Through the Habitrails

If you were expecting to read something happy or comical, then you’re looking in the wrong place. This graphic novel is humorous in the darkest way, and may appeal to some and horrify others.

Through the Habitrails starts with an incredibly long introduction, a 13 page introduction by Stephen R. Bisette. Admittedly, I wanted to get through this before starting the actual content, to see if it could offer me some background about Habitrails, give me something a little extra, but I got about three pages in before I grew impatient. I wanted to read Nicholson's words, so I skipped it and went back to read it after I had finished.

This graphic novel is bleak, incredibly so. The black and white illustrations only add to the melancholic journey you take whilst reading. However although it’s bleak for the protagonist, it might also make you consider how good you may have things.
Sure, it's bad working conditions and a miserable life taken to the extreme (the humorous satirical nature is apparent, especially with the pickle jar filled with beer), but is it? Every reader will find something to relate to whilst reading this, and will feel at least an ounce of despair for the protagonist. I’m sure, like the unnamed protagonist, everyone has wanted to escape, or hasn’t identified with their peers before.

Even though some of the imagery in this graphic novel (the illustrated, and that imagined from the writing) can be harrowing, Through the Habitrails is indeed compelling. I won't lie though, it was hard for me to get through and left me questioning a lot of things about the meaning of adulthood. Maybe because I'm younger than the protagonist and haven't had his experiences than I'm less jaded than him. The monotony of the protagonist's life, and how uses increasingly harmful ways (and how Nicholson uses increasingly fantastical methods) to cope with the mediocrity and stagnancy of his life are equal parts funny and disturbing. He’s definitely desperate for escape from his life though.

Sometimes I too felt like the protagonist, as if I was reading this from outside my own body. I had to stop, go and do something else for five minutes, and then return to reading this in order to get through it. If you have depression, or have had harmful thoughts then I would probably advise against reading this. It isn’t all doom and gloom though, and we find the protagonist finally at some sort of peace at the end of Habitrails, and I too feel more at peace than I did at the start of the graphic novel. This truly is a testament to the work-life balance, albeit slightly more fantastical than most people portray theirs.

Yes, this graphic novel can be enjoyable, and over 20 years after it was published it still rings true, however it is also incredibly creepy. Not everyone will get it, but that’s okay.