Griffin & Sabine
Sabine's Notebook
The Golden Mean

Nick Bantock

Griffin receives a postcard from Sabine praising his art work. He lives in London. He designs and sells postcards. Sabine lives on an obscure island in the South Pacific. Griffon responds to this unknown woman. She knows a detail about the production of a card that wasn't in the final print. How could she? Who is she? When had they met that she would know that?

Sabine has been seeing his work in her head for years but didn't know whose it was until she saw an article about him. She responds with another artistic post card and starts a correspondence that seems surreal - and perhaps it is. She designs stamps. He designs postcards and stationery. Both have stylistic, modernistic artwork. They share a correspondence that quickly attracts them to each other. But can they meet?

Nick Bantock has created a marvelous fantasy in these three books of abstract art, starting with Griffin & Sabine. The story is told through the postcards and letters. These are interactive books, with the letters in creative envelopes that are pulled out to be read. Each postcard and envelope is different. In Sabine's Notebook, there are also drawings around Sabine's correspondence to Griffin.

The artwork starts light and whimsical. As Griffin's depression becomes apparent, his artwork becomes darker, moodier. Sabine's art also gets darker, but is more hopeful. When he asks for her picture, she sends a stylized drawing of herself rather than a photograph. Has Griffin made Sabine up? When he leaves for a trip, the postcards are letters are found attached to his ceiling. The first two books are the two getting to know each other and learning how special the other is (if there really is an other). The final book, The Golden Mean, has Griffin and Sabine trying to find and meet each other.

An art lover will love these books. The pictures all have appeals on different levels. I'll admit, "The Blind Leading the Blind" in Griffin & Sabine is the most disturbing. As his depression worsens the cards get darker and more intricate, but aren't as powerful as that one. Nick Bantock has used color effectively in his illustrations.

The structure of the books is also fascinating. They're all short books, more art than story. There is a postcard or envelope on the right hand page, then the contents on the flip side. The response cover is then on the next right hand page with the contents on the flip side. The drawings are beautiful, busy, disturbing, calming, odd mixtures, and all the other things that go into moving the human soul with this type of media. The story is mystical and compelling.

Although the books were published separately back in the 1990's, I recommend you read all three together. The story is short and easy in each, and feeds into the next. Examining the postcards and envelopes are what slow the reader down. They're worth checking. Take your time with them. Then I recommend putting them down for a while and re-reading (I haven't yet). There's too much to absorb in one reading.

I haven't seen a book like these three before, even though I have read the occasional interactive book. These were lent to me by a friend. I'm not sure they'd do well in a public library unless the library has a way to secure the letters in the envelopes in the books. Even then, the letters have to be readable. Reading about Griffin and Sabine was an exceptional experience for me.