REINCARNATION STORIES SC

Over the past three decades, Kim Deitch has been one of the most vital graphic novelists the medium has to offer, including classics such as The Boulevard of Broken Dreams, Alias the Cat and The Search for Smilin' Ed. His new graphic novel, Reincarnation Stories, feels like the apotheosis of his career, an ambitiously sprawling tour de force exploring the concept of reincarnation. When Deitch was four years old, he began having memories of a time when he wore glasses. The problem was, he had never actually worn glasses. Then, one day, young Deitch was sitting on a bench when an elderly man approached him, excited. 'Is it possible? Sid] SID PINCUS] Good God man] You've changed. You're smaller] And where are your glasses?' From there, Deitch weaves a dizzying maze of reincarnation stories that spans the past, present, and future of human history, with appearances by Frank Sinatra, monkey gods, a forgotten cowboy star of the silver screen, a tribe of Native Americans who have successfully resettled on the moon, and a parallel reality where Deitch is the creator of best selling lkids books featuring the superhero Young Avetar, who helps marginalised souls lead better lives and in his secret identity works as a carpenter. Did we mention Deitch's spiritual nemesis (and incarnation of Judas Iscariot), Waldo the cat? Deitch's storytelling mastery has never been more fully on display than this rich tapestry of a graphic novel, certain to be a staple on 2019-best-of year-end lists.