cover image Little Teeth

Little Teeth

Rory Frances and Jae Bearhat. Czap, $21.99 trade paper (200p) ISBN 978-0-9906874-6-7

With its funny and anthropomorphized but eminently real characters, led by a fox girl and a wolf boy, this print edition of the highly successful webcomic impresses with its series of stories about a queer community in the fictional Pacific Northwest town of Woodlands. Frances (Boys Are Slapstick) and Bearhat (ZEAL) examine the friendships, relationships, arguments, and breakups that are part of the exciting, difficult, and sometimes heartbreaking process of finding love and losing it. The animal characters lend the story a particular poignancy, encouraging readers to consider the complex manner in which Frances and Bearhat tackle issues of identity. The simple palette of black-and-white illustrations splashed with peach pink allows readers to focus more intently on the interconnected characters and their interactions, while the expressive linework shows the range of emotions they experience. The book also comes complete with a thoughtful photographic collage spread and one of the most tone-perfect final pages in any story about relationships. The result is a story that has a warmth, humor, and genuine insight into the way human beings look for—and are sometimes lucky enough to find—friendship, companionship, and love. (Apr.)