Graphic Novel Review: Nao of Brown

We missed last week but we’re back with a vengeance and this weekend’s graphic novel pick is Nao of Brown, by Glyn Dillon, SelfMade Hero. This original graphic novel came out back in 2012 from independent British graphic novel house SelfMade Hero and is a 203 page tale about Nao, a half Japanese girl who lives in northwest London and her attempts to lead a normal life. She suffers from a form of OCD that involves a series of weird mental rituals and this does get her into trouble on occasion. She works in a trendy toyshop, selling Japanese figures, but she is looking for the man who will complement her. Dillon is an artistic genius: he brings the rather mundane world of northwest London to life with rare skill and pizazz and Nao is an intriguing and most importantly very human central protagonist. We see her grow throughout the story and there is a very definite arc in its two hundred pages. His work has a down to earth beauty that forces you to sit and stare at the pages he has created here. Scattered throughout are a series of short one or two page fantasy sections which act as a parallel to Nao’s life, drawn in a tighter style than the main story and Dillon shows his versatility as an artist. The Nao of Brown is a heartwarming, emotional tale about one girl’s search for identity and her place in the world, showcasing the power of comics, created by one of British comics’ finest practitioners.

JOEL MEADOWS

The Nao of Brown by Glyn Dillon (2012)