Sounds of Your Name

by Nate Powell (illustrator)

Sounds of Your Name collects Nate Powell's zines and comics, including his first two books, Tiny Giants and It Disappears (published by Soft Skull). His intricate, sometimes chaotic drawings examine the complications that come with passing from childhood into adulthood. Renderings of friends and family scattered across the country paint tender, sweaty, and memory-soaked portraits of small town life and beyond. Nate addresses the uneasy existential inquiries that bloom in youth and invokes all the elements of great coming of age novels with only a few dozen words.He captures that most elusive thing that disappears with wonder. If most people spend their entire lives longing for past episodes from their youth, then Nate addresses that longing, covering his pages with lost wonder, and offering it, wholeheartedly, back to us. His work offers the hope we might never grow old, and that even if we do, our dreams are always within reach. The power of his work is a reminder of the persistance of joy.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics, Comix, Comic Book

322 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Nathan Lee Powell is an American cartoonist and musician.
Born in 1978 in Little Rock, Arkansas, Nate spent his childhood in different parts of the country, as his family moved around following his father's duties as an Air Force officer.
Powell became active in the punk rock scene since his teen age. He ended up performing in several bands over the years, and even owing a DIY punk record label. At the same time, he developed an interest in visual arts and majored in Cartooning at the School of Visual Arts (SVA) in New York.
For about ten years Powell worked as a care giver for adult with developmental disabilities, while also drawing comic books. His major break came with the graphic novel Swallow Me Whole, which won the Ignatz Award for Outstanding Debut and Outstanding Artist in 2008, as well as the Eisner Award for Best Original Graphic Novel in 2009. Between 2013 and 2016 Nate Powell released what remains his most famous work, the three volumes of March, a comic biography of civil rights activist and Congressman John Lewis.

Reviews

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of stuff from Powell from the late nineties and early century. From the author of Swallow Me Whole and Any Empire and March, Book One, these are smaller experiments, and his first two short books, all black and white, teen angst, punk, small town, early love anguish, short works, a glimpse into emotions and states of mind… not entirely satisfying, but I can see they would be a thrown rope to the lost and alienated teen who sees him/herself here. There's a sad short piece in tribute to his developmentally disabled brother, and there are glimpses of themes connected to the adults with disabilities he has worked with for years.

[angelofmine1974]

DNF No stars

I was so confused by stories I had no idea what they were about and couldn't finish it.

For the rest of my review, visit my Vlog at:

https://youtube.com/shorts/xHv0MimXTH...

Enjoy!

[Printable Tire · Rating 3 out of 5]

The words are ham-fisted teenage Shakespearean angst, which I do believe has its place but also leads to much confusion. The art can be very beautiful and nostalgic and sentimental when it's not muddled and sketchy and distracting. All in all, it is difficult to know what exactly is going on, although I think the author does a great job of capturing some sort of... youthful dreamlike essence. Sometimes. Other times he's just outright lame.

(What's weird is I probably know people who know this guy! Providence isn't the biggest place after all and he did live here and now hates it and the people in Providence probably hate him. Oh well.)

[J. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Powell is a phenomenally good artist--a perfect marriage of American and Japanese styles. The panels hardly need words to tell powerful stories of angst and separation. The problem comes in the fact that there often are words and, unfortunately, not very good ones. Try to be forgiving because this book includes some very early work, script-wise, and try to remember that with art this good, almost no scripting would be able to live up.

[Alison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Again, beautiful Nate Powell, but this one was a compilation of smaller projects and incredibly scattered (I'm a bit biased because I expected a graphic novel). It's a worthwhile read to watch his drawing evolve-- from amazing to more amazing!

[Greg · Rating 2 out of 5]

I struggled with this one and found it hard to follow. The art was decent but sometimes unclear. I think it was all just too a little abstract for me. There were a few entries that worked for me and I did really appreciate his depictions of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and how his personal experiences with this clearly influenced his work. Overall, just not my style.

[Chelsea Martinez · Rating 2 out of 5]

There was a point in which a character refers to an Indian Summer song as years old that pulled me out of the general lonely teenager cloud I was floating on reading this book; it simultaneously crystallized the mood but also was so concrete and time-specific that I fell out of the sky.

[Ani Martinez · Rating 1 out of 5]

Walkie Talkie* Nineteen & Daylight were pretty good , but other than that I would've dnf'ed if I wasn't so curious to see what else I find. Imo I felt bored and sometimes the stories were muddled, but the art style wasn't too bad.

[Andy McCarthy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Inaccessible stories saved by excellent art

[HeavyReader · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wrote this review for Zine World #25.

I have to admit two things right upfront. First, I only started reading comics a couple of years ago. Second, I usually enjoy comics with words in nearly every panel since I don’t seem to have the attention span to follow a story just by looking at pictures. With those things in mind, I wasn’t sure I was qualified to review Nate Powells’ new collection, Sounds of Your Name. I had never seen any of Nate’s work before and didn’t really know what I was getting into.
I was first struck by how wonderful Nate’s art is. Even his early drawings are full of rich detail. It’s satisfying to simply flip through this book, stopping at random pages to spend long minutes looking at the pictures Nate has created. If I weren’t opposed to ripping apart books, I would clip images from this one to hang throughout my house and to send in letters to friends. But since this is a collection of nearly fourteen years of comics, it’s probably better to keep it together to be enjoyed as a whole.
Even while I appreciated the beauty of the art, I was more than a bit disappointed that many of the stories advance with a minimum of words. Even though I hunkered down and concentrated, half the time I only had a vague idea of what was going on. Nate’s comics are definitely as demanding as they are lovely.
This collection is a must-have for any fan of Nate Powell’s work. It collects his zines and comics, including his first two books, Tiny Giants and It Disappears, and includes material that has been out of print for years. For folks who are new to Nate’s comics, you’re in for a challenging treat.

[Jamais · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is what comic writers should aspire to. //Sounds of Your Name// is anthology from Nate Powell, and covers a wide variety of themes. The book is divided into short stories, longer stories, and covers. The short stories are fun quips and statements on the state of affairs, with some nice political commentary thrown in. The longer stories are some very nice storytelling, as Powell allows stories to grow at their own pace, and develops some nice themes. The covers are just some just nice icing on the cake.

This was a great trade to read through. Although there were some definite misfires, where the opinion bordered on the cliché and some of the surrealism was a little over the top, overall this a great book. There are some universal characters, people that change names but have the same basic character design; this adds to a number of different themes and allows him to develop those themes a little more than a single would normally let him. For those that like their slice of life comics with a little surrealism, this will definitely hit the spot.

As written by Jamais Jochim for http://www.portlandbookreview.com/

[Ciara · Rating 2 out of 5]

this is a graphic novel. therefore, you will be shocked to hear that i don't remember anything about it. well, i remember wishing it had a more linear storyline. it was all a little dreamy & kind of surreal or impressionistic. much as graphic elements slide off my brain & fade into nothingness before i can retain their basic components, i don't do well with weird fantastical surrealistic shit. so this is just a big illustrated blur to me. i got it free from microcosm when they used to send me free shit all the time in a futile effort to convince me to wholesale their published works from them. not going to happen. i will say that nate is a good artist. that's all i remember.

[Sara Willis · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the best drawn graphic compilations in my experience, which is admittedly short but none less interested. Nate Powell invokes a loneliness that can only link us through our disconnections. Although the "us" I speak of above is a counterculture still in the realm of American middle-class privilege his representations question such advantages. A work with drawings that speak on their own (pages without caption or written dialogue) seems a difficult find at this level of articulation with such a demand for emotive response. Nate Powell gets closer than many.

[Ryan Mishap · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've always enjoyed Powell's work, though some of the human oriented stories are ponderous. I don't mind the, forgive me, emo (in the best sense of the word not MTV crap) angles, the stories of people trying and failing to connect, but they are often difficult to follow.
What I do like are the shorts and the wonderful FRANKENBONES! This is the tale of a tough old street cat, Frank, and his young sidekick, Bones, who live in an apartment with a young punk woman. When she invites a less-than-polite band to stay, all hell breaks loose. Worth the price of the book, trust me.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

ah, nate powell...this collection of nate's comics from the past 10 years or so made me really nostalgic...two friends said, "i love his style but i usually don't know what's going on!" i understand that critique, but i also feel like nate is part of a certain school of zine-maker that speaks in a similar voice, on an endless search for truth. see 'scenery,' or 'america?' for examples. sad, nostalgic, good stuff

[Ryan Haupt · Rating 4 out of 5]

I adore basically everything Nate Powell has ever done, and this book is no exception. I like flipping through compilations of early work of people who have really grown in their style as artists. I wrote a brief blurb about this (and a few other) comics in my weekly column on iFanboy.

iFanboy: Can I just talk about some books I've liked lately?

[Beverly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nate Powell draws and imagines like a professional lucid dreamer.
His(human) characters are so achingly concerned with the ethical implications of every human act that their motivations are a little hard to divine sometimes. If you get stuck, think back to when you were a teenager. If you're still stuck, maybe you were never that aware.

[Idleprimate · Rating 3 out of 5]

while I gorged myself on his drawings, they are so rich and decadent, thich black strokes, and wavery little details, I have to admit I found the stories to obscure and too obtuse. I sort of appreciated this as a concept, yet was ultimately impatient and unsatisfied before I was even half way through.

[Shannon · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love Nate Powell's full-length graphic novels, and while it was interesting to see some of his early works, I nearly set this aside for good many times. There are moments of genius, but for the most part it feels as though you're sorting through the belongings of a deceased relative. Recommended for completionists only.

[E. Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nate Powell has an incredible talent for telling heart-wrenching tales with potent words and images. As a fellow graphic artist, this book helped me develop a better appreciation for creating an emotional setting with an intuitive use of ink and detail (or lack thereof).

[Katrin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the old little Walkie Talkie zine, when Powell just made these sweetly poetic, punky, captivating drawings and then photocopied them for the masses. Holding this glossy bound thing is exciting. It makes me nostalgic in a good way.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

nate powell is a genius.

[Elaina · Rating 5 out of 5]

In another life, I will come back as a teenager who thinks like Nate Powell. Brilliant.

[Q · Rating 4 out of 5]

love nate's work. glad to finally get my hands on this collection of his stuff. looking forward to reading some new stories and re-reading some old ones.

[Sarah Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful! Exciting! Even better w/the second printing (image-wise).

[Akiko · Rating 5 out of 5]

super old-school emo, abstract stories with really amazing ink work. it's like my favorite record, but is a comic instead.