The Tale of One Bad Rat by Bryan Talbot

The Tale of One Bad Rat by Bryan Talbot 1995 136 pgs. 4.5/5 The Tale of One Bad Rat is a touching and painful story of a young girl named Helen who has been sexually abused by her father. After years of abuse, Helen has run away from home taking with her only her beloved Beatrix Potter books and her pet rat. The memories of the molestation continue to haunt her and deny her the willingness to become close to anyone else. She meets strangers throughout the way and while some are more welcoming than others, she has a hard time growing close to anyone anymore. Aside from her pet rat. Bryan Talbot tackles this issue perfectly through the graphic novel format. Talbot has a real gift when it comes to telling unconventional tales in the format of the graphic novel. With Alice in Sunderland, he gave a history of Lewis Carroll and with this amazing, but shorter, graphic novel, he's expertly tackled the subject of sexual abuse and it's long term effects on children. Helen shows all the signs of past abuse...she blames herself for what happened, diminishes herself as a person, cuts her hair off to make herself less attractive to men, and shies away from any form of love, even genuine love that has no alterior motives. This book is a gift to humanity. I think that it would be so well received in the hands of someone who's lived through abuse of any kind. He tackles the issue in an honest way yet in a very approachable manner. Another one that I wish I didn't have to give back to the library... Other Views and Opinions: Books of Mee Things Mean A Lot The Hidden Side of a Leaf