R.I.P. VIII Review: The Tell Tale Heart by Poe, Harper & Calero

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PUBLISHER

Stone Arch/ Capstone Books

Source

Library

 

When I signed up for Readers Imbibing Peril ( RIP VIII) I knew I was going to add  the works of Edgar Allan Poe to my reading list. As a horror fan Poe consistently has the power to provide the chills and thrills I crave in fiction. I was first introduce to Poe in middle school when I needed a poem for a school contest. My mother suggested her favorite poem Annabel Lee. In the library at school I found a huge volume of Poe’s poems and stories after the poem contest I returned to Poe’s literary worlds by reading The Raven, The Tell Tale Heart and a few other stories, yet I still haven’t read even half of Poe’s work.  When I found this graphic novel at the library I decided to read it as a companion to  the original story. So this will be a bit of a tandem review.

 

The Short Story

Revisiting this story I was really surprised how short it actually is ( less than 4 pages in my volume), yet the story is rich in atmosphere and character development. The manic energy in the narrators mind, drips off the page. There is coiled tension in the air as he stalks his prey night after night. When the actual murder is committed the reader begins to see the madness or narrator possesses flourish to full bloom. There is his cold recounting of dismembering   the body, the calm veneer of the murderer as he leads the police to the very scene of the crime smug, in his success and ability to deceive. That is until the sound begins, the thumping of the heart, louder and louder until he cracks under the madness of his actions and confesses.

 

The Graphic Novel

This is the first of four Capstone adaptations of Poe stories with different creative teams. I loved what Harper and Calero did with this adaption! There are wonderful shadings of blue and black throughout the story that really add to the atmosphere of the story. Harper takes the first person narrative as an opportunity to have the main character of the story really connect with the reader. He looks directly forward as he shares he confesses his process , his madness.

The art also succeeds in showing the creepiness of the victims blue eye. The art makes the eye as malevolent as Poe describes it in the story, its chilling !  This is a really great read and a faithful adaptation. I’ve already put the other three volumes in the series on my wish list.

This is my 2nd Short Story for R.I.P.VIII