In Oh the Moon: Stories from the Tortured Mind of Charlyne Yi, musician, comedian and writer Charlyne Yi has written and illustrated a delightful set of interconnected allegorical tales that is anything but tortured. Yi is best known for her supporting roles in films like Knocked Up and This Is 40, and Oh the Moon proves that the magic she imbues into her comedy routines becomes just as addictive on paper as in person.
In "Forgive Me," the opening story, the world's tiniest boy meets and defends the world's largest boy against an angry mob of villagers who see any differences from the norm as threatening. The drawings in this story are childlike and simple, but the narrative is powerful and symbolic. "Particles" unfolds as a Genesis-like parable in which a "runaway" particle returns to its star of origin after documenting the rise and fall of civilizations. In "Strange Love," the alcoholic Leonard meets the pregnant Marie and spends the night talking about relationships and what it means to love even in the face of heartbreak. Besides "She's All Legs" (a bizarre and strangely triumphant story about a misfit woman with just head and legs who battles the devil alongside an Elvis-impersonator to reclaim a lost soul), "Strange Love" represents the most realized vision of love and loss for Yi. Her increasingly complex drawings become a visual map in which to view the budding arsenal of emotions.
With Oh the Moon, Yi proves herself to be a gifted storyteller, unafraid to explore forbidden areas with tenderness and an open heart. --Nancy Powell, freelance writer and technical consultant