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Digger #4
Digger, Volume Four
In this fourth volume of Digger, covering chapters seven and eight of Ursula Vernon's webcomic, our wombat Heroine finds herself under the scrutiny of the universally feared matriarch of the Cerulean Hills hyena tribe, Boneclaw Mother. Should she survive, there is only the small matter of a ceremonial feast for the late hyena hunter Skull Ridges, which Digger unwittingly helped avenge — much to the consternation of all. (It's complicated...) A hyena long feast is no place for a vegetarian wanting to avoid offense and a one-way-trip to the dessert course.
And there is still the matter of getting home without getting any deeper into the matter of nearly-dead Gods, insane acolytes, talking statues, or amoral shadow critters with a penchant for existential crises. When Surka (the ex-pirate captain shrew turned professional bridge troll) and Ed (the outcast hynena artist and master of the warrior-tea ceremony) are among the saner beings in your social circle, you KNOW things are just not turning out like you hoped.
Despite her humble protests, Digger continues to get rave reviews from the critics. Publishers Weekly says that Digger "...has inspired comparisons to Bone and Finder." Eric Lindberg of Broken Frontier describes Digger as "...a rich fantasy adventure, a bitingly sarcastic satire, a meditation on myth and religion, and possessed of a quirky and beautiful black and white art style..." And Eric Burns of Websnark reminds us that "...Ursula Vernon didn't come to comics via comics, but instead was a fine artist and illustrator who kind of segued into comics. It shows in her style, which is perhaps the most beautiful pen and ink work on the web. Vernon knows how to take black and negative space and make them into astounding pieces."
This collection also contains an excerpt from Hyena Hierarchies Today, courtesy of the collection of Librarian Vo, specifically dealing with the members of the Cerulean Hills Boneclaw tribe.
Winner of the Web Cartoonists' Choice Awards in the categories of Outstanding Black and White Art (2005, 2006) & Outstanding Anthropomorphic Comic (2006), as well as the Broken Frontier award for Best Webcomic Creator (2007), Digger has also attracted the attention of the wider comics industry — garnering Ursula Vernon a 2006 Will Eisner Comics Industry Awards nomination in the category of Talent Deserving of Wider Recognition.
And there is still the matter of getting home without getting any deeper into the matter of nearly-dead Gods, insane acolytes, talking statues, or amoral shadow critters with a penchant for existential crises. When Surka (the ex-pirate captain shrew turned professional bridge troll) and Ed (the outcast hynena artist and master of the warrior-tea ceremony) are among the saner beings in your social circle, you KNOW things are just not turning out like you hoped.
Despite her humble protests, Digger continues to get rave reviews from the critics. Publishers Weekly says that Digger "...has inspired comparisons to Bone and Finder." Eric Lindberg of Broken Frontier describes Digger as "...a rich fantasy adventure, a bitingly sarcastic satire, a meditation on myth and religion, and possessed of a quirky and beautiful black and white art style..." And Eric Burns of Websnark reminds us that "...Ursula Vernon didn't come to comics via comics, but instead was a fine artist and illustrator who kind of segued into comics. It shows in her style, which is perhaps the most beautiful pen and ink work on the web. Vernon knows how to take black and negative space and make them into astounding pieces."
This collection also contains an excerpt from Hyena Hierarchies Today, courtesy of the collection of Librarian Vo, specifically dealing with the members of the Cerulean Hills Boneclaw tribe.
Winner of the Web Cartoonists' Choice Awards in the categories of Outstanding Black and White Art (2005, 2006) & Outstanding Anthropomorphic Comic (2006), as well as the Broken Frontier award for Best Webcomic Creator (2007), Digger has also attracted the attention of the wider comics industry — garnering Ursula Vernon a 2006 Will Eisner Comics Industry Awards nomination in the category of Talent Deserving of Wider Recognition.
114 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2009
1 person is currently reading
145 people want to read
About the author
Ursula Vernon
80 books1,520 followersUrsula Vernon, aka T. Kingfisher, is an author and illustrator. She has written over fifteen books for children, at least a dozen novels for adults, an epic webcomic called “Digger” and various short stories and other odds and ends.
Ursula grew up in Oregon and Arizona, studied anthropology at Macalester College in Minnesota, and stayed there for ten years, until she finally learned to drive in deep snow and was obligated to leave the state.
Having moved across the country several times, she eventually settled in Pittsboro, North Carolina, where she works full-time as an artist and creator of oddities. She lives with her husband and his chickens.
Her work has been nominated for the Eisner, World Fantasy, and longlisted for the British Science Fiction Awards. It has garnered a number of Webcomics Choice Awards, the Hugo Award for Best Graphic Story, the Mythopoeic Award for Children’s Literature, the Nebula for Best Short Story, the Sequoyah Award, and many others.
Ursula grew up in Oregon and Arizona, studied anthropology at Macalester College in Minnesota, and stayed there for ten years, until she finally learned to drive in deep snow and was obligated to leave the state.
Having moved across the country several times, she eventually settled in Pittsboro, North Carolina, where she works full-time as an artist and creator of oddities. She lives with her husband and his chickens.
Her work has been nominated for the Eisner, World Fantasy, and longlisted for the British Science Fiction Awards. It has garnered a number of Webcomics Choice Awards, the Hugo Award for Best Graphic Story, the Mythopoeic Award for Children’s Literature, the Nebula for Best Short Story, the Sequoyah Award, and many others.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
February 25, 2024
This volume tackles cultural relativism and the blurry edges of morality in such a deep, beautiful way. I can’t wait to see where the rest of the story goes.
June 11, 2017
Plots thicken. Spoilers for earlier volumes. . .
It takes a bit in the opening for the hyenas' purposes to come clear but -- to honor the dead, Digger -- or Little Mother of Earthquakes, as they put it -- must join the hyena tribe. She opts for adoption. And then comes the funeral which has complications.
Afterward, there is meeting someone who knows how Digger can get home, but won't tell her; guilt tripping; tea and sympathy and backstory; and a decision.
It takes a bit in the opening for the hyenas' purposes to come clear but -- to honor the dead, Digger -- or Little Mother of Earthquakes, as they put it -- must join the hyena tribe. She opts for adoption. And then comes the funeral which has complications.
Afterward, there is meeting someone who knows how Digger can get home, but won't tell her; guilt tripping; tea and sympathy and backstory; and a decision.
September 4, 2017
Oh, that was painful. The real hero of this volume isn't Digger at all, though she's having a rough time of it what with having to swallow liver in a hyena death ritual - and explain herself afterwards to the hag while being dosed with purgatives vile (herbivores are not constructed to digest meat). No, the hero here is Ed. Poor Ed, and I won't comment on why he was exiled as that gets too close to spoilers, but it is gut-wrenching and compromising in so many different ways, and it gives this series an emotional punch that hasn't been there in the previous volumes.
May 14, 2022
I'm more and more impressed by the art work. I've commented before on Vermont's use of black space. I don't know the artistic term for it, but a large percentage of the panels are black, and the figures outlines are not sketched in but emerge from the black. Check it out for yourself!
August 25, 2024
Another fine volume. In case it isn't clear, this book is not for children. In this volume Digger eats meat, Ed tells his tale of woe. It is not always clear if this series is going to fully make sense, but it does seem to be heading in a direction. And I will be sad to see this end. 4.5 of 5
April 15, 2019
Just keeps getting better.
October 1, 2019
😢Very sad and beautiful
November 13, 2020
Just stomping my way through the comics like no-one's business 🐁
Digger, Ed and Shadowchild are vividly painted characters, as are many of the ensemble cast, boosted by the little guest-starring lizards & snails.
Digger, Ed and Shadowchild are vividly painted characters, as are many of the ensemble cast, boosted by the little guest-starring lizards & snails.
April 13, 2014
Another excellent entry in the Digger series. In the first chapter, Digger bonds with the hyena tribe who've been dogging her footsteps; in the second, she reluctantly ends up passing up a chance to go home in order to help a troubled priest complete a mission for Ganes. I love these.
October 9, 2011
Read online.
December 28, 2011
A really fun, quick read with a lot of tongue-in-cheek humor. The art style compliments the quirky cast of characters well; who'd have thought a story about a wombat would be so enjoyable?
December 15, 2012
a wombat becomes a hyena without needing any unpleasant transmogrification (though her stomach doesn't love it anyway.) also, a possible route home and an even more possible quest.
March 7, 2013
Have I mentioned that I adore Boneclaw Mother? Because I do.
Seriously, this is one of the best series around and you should be reading it.
Seriously, this is one of the best series around and you should be reading it.
March 30, 2013
We (finally) find out why Ed has been exiled and the story is well worth the wait. Digger is also tested in new and awful ways, including being the only vegetarian at a hyena funeral.
November 19, 2015
What if a wombat appears after digging in front of a statue which ask him for some kind of favour? The best plot I read in several years...
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews