Brontë

The story of the Bronte family is both tragic and heroic, this is the message mournfully rendered in this black and white graphically illustrated portrayal of the family history by Italian cartoonist Manuela Santoni. Aimed for the teen-aged audience, the essence of the iconic story of the three Bronte sisters who due to their dire penurious situation could only survive on the incomes derived from their stories ascribed to male pen names. As women, these talented ladies were denied any professional recognition under the customs of their day. The author skillfully and succinctly casts the characters of the dissolute brother, aging father, and reflects on the varied personalities of Charlotte, Emily, and Anne. Patterned in comic book fashion, the gloomy drawings emphasize the emotions of the desperate women, while the inky drawings reflect doom and gloom. The story ends with the sisters finally recognized for their magical stories but the melancholy continues as they too early succumb to various illnesses. In this innovative graphic mode where pictures add feelings and awake empathy in place of words, this version should attract the youthful reader to delve more deeply into the Bronte story and perhaps even to add color to this book’s outlined characters.