The Grot

In his follow-up to the critically acclaimed Blue, Pat Grant confirms his reputation as "the Australian Mark Twain" (Craig Thompson, author of Blankets and Habibi) with a page-turning graphic novel about economic inequality and exploitation, desperation, and the gambler's addiction to hope even in the worst of times. The Australian landscape is traumatized. Plague is rampant. Machines only work as well as the poor sod pedaling them. Things are hotter and wetter than they used to be, giving the whole place the vibe of a sweaty armpit. Lippy and Penn are holding to set up shop in a grimy boom-town, but they've got to stay frosty, because it's teeming with hustlers, swindlers, and scoundrels. It's the sort of place where a lucky moron could make an outrageous fortune in an afternoon and lose it all before bedtime. The sort of place where two enterprising teenagers could really make something of themselves. Or so they say. "Wholly original, enormously entertaining... a new talent that we may be enjoying for decades to come."—The AV Club