Echoing a few other posts, I was struck by the simplicity of faces in Drnaso’s drawings. Despite the tragedy surrounding most of the characters in the novel, the stick-figure-esque faces painted an aura of detachment throughout the plot. To me, the most emotionally elucidating parts of the book were revealed through writing rather than through images of the characters themselves feeling the emotions. For example, I found the worksheet displaying alcohol intake, sleep levels, as well as feelings of sadness and stress that Calvin filled out upon arriving to work each day an interesting device to reveal his mental state. Even reading the story most explicitly following Calvin’s life, we, as readers, gleaned useful information from this explicit recounting of Calvin’s emotional state. To me, this reinforces how easy it is for people to lose track of each other’s experience and suffering, especially as they live and operate in increasing levels of isolation. This provides some explanation for how strangers on the internet could direct so much cruelty towards Sandra, Calvin, and Teddy. We see cycles of suffering throughout the story; how the characters’ disillusionment drives them to anger and conspiratorial ideas that only further perpetuate suffering of themselves and others. Saddened and angered as she was bombarded by hate mail, Sandra calls Teddy telling him he meant nothing to her family. The depression over Sabrina’s death drives Teddy to consume media that questions the very existence of his dead girlfriend. We see evidence of their suffering through their consumption and actions, not through the depiction of their faces. So much of the display of emotion throughout the story was not face-to-face, and the lack of facial nuance and detail seems to simulate this disinterest in face-to-face interactions even among the story’s readers.