Graham Rawle (1955–2024)

Norma, a strange and unreliable protagonist, quite literally pieced together from women's magazines, yearns to burst out of the constrained house-bound life in which she has been forced to live since her "accident". But it soon becomes obvious that all is not as it seems and that, if she succeeds, it could spell disaster for everyone... This is a tragedy, and a farce, and a piece of art. Brilliant.

Woman's World is a marvelous novel constructed completely out of women's magazines from the 1960s. Each page is a collage of words and paragraphs put together in great detail by Graham Rawle. In itself, this is quite impressive. Add in a wonderful plot that flows easily despite the cut-up method of construction, and what's left is a brilliant novel that is just as much art as literary genius.

The story is full of mystery and intrigue, but done in an intelligent manner. Rawle does not show more half-heartedly conceal various twists in his story. Instead, they are revealed so bluntly that there is a moment of being astounded, then the "Ah ha" and ability to piece previous clues together. However, the novel is not merely mystery, but also social critique of the language used to describe a "woman's world" and gender roles in general. Rawle's ability to work a variety of genre's into one book is what makes it fabulous.

Rawle's Woman's World is simply an incredible piece of visual art and writing that is inspirational in its' creativity and intellectual depth. show less

What makes this book special is of course that it's cut and pasted together from old women's magazines, which gives the prose a very special, vintage feeling, but it's also a driven narrative and a fun and engaging read.

Woman's World is, without question, one of the most innovative and original books I've ever read. Graham Rawle wrote a general outline of the story, then over the course of five years pieced it together using pictures, words, and phrases from 1960's-era women's magazines. The result is a fascinating story with a modern worldview, but a hauntingly authentic 1960's voice. The story centers around Norma Fontaine, a stylish and modern woman with a keen fashion sense who, for reasons that become show more clear as the story progresses, is encouraged by her family to remain indoors at all times and avoid being seen by the neighbors. To say any more than that would be to give away the plot, and it's much more satisfying to let Rawle do the storytelling. I'll just say that anyone who is looking for a truly original piece of storytelling, and an amazing piece of artwork, will find it in this one-of-a-kind book. show less