It Never Happened Again
Sam Alden has compiled two gorgeous, nearly wordless stories in It Never Happened Again. “Hawaii 1997” tells the story of a mystical, moonlit encounter on a beach between a young boy named Sam and an unnamed young girl who leaves him with the enigmatic message, “you will spend the rest of your life trying to find me.” “Anime” is the tale of a young American woman, enamoured with a Japanese anime, who feels she just doesn’t fit in. She takes a trip to Japan, but finds it’s not quite what she expected. Alden’s pencil drawings play beautifully with light and shadow. Each page uses just the right amount of detail, and no more, to accurately portray emotion. His loose, sketchy style renders the soul of each scene more perfectly than a finely detailed drawing would, whether it’s Sam chasing the mystery girl down the beach or Kiki crying in front of her laptop.
Reviewed by
Allyce Amidon
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. No fee was paid by the publisher for this review. Foreword Reviews only recommends books that we love. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
