Killing and Dying

In his first full length work since Shortcomings in 2007, Adrian Tomine has produced another unforgettable collection of stories and characters: ''Amber Sweet'' shows the disastrous impact of mistaken identity in a hyper-connected world; ''A Brief History of the Art Form Known as Hortisculpture'' details the invention and destruction of a vital new art form in short comic strips; ''Translated, from the Japanese'' is a lush, full-colour display of storytelling through still images; ''Intruders'' depicts a man obsessively trying to find his way back to a former life. From the master of the small gesture, it is a fraught, realist masterpiece about the weight of love and its absence, the pride and disappointment of family, the anxiety and hopefulness of being alive in the twenty-first century.