Indicative of Montreal native Castrée’s rising popularity in Europe this German book is not a reprint but a wholly original “only available in Europe” production. But don’t worry, most of Castrée’s ethereal comics are silent and can be read by anyone, and I’m sure you can order it through the web. Castrée has been busy lately from her new home in Victoria, doing illustrations and covers for magazines such as Saturday Night and Matrix in Canada but most of her work can be seen in Europe. This book is a completely oblique narrative about a group of robots who kill birds. One particularly sensitive robot gets drunk on the assembly line and begins to sing the bird’s song. The robot then shifts into the jungle where he weeps and imitates a monkey. Interspersed into the sparse but poetic story is the dreamlike wrestling match between a boy and girl. The girl ends up in the zoo with the monkey. As with all of Castrée’s narratives the description does not do justice to the drawing technique. Her rosy cheeked, round-headed characters are cutely disturbed within organic flowing backgrounds. I am a big fan of all her work and feel lucky to have gotten my hands on such a rare gem. (Andy Brown)
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