Zoe Thorogood

Cartoonist Zoe Thorogood records 6 months of her own life as it falls apart in a desperate attempt to put it back together again in the only way she knows how. IT’S LONELY AT THE CENTRE OF THE EARTH is an intimate and metanarrative look into the life of a selfish artist who must create for her own survival.

Billie Scott is an artist. Her debut gallery exhibition opens in a few months. Within a fortnight she'll be completely blind. As Billie struggles to deal with her impending blindness, she sets off on a journey from Middlesbrough to London; into a world of post-austerity Britain and the problems facing those left behind. Her quest is to find ten people to paint for her exhibition, as well as the inspiration to continue with her art, and the strength to move on with her life.

Alex and Steph from Life is True Colors are touring the States with their band when they cross paths with another lost soul – the runway teen Lily… Lily has somehow taken on the painful memories of dozens of other people. Tensions rise as the three trace the origins of each memory – Steph’s past returns to haunt her present, and Alex, desperate to protect her, shoulders the burden of her grief. And in the depths of a dusty comic book shop, Alex will be forced to learn again how much the truth can hurt.

After the events of Life is True Colors Alex and Steph tour across the states in their band until they find another lost soul on the side of the road – Lily. The pair take the teenager under their wing to uncover the truth of what’s she’s running from. But there’s more to Lily than meets the eye, as she silently struggles under the weight of heartache and memories from lives she hasn’t lived, to protect those around her from the truth of pain. An all too familiar story to Alex, but is there time to save Lily from a similar, lonely, fate?

La dibujante de cómics Zoe Thorogood (La inevitable ceguera de Billie Scott) documenta seis meses de su propia vida mientras esta se hace pedazos en un intento desesperado por volver a juntar las piezas de la única manera que sabe. Se está muy sola en el centro de la Tierra es una mirada íntima y metanarrativa a la vida de una artista egoísta que debe crear para sobrevivir. Thorogood muestra de forma conmovedora y original su lucha con sus problemas de salud mental —la ansiedad, la depresión y el síndrome del impostor— mientras va forjando una prometedora carrera en el mundo del cómic y se vancontrando a ella misma.

Voi non sapete chi sia Zoe Thorogood, ma tempo la lettura di questo volume e la considererete un’amica, per la cui serenità tifare, dei cui demoni preoccuparvi. Inglese, giovanissima, Zoe aveva già realizzato un fumetto notevole, Gli ultimi giorni di luce di Billie Scott. Con Tutta sola al centro della terra realizza una storia autobiografica in cui una profonda consapevolezza di sé non basta ad arginare la condizione di depressione con tendenze suicide che accompagna l’autrice fin dall’adolescenza. Con l’intento di raccontare sei mesi della propria vita di artista, Zoe esplora la propria condizione interiore, cercando di costruire percorsi per sé e argini interiori per i lettori. Un libro importante, di rarissima franchezza. Un fumetto coraggioso, che ti porta nelle tenebre per insegnarti a riconoscere la luce in fondo al tunnel. (E non è detto che sia un treno, o almeno che non sia un treno sul quale non puoi salire.)