Her Bark and Her Bite

This debut graphic novel is like a New Yorker cover spun out to a full-length story. Rebecca first glimpses Victor at an art opening, standing on a chair, wearing a loud Hawaiian shirt, sunglasses, and a cape and merrily pronouncing that art is dead. Victor is the eye of his own social hurricane, while Rebecca is new to the city. She wants to paint but has no studio, wants to go out at night but has no friends. Their third chance meeting leads to a long night of dancing and drinking, a whirlwind romance, new contacts and cohabitation. Briefly, everything is perfect. But when Victor is given a new puppy, all other fleeting preoccupations are dropped, and Rebecca begins to see Victor’s true obsessions. Albon uses loose and energetic colored pencil, in a palette heavy in yellows and blues, to capture the social and emotional whirl of this airy tale. (Apr.)