MussoLOLen is Always Right! |

I suppose I’m what some people would call a “fake” fan. Every now and then I get obsessed over a certain band or music artist;I listen to nothing but their songs for weeks at a time. But even at the height of my fandom, I find myself too cheap to shell out 450 pesos (approx. $10) for an original CD. Why pay so much when I can just download their songs over the Internet?

With Belle and Sebastian, an indie Scotish rock group, it’s different. Their music calms and comforts me like an invisible best friend and leaves me feeling warm, happy, and strangely content. I love what their songs have done for me, which is why I didn’t flinch when I paid a thousand pesos ($20) today to buy Put The Book Back On The Shelf: A Belle And Sebastian Anthology (published by Image Comics). This graphic novel is an anthology of stories inspired by or interpretations of various Belle and Sebastian songs. I knew that I had to get a copy of this book no matter what. And I was in luck; the last copy was on the shelf and I had just enough money in the bank to buy it.

Reading this graphic novel is a uniquely trippy experience. As I read each story, I played the song that inspired the writer or the artist – and I couldn’t tell if it was the music that made the story more vivid, or the story that made the music more real. It took me over two hours to finish reading the whole thing and if the songs alone could relax me and leave me in a good mood, playing them along with the stories was just heaven. It felt just like a good night’s sleep after a long, exhausting day.

I can see why Put the Book Back on the Shelf might not be for all fans because some writers made quite a lot of unexpected interpretations. For instance, the strip for the song If She Wants Me has a really sad story, but I imagined the song to have something more to do with two young friends playing in a grassy field. Another one of my favorite strips, We Rule the School, is about a kid who finds a ninja in his backpack. The song didn’t fit the story too well but never mind – it was still cute and a lot of fun to read.

In spite of whatever clashing interpretations there might be, Put the Book Back on the Shelf is a must for any Belle and Sebastian fan. Reading the anthology heightened my appreciation of their music, and made me fall in love with the songs I haven’t listened to till tonight. I wouldn’t recommend this book to those who are merely curious about the band, though. If a taste of their music is what you’re looking for, I suggest you listen to these songs instead:

Waiting for the Moon to Rise
My Wandering Days Are Over
Funny Little Frog
Get Me Away From Here, I’m Dying
If She Wants Me
The Blues are Still Blue