Synopsis
Flung Out of Space is both a love letter to the essential lesbian novel, The Price of Salt, and an examination of its notorious author, Patricia Highsmith. Veteran comics creators Grace Ellis and Hannah Templer have teamed up to tell this story through Highsmith’s eyes—reimagining the events that inspired her to write the story that would become a foundational piece of queer literature. Flung Out of Space opens with Pat begrudgingly writing low-brow comics. A drinker, a smoker, and a hater of life, Pat knows she can do better. Her brain churns with images of the great novel she could and should be writing—what will eventually be Strangers on a Train— which would later be adapted into a classic film by Alfred Hitchcock in 1951.
At the same time, Pat, a lesbian consumed with self-loathing, is in and out of conversion therapy, leaving a trail of sexual conquests and broken hearts in her wake. However, one of those very affairs and a chance encounter in a department store give Pat the idea for her soon-to-be beloved tale of homosexual love that was the first of its kind—it gave the lesbian protagonists a happy ending.
From: Abrams Books
Notes on This Title
The author’s note describes this comic as “a fictionalized, narrative version of a true story. … The timeline is condensed, the conversations are imagined, some of the characters are composited of multiple real people, but the most interesting facts and events are true.”
This title contains sequences depicting conversion therapy. The main character expresses anti-Semitism, as well as self-hate stemming from internalized homophobia.
Awards
2022 ALA Graphic Novels and Comics Round Table Best Graphic Novels for Adults
2023 Eisner Award for Best Reality-Based Work
Reviews
“Flung Out of Space feels especially relevant right now, with queer folks’ former faves like Ellen and JK Rowling destroying their legacies before our eyes. And it’s welcome addition to the queer graphic novel and lesbian history canon.” (Source: Autostraddle)
“Highsmith devotees will appreciate this glimpse into how a life of secrets extended beyond the pages of her fiction.” (Source: Publishers Weekly)
“Flung Out of Space beautifully and deftly paints a portrait of a complex, cruel, and charming woman who gave the world equally complex and enticing stories.” (Source: WWAC)
Interviews
None.