuntend prentenboek over hoe het ervoor was, hoe we tijdens ervaarden en wat erna kan zijn.
Luke Adam Hawker illustreert op indrukwekkende wijze het spaarzame verhaal van een man en zijn hond die - net als alle anderen - moeten schuilen als er een zware storm op komst is. Donkere wolken, isolement en een wereld waarin we dingen herontdekken en lessen trekken uit het afgesneden zijn van de wereld, ... klinkt bekend in de oren.
In spaarzame taal, poëtisch maar niet nodeloos pompeus of metaforisch, krijg je een pareltje dat op een mooie manier niet meer of niet minder dan de essentie verteld.
De illustraties zijn prachtig, bevatten soms uitzonderlijk veel detail of laten net weg wat niet gezien hoeft te worden. Tekst en tekening werken wonderwel samen.
What a lovely book! Reminds me of the classic Raymond Briggs 'Where the Wind Blows' and the phenomenal 'The Boy, the Mole, The Fox and the Horse'. This is such a touching and generous book. With gorgeous drawings that pull at your heartstrings. Of a grandfather / old man and his dog. About coping with pandemic, grief, loneliness, name your poison. But you do. Buy two, cherish one and pass one on. Toast