Thursday, June 30, 2016

Andre the Giant: Life and Legend

Andre the Giant: Life and Legend
by Box Brown
First Second, 2014. 240 pgs. Graphic Novel

Andre Roussimoff, better known as Andre the Giant, was known both for his role as Fezzik in The Princess Bride and for his work and showmanship as a pro-wrestler.  At his peak he weighed 500 pounds and stood nearly seven and a half feet tall.  But his gigantism ultimately ended up costing him years of pain and eventually, his life.  This graphic novel draws from historical records and interviews to paint a picture of this little understood figure.

The author has a real love of the world of pro-wrestling and lovingly recalls moments of excitement and drama from critical matches in Andre's career.  But the book fails to tell the rest of Andre's story with much insight.  It ends up being more of an episodic collection of stories about him.  It's interesting, though, to learn more about the life of this man who so many of us know of but whom we know little about.

BHG

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