Mezolith

Mezolith is a set of stories set in a stone age tribe and I love it. It’s a graphic novel with amazing art by Adam Brockbank, the guy who has was concept and story artist for Rogue One, X-men and all eight Harry Potter films. I’ll be honest I wouldn’t have bought this if I’d seen it on a shelf. So why did I?

Imagine being inside an earth house, a huge structure with raked seating positioned round a fire.

Outside the night is cold, people are wrapped up in blankets sitting on hard uncomfortable benches. There’s the scent of herbs and woodsmoke, and the smell of incense as the storyteller marches round getting us in the mood for a night of myth and legends. The night was cold and the stories of Gilgamesh are some of the oldest myths known in the west dating back at least 4000 years. Ben Haggarty is a brilliant story teller, and had an amazing night, just as I was about to leave I caught a glimpse of this book.

It’s the tale of a young lad Poika growing up in a Neolithic tribe. Mezolith has a lot of stories being told, which reminds me of Gaiman’s Inn at the World’s End, and more classically Chaucer’s tale. There’s a technical name for stories within stories which I’m hoping someone will help me remember, (I never can). Anyhow, this is the first of 2 volumes and it has six distinct stories:

• Bull Hunt
• Urga
• Boundaries
• Swan Bride
• Raven
• Hands

This might be a coming of age story for Poika, but it’s also about family, tribes, your past and love. It might be stone age but it’s a rich world with strange creatures, dreams and a shamanic witch Korppi.

Velho who is disturbing and dangerous as all good wise people are. Stone age it might be but it still feels recognizable and human. I think that Poika will eventually become a shaman witch, but we’ll have to keep reading to find out.

So why did I love this? I picked up the book because of Ben’s fantastic storytelling but I stayed for Adam’s amazing art, the very believable characters and deeply set myths. Go buy a copy.

Vol 2 of Mezolith is now in two volumes published by the fantastic Archaia (who published Mouse Guard) you can buy it here, and here

What stories have surprised you or really inspired you recently?