Through the Woods

Product Information

Discover a terrifying world in the woods in this collection of five hauntingly beautiful graphic stories that includes the online webcomic sensation "His Face All Red," in print for the first time.

Parting-Words Regret: Mary's denial over their father's death and stubborn refusal to leave for the neighbor's house sparks a heated argument between her and Beth that lasts into the night, and they go to bed angry with each other. Two days later, Mary dies, leaving behind Beth and Hannah. Hannah doesn't take it well and cries until the afternoon, while Beth silently braids her hair with a regretful look on her face. In "The Nesting Place", Bell is explicitly warned against the woods near the house of Clarence and Rebecca. She ignores the warnings and ends up discovering a cave pool where "Rebecca" has become a host for a monster that kills and inhabits people's bodies, and has been looking for other victims for her children to inhabit.Glamour Failure: It's implied something is off with Rebecca when their teeth seem to undulate while eating at dinner. We eventually learn this is because the worms wearing her skin have replaced all the flesh beneath it, and the teeth are suspended in place by individual worms. Bell learns that they got to her brother when his teeth do the same.

Mundanger: All of the stories have at least elements of the supernatural and/or monsters that are dangerous, but it's often much more mundane dangers that are less focused upon that are actually the biggest threats to the protagonists. Through the Woods is a triumph, it's gorgeous, soft and bright, and it is dark, earthy and spin-chilling. [Emily Carroll] should be recognized as one of the best graphic storytellers out there."--Kate Beaton, author of HARK! A VAGRANT Only Sane Man: The middle sister, Beth. The older sister, Mary, is in denial about their father when he fails to return and refuses to leave their house, only to subsequently fall under the spell of the man with the wide hat and the big smile. The little sister, Hannah, is just a poor kid who doesn't know what's going on. This book is a collection of five gothic horror scary stories beautifully illustrated. Each of them in one way or another is about the horrors that exist inside of a person, and the horrors we cannot see that are lurking for us in the dark whether literally or figuratively.

Table of Contents

Disappeared Dad: Justified. The father of the the three girls died from the extreme cold after going out hunting for food in the woods. Humanoid Abomination: The man who haunts the three girls is described with minimal detail, his only traits being his wide-brimmed hat and his toothy smile, and only his arms are ever seen in the art. However, when Beth finally sees him she says that you can tell with only a glance at him that he isn't a man. The ending implies that he's actually The Grim Reaper (though a pretty nice one) who has come to usher the girls into the afterlife after they all die during a harsh snowstorm. Talking the Monster to Death: Bell saves herself from the monster by convincing it that its plan to use Bell as a host and move to the city, where there would be many more hosts available, would end terribly for its children. Affectionate Gesture to the Head: The man with the wide-brimmed hat gently plants his hat on Beth's head when they finally meet in-person at the neighbor's house, after which he lets her in. It's likely symbolic of Beth accepting her own death and reuniting with her family, if one interprets the man as The Grim Reaper. Don't Fear the Reaper: The man with the wide-brimmed hat and a toothy smile is implied to be The Grim Reaper, but he's a completely non-malicious entity who only seeks to usher in the souls of those who died during an extreme snowstorm, including the three girls. Mary and Hannah are happy when they speak of him and even wait for him when he approaches, and in one panel Hannah is seen hugging the man like old friends. Beth is afraid of him at first. But once they meet at the neighbor's house, Beth comes to accept the man when he kindly plants his hat on her head and lets her enter the house, where she reunites with her dead parents and sisters.

Parental Abandonment: Justified. The three girls' mother died before the story started, and their father soon follows by going out hunting in the woods during a snowstorm. I wish it had worked for me, but it just didn’t. Not to say that it won’t work for you, this is a very beloved story collection. Give it a try! I am in the minority here when it comes to this story collection, let me know what you think! Break the Cutie: Being a young child, Hannah really doesn't take Mary disappearing/dying the night before very well and spends much of her time wailing. Beth notes there's no place in the house that would allow her to escape her sister's crying. A Lady’s Hands are Cold, my second favorite of the five stories, is a Bluebeard type of retelling, with the ghost of a murdered woman wailing for vengeance from within the walls of her home. The most effective thing about this story, severed body parts aside, is the fact that the eponymous lady with the cold hands is neither fair nor understanding of her husband’s new wife and her plight. Rather, this ghost is cruel, filled with rage, and will have her revenge. (For Gaiman fans, of all the collected stories in the book, this is easily the most Gaiman-esque.) During "In Conclusion", the young girl confidently ignores the dangers of the woods and makes it to her mother's house without incident. Actually seeing just how dangerous the woods can be, however, seems to deeply traumatize and terrify her.The whole book is magnificently executed... is all dextrous and varied and absolutely masterful... Carroll...lures us in only to do terrible, wonderful things to our heads and hearts."--Amal El-Mohtar "NPR "

Heterosexual Life-Partners: Janna and Yvonne. Yvonne says Janna is like a sister to her or more, since she doesn't get along with her own sister as well as she does with her friend.

Hidden Eyes: As she flees the wrath of the first wife's corpse, the second wife is now drawn with her eyes being replaced with creepy eyeshadows. This, combining with her previously immaculate hair coming undone, represents her trauma over her near-death experience and learning of the gruesome history between her husband and his first wife. Dying Candle: The "ghost" haunting Janna appears to kill her just as candle that Yvonne was carrying goes out. The Ghost: The girls' neighbor is only alluded to by Beth and her family, with their father instructing them to go to their neighbor's house if he doesn't return from his hunting trip. Beth hopes that the neighbor will grant her and her sisters safety from the snowstorm. But after losing both of her sisters, Beth travels to the neighbor's house alone and discovers, through the presence of the man with the wide-brimmed hat, that their neighbor has already died. E mily Carroll's Through the Woods mesmerizes and inspires; a Victorian gothic playground haunted by Mary Shelley & Edward Gorey, awash in the dream-like haze of Odilon Redon, and composed with the poetic elegance of Ukiyo-e. I loved it."--Craig Thompson, three-time Eisner Award-winning author of BLANKETS A fantastically dark and timeless graphic debut, for fans of Grimm Tales, The Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy and the works of Neil Gaiman