Audrey Niffenegger, best known for her novel The Time Traveler's Wife, has created some very interesting books lately. In 2010, The Night Bookmobile was released, I came across it in the library and was very curious as I recognized the author's name. The book was slight, only 40 or so pages, and was a picture book. Not a graphic novel or comic book, but a book similar to a child's picture book. After reading The Night Bookmobile, I closed the book, reopened and started over. I really wasn't sure how I felt about the book, what was the message here, was there a message (if any reader's figure this one out, e-mail me).
Raven Girl produced a similar reaction. At a staggering 80 pages in length, Niffenegger produced another picture book that was captivating. We begin the story with a post man making an unusual delivery, specifically to a raven's nest. He finds that one of the ravens has fell from the nest, so he picks her up and takes her home. The man has a gentle soul and cares deeply for the raven, who in turn becomes bonded to the post man. So they get married. Yep.
Shortly after the wedding, the strange pair find that they are bringing a life into the world. The Raven Girl was hatched from an egg. Her exterior is quite normal. However, her speech and soul are fully raven. The remainder of the story is following the Raven Girl while she finds a way to make peace with her dual nature.
This book was puzzling to say the least. Every conventional arc in fairy tales/fables are struck down. It may not simply be that I enjoy this story, I enjoy that someone like Audrey Niffenegger is in the world to tell these stories.
In my opinion, if you don't mind a strange tale, this is worth the read. I was able to borrow this from my local library. I probably wouldn't be compelled to purchase the book.
