Review: Deep Dark Fears, by Fran Krause
This title was provided to me at no cost for review purposes by the publisher. Fears seem to share some properties with dreams, as both spring from similar irrational, twilight corners of the mind. While it's practically axiomatic that among the most boring things one can discuss is the weird things seen while asleep, I've long found discussing fears to be far more interesting and instructive. Unless one subscribes to the notion that they're somehow prophetic or expressive, a dream is easily dismissed as random in origin and meaningless without some kind of post-hoc rationalization. A fear, though, whatever its murky provenance may be, is important. Fears shape the way we act, which shapes the world. They can also be illuminating about their owner, as one's fear may be another's fancy. Krause explores 100 fears in all, each a tidy first-person narrative expressed in a handful or two of panels. The linework is soft and casual, colored as with watercolors, pairing wel