The Mysteries

Like many, I preordered this book unsure what to expect, but hoping to be delighted. When it arrived, it took less than a minute to read and two-thirds of the way through I began laughing when I realized where it was going. I continued laughing as I recommended it to friends as a simple, bleak, and funny bedtime story for adults. In the days since, I've continued to think about the story and how it is told. I'm struck by the fact that this little book is really all that we know, and will likely ever know, of the human story. Millions of years from now, if one were to summarize our experience on Earth, it would be distilled this way as many obituaries cut to the essence. As I continue to think about the book, I'm amazed by how much it hits on. Why we tell stories. What we are looking for. What we've become detached from over time. How much we think we know. How much we don't. And never will or could. And in all of that, the unknown, unspoken, unseen is a thing to crack instead of a wonder to accept. An answer to conquer instead of a sense of meaning to be faced with humility. That all may seem like a reach. I certainly don't know. However, Watterson has proved himself a master of distilling philosophical musings to a few frames in a comic strip. I think this seemingly simple book, and it's menacing fairy-tale artwork, will provide much to ponder as I revisit over the years.

Of course it’s not Calvin and Hobbes, that has already been done over 30 years ago. This is “The Mysteries”. Waterson’s and Kascht‘s collaboration has resulted in a wholly unique art form. To truly appreciate this monumental achievement, do yourself a favor and watch “Collaborating on The Mysteries – Bill Waterson and John Kascht” on YouTube. Is this book brief as in the number of pages? Yes, but not brief in content. Can one read this book in 10 minutes? Yes, but it was surely not the author’s intent for this to be a quick read. Instead, contemplate each page and get lost in the artwork for some time. I also recommend several helpings! The artwork is a departure from what each artist is famous for which is obviously Waterson’s comic strip, and John Kascht is known for his watercolor caricature paintings. Kascht’s contributions are not paintings, they are actually clay and mixed media sculptures that have been photographed! And they are spectacular. Waterson’s writing style here reflects his sparse visual offerings as the viewer and reader must use their own imagination to fill in the gaps. This leaves the story open to many possible interpretations.

There's no way that anything could possibly live up to people's hopes when you're talking about Bill Watterson's first published work since the end of Calvin and Hobbes 28 years ago, but even by those standards, The Mysteries is a bit of a curveball - and yet, it's one where the expectations are overshadowing how interesting of a book it is. A collaboration between Watterson and caricaturist John Kascht, The Mysteries is an allegorical fable for adults; for all of its picture book trappings, this is undeniably a strange work at times, with unusual composition (my daughter was quite unsettled by the unnatural faces being up close to the frame in one image) and a haunting, odd style that leaves far behind the rich, colorful imagination of Calvin. Instead, you get a stark, gothic black and white, one filled with a sense of the grotesque - but just as Calvin would sometimes set you up in one kind of frame or style only to shift into another, The Mysteries changes into a whole different book as it progresses, changing from a story about a kingdom haunted by mysterious entities into...well, it feels weird to say that I don't want to spoil something you can read in a few minutes, but I still don't want to. Suffice to say that The Mysteries feels spiritually like a follow-up to Calvin - a story about the importance of seeing the wonder in the world, a cynical tale about what humans are doing to society and our planet, and a story that still finds beauty in its own way. It's an odd little tale, with haunting and unsettling art and a take that's undeniably downbeat...and yet, I think all of that makes it all the more interesting and compelling. Expectations are a difficult thing, but The Mysteries deserves to be judged on its own merits, not on what people wanted - and on its own merits, it's quite wonderful.

I feel like the book was attempting to teach a lesson to an audience whom wouldn't show up for this book in the first place, leaving the actual audience befuddled as of to what they just absorbed. Not above admitting I didn't get the message 100%, but also I was hoping the book would be longer, have more story, or more art. Also it would have probably been better if the book was coffee table book sized, so the art pages had more room to pop. I'm hoping it does well enough that Watterson does more new projects (and I'll definitely be looking into Kascht's body of work as well now), though I can't exactly call this one a hit. More like "getting back up to bat after a long hiatus" sort of thing. I mean, it has been almost two and a half decades since Watterson produced anything for the public to buy. Positives: The Art is fantastically weird. Feels like I'm looking at a mix of traditional art and clay sculptures. Inspired character design and backgrounds set the mood greatly. Negatives: Short, lack of story (more like any words used were just descriptors of an art piece in a gallery, more than a story), book physical size rather small and doesn't give the art room to impress. Confusing message (though this may be subjective, as I might just not be wise enough to fully grasp it yet without further discussion). I was expecting more. But what we got is interesting, at the least.

If you're looking for more Calvin and Hobbes, you'll likely be disappointed. This isn't an extension of that universe, nor does it claim to be. But, if you enjoy visually striking books with stories that also make you think, you may like this one. I went in with low expectations and was not disappointed. Would I have liked a longer story? Sure. But the promotional materials don't make the book out to be anything more than what it is - a fable for grown-ups, created in a much different style than the authors' prior works. The style of the book reminds me of "The Mysteries of Harris Burdick," by Chris Van Allsburg. That book presented the reader with compelling visuals and let them imagine for themself what the story and implications were. I loved that book as a kid and felt nostalgic reading Watterson and Kascht's "The Mysteries." Like others have noted, this book was a fast read, but I've already read it a second time. It's a book with subtle and not-so-subtle themes and questions worth reflecting on, many of which align with past interviews Bill Watterson has given on his views. Here's some that I noticed: Humans are naturally afraid of what they don't understand. Once they understand a given mystery, it's no longer necessarily something to fear. At the same time, as a species, we've risen from the dark ages to technological heights by solving mysteries of the universe. Things our ancestors would look at in wonder are now commonplace to us. This commonplaceness leads to a lack of awe at the uncovered mysteries underlying these discoveries. It also leads to complacency about further discoveries. Also, our cumulative discoveries have given us a false sense of security that everything is within our control. It isn't. Further, just because we uncover answers to mysteries, doesn't mean we'll act appropriately on the knowledge. There's plenty of information available on "better" living, but many of us don't follow it and don't care. Lastly, humanity is merely a blip in the span of time and the vastness of our ever-expanding universe. The mysteries were here before we existed, and they'll likely exist long after we're gone. This also raises the question of whether all of the noise and strife and fighting of our past, present, and future eras really matter in the scheme of things. Given our lack of cosmic significance are there better ways we could spend our brief span of existence? Lastly, art appreciation is subjective. I hope for Bill Watterson and John Kascht that the experience of creating this work was 5-stars. Neither one of them owes us anything, so I'm grateful they decided to share this with us. I hope they're encouraged to share more creative works with us in the future.

Poor demon-haunted human animals who are yet filled with hubris, succumbing to the lure of easy living, still a part of nature no matter how removed we think ourselves is a now cliched theme, going back to some of the earliest fables of humanity. That’s fine, there’s a reason this is a timeless idea! But we all know it and this book is simply a bland restatement of the cliche. It is a worthy theme to contemplate and even comforting for some of us to know none of it matters. In the meantime, while we wait to not matter, we would like to be entertained and this retelling ain’t it. The illustrations stirred a bit more interest for me, guessing at the techniques used to produce them (I haven’t watched the video referenced by another reviewer of the collaboration process, but will seek it out). The images are evocative, but, I feel, overworked. To make sure we know this is a “fable” tropes of ye olde fairytale are used, familiar to anyone who enjoys a Disney movie: timbered buildings, rough peasantry, the ridiculousness of the king conveyed by his short and rotund physique, the white-bearded wizard, etc. The illustrations add nothing to this oft-told tale. Again, there’s nothing wrong with cliches and tropes! This one in particular bears repeating! This book does not amplify nor expand the theme, unless it’s meant as a too clever example of the mindless devouring of the human animal as we all sit in our easy living homes with our preordered books made from razed deep dark forests that were fossil fuel transported to us for absolutely no good reason at all, not even for entertainment’s sake. Cute.

As a child Calvin & Hobbes was one of the only reads that grabbed me. It was lightheartedly approachable to my adolescence but also deep and moving. I didn't expect The Mysteries to be Calvin & Hobbes and I believe that would be unfair to assume. I suppose the dark monotone imagery and blurb about this being an adult fable made me think The Mysteries would be more mature and nuanced, or maybe cynical but with simmering beacon of hope. At the very least I figured there would be some thought provoking connective tissue to Bill Watterson's previous work. Maybe that connection is in there somewhere. I can't claim there is no relation with a single read. This book is short and will take a handful of minutes to thumb through. Here lies my biggest issue with The Mysteries. This is not much more than a children's book in format. Had this been the beginning of a larger story or something shadow dropped on a mysterious website my expectations would have been adequately tempered. I'm disappointed. The writing is simplistic with a glint of something more. The images are not my particular taste but do serve to add some visual context to my aphantasia riddled brain. The Mysteries is nothing very deep or wide spreading. Still, I hope this is not the last of Bill Watterson that we see.

Artful in every detail, The Mysteries is both a timeless and timely parable. A little book with a big message. It invites us to look within. This is a cautionary tale of few words. The text is concise and accessible. I would think that anyone over the age of eight would find it easy going. It seems to me to be an enjoyable and worthwhile read for children and adults. The format serves well the telling. Against a stark, white background each line of the unfolding story appears in the center of its own left-hand page. On the right, a full page image illuminates the words, like pictorial adjectives and adverbs. The largely white pages to the left juxtaposed with the richly detailed full page pictures on the right is striking. Those who give these wonderful images no more than a cursory glance will be missing much. Cast in black & white and shades between, the pictures are on the dark side, as befits the fable, but they’re certainly not dreary! I found myself chuckling at the outlandish characters who inhabit this land, at once far off and close by. With their hyperbolic heads—the facial expressions alone are worth the price of admission—and their peculiarly proportioned bodies, along with their various and sundry personal effects, the figures are fantastical and filled with humor. I loved The Mysteries and it has left me thinking, not necessarily of things I’ve not thought of before, but thinking, nonetheless. The Mysteries are not so mysterious, after all.

Nice book, I have been expecting this one for a long time. The page layout could be better, there's little text in the book, do it could be arranged better. The paper quality is high but unfortunately it is glossy which is not so ideal for a book with lots of images.

Il grande Bill Watterson, dopo molti anni, torna a pubblicare un nuovo volume inedito. Watterson, nato a Washington D.C. nel 1958, pubblica nel 1985 la sua prima vignetta dedicata a “Calvin and Hobbes” che in breve tempo diventa una delle strisce satiriche più famose degli Stati Uniti, pubblicate sui più grandi quotidiani del Paese. Nonostante il clamoroso e duraturo successo, il 31 dicembre del 1995 Watterson decide di smettere di pubblicarle, per dedicarsi ad altro, soprattutto alla pittura. Nel corso degli anni le sue vignette vengono ripubblicate in varie raccolte che riscuotono sempre un grande successo, non solo negli Stati Uniti. Ma dopo diversi decenni Watterson pubblica una nuova storia inedita, realizzata nelle immagini assieme al caricaturista e illustratore statunitense John Kascht. Ci troviamo così in un lontano e cupo regno che è afflitto da un grande e oscuro male: i misteriosi, esseri che qualcuno crede sovrannaturali, dalla forza inaudita e capaci di ogni terribile e infame azione. Nel corso del tempo non sono stati pochi gli artisti che hanno ritratto le gesta terrificanti dei misteriosi, cosa che non ha fatto altro che aumentare il terrore in tutta la nazione. Il Re così raduna i suoi migliori cavalieri per catturare i misteriosi e scoprirne i loro segreti per sconfiggerli. Ma, inesorabilmente, di tutti i cavalieri si perdono le tracce, fino a quando uno, ferito ed esausto, torna al castello con una gabbia che racchiude un misterioso… Deliziosa e godibilissima favola per adulti densa della grande ironia tipica di Watterson che, unita alle immagini grottesche e surreali realizzate dallo stesso autore insieme a Kascht, ci regalano un piccolo viaggio memorabile e divertente.

...something completely different. Is it what I expected it to be, when I preordered it at the first announcement? No, absolutely not. Is it short? Text- and pagewise: Yes. But the impressions this book might leave in your mind are deep and last long. Going through it is like having a strange dream. I don't know, how often I read this book now, but it still gives me the same feelings I had at the first time. For me, it's an absolutely awesome piece of art. A big "Thank you!" from the bottom of my heart to Bill Watterson and John Kascht!

First off, this is a short read. A very short read. If you are picking this up expecting a novel, or something to chew through over a few hours, you will be disappointed. What this is, is a short story that you can read through quite quickly, that can leave you thinking for quite a while. The story itself came off as very cynical towards humanity, and hit much the same as some of the better Calvin and Hobbes Sunday strips. The art is excellent, and very detailed, and worth picking the book up for just to look at. In short: short read, great art, cynical take on humanity, I loved it.

Excelente