''XX'' is a 2020 science fiction novel by writer

Rian Hughes Rian Hughes is a British graphic designer, illustrator, type designer, comics artist and novelist. Overviews Hughes has written and drawn comics for '' 2000 AD'', Vertigo CMYK and Batman: Black and White, and designed for DC Comics and Marvel ...

Design and publication

Hughes created a new typeface for the novel. Adapting the novel for e-readers was difficult, and Hughes considers the printed book to be the way the novel "should be read". Due to its use of graphic elements, artwork, a novel within the novel,

asemic writing Asemic may refer to: * Asemia Asemia is the term for the medical condition of being unable to understand or express any signs or symbols. It is a more severe condition than aphasia, which is the inability to understand linguistic signs. Asemia i ...

, and

epistolary Epistolary means "in the form of a letter or letters", and may refer to: * Epistolary ( la, epistolarium), a Christian liturgical book containing set readings for church services from the New Testament Epistles * Epistolary novel * Epistolary poem ...

techniques, it can be considered a work of

ergodic literature Ergodic literature is a term coined by Espen J. Aarseth in his book ''Cybertext—Perspectives on Ergodic Literature'' to describe literature in which nontrivial effort is required for the reader to traverse the text. The term is derived fro ...

Reception

According to literary review aggregator Book Marks, the novel received mostly "Rave" reviews. Neville Hawcock, writing for ''

The Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nikk ...

'', praised the graphic elements of the book as an "enjoyable variation" from typical novels. Lydia Fletcher, in a review published by ''

The Library Journal ''Library Journal'' is an American trade publication for librarians. It was founded in 1876 by Melvil Dewey. It reports news about the library world, emphasizing public libraries, and offers feature articles about aspects of professional practi ...

'', criticized the novel as occasionally "difficult to follow" in part due to the "mixed-media" portions.

References

2020 British novels The Overlook Press books 2020 graphic novels 2020 debut novels 2020 science fiction novels {{2020s-graphic-novel-stub