Above and Below

    (Drawn and Quarterly, 2004)
™ and © Drawn and Quarterly

James Strum, author of The Golem’s Mighty Swing, now brings us two more stories of early America. Strum’s bold black and white art style goes well with his highly researched stories and storytelling style.

The American frontier was filling up fast and many people, spread out far and wide in the wilderness, came to know God by hearing the preached Word and feeling the presence of the Holy Spirit. “The Revival” is set during one of the greatest gatherings of born–again Christians in a good old fashioned camp meeting near Cane Ridge, Kentucky during 1801. Many folks came expecting a miracle to these meetings and many were not disappointed. All learned that God does answer prayer, but sometimes the answer isn’t what we want it to be.

“Hundreds of Feet Below Daylight” tells of the life and death of the town of Solomon’s Gulch, Idaho. Once a prosperous gold mining town begun by Jeremiah Harper and Ned Weeks, it continued on even after the mine died out. But neither Jem’s death nor frugal Chinese miners could stop Ned’s need for control of the mine and those few hardy souls remaining.

— Ron Black
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