Small Things

Small Things written and illustrated by Mel Tregonning (Allen & Unwin)

HC RRP $29.99

ISBN: 9781742379791

Reviewed by Anastasia Gonis

This wordless graphic novel for all ages is one of the most emotional books I’ve ever read. Because the story depends on examining the illustrations/artwork carefully, the messages it carries are accentuated many times over.

The themes that make up the book are connected to loneliness: depression, loss, helplessness, anxiety, aloneness and fear. These collective feelings begin as small things that gradually evolve into a voracious appetite that consumes the sufferer.

The boy is sad. He feels like an outsider, and no-one includes him in their circle because he is quiet and withdrawn. An insidious darkness has crept over him. It is absorbed by his skin therefore he carries it with him everywhere. Others can’t see it. That makes it worse.

This darkness assumes many identities: exclusion, inferiority, sadness, fear, and heartache. These are bricks in a wall that builds around him. He feels parts of him are breaking away as he becomes more isolated and increasingly hopeless.

He has stopped thinking clearly. All he can hear is his emptiness so he prefers silence. An effort made to reach the boy can’t get past the darkness which is now a relentless force.

The boy feels like a failure. He has retreated from the world. His body is there but it’s just a shell. He feels cracked all over, feels he is falling apart, and tries to keep himself together.

He is approached by a family member who persists. She knows how the boy is feeling. She exposes her damaged self to the child – the cracks, the pieces missing. That is when he realizes he is not alone in the way he feels. Other family members assure him that it’s common for people to feel anxious, have imperfections and fears. He begins to recognize something of what he feels in almost everyone around him and feels comfort in the sameness. He finds the courage to reach out to others.

In 2008, Mel Tregonning began illustrating this graphic novel. In 2014, she took her own life. ‘Illustrator Shaun Tan completed the final three illustrations in Mel’s book in 2016’. My wish is that this review pays homage to Mel’s work.

Small Things

Small Things written and illustrated by Mel Tregonning (Allen and Unwin)

HB RRP $29.99

ISBN 9781742379791

Reviewed by Daniela Andrews

Small things turn into big things when they lack attention. Small things, small acts of kindness, can change a person’s outlook on life. Small things make an impact … and deep is the impact this book will make.

The protagonist in this story is a lonely, school-aged child, laden with social anxieties. These worries start to eat away at him, expressed chillingly in the pictures by tentacled, demonic creatures. His grades at school are affected, along with his relationship with his family. He has trouble sleeping at night. 

The story is told entirely in vivid, black and white illustrations so expressive that to accompany them with words would do them a disservice. The front cover, showing a close-up of a child’s face consumed with sadness, is stark and confrontational. It is impossible to walk past this title without reaching for it.

A comic-strip style is generally maintained for the illustrations inside. The dimensions of the boxes are pleasantly varied, as is the number of pictures on each page. This style perfectly sets the pace for the story. Readers are also treated to breathtaking double-paged spreads, allowing space to pause, reflect and empathise.

I was reminded of Anna Walker’s Mr Huff when I first started reading this, but in premise only. The illustrations in this book are extraordinarily lifelike and much darker, intended for an older age group – perhaps upper primary to early secondary.

This book is hauntingly beautiful in its own right, more so because the author took her own life before she was able to complete it. Her family collaborated with award-winning artist Shaun Tan to piece the story together, thus producing an insightful window into mental health awareness. Shaun has contributed the final three illustrations in the book. They show the character understanding that he is not alone in his worries, that such feelings are universal and that reaching out to people is the only way to keep the demons at a distance.