I've never read Nick Hornby's writing, and I'm not sure I want to after reading his New York Times review of Jason Little's Shutterbug Follies (the first complete "Bee" adventure in book form). It doesn't get much stuffier than this:

The more exposure to graphic novels one has, the more one realizes that the relative youth of the medium, at least in its current adult form, presents its artists with problems of appropriateness that the more established arts don't have. Whereas most established writers know what constitutes a novel, and filmmakers understand what will sustain a film, even the best comic-book artists sometimes seem unsure of their material and their intended audience. Jason Little's ''Shutterbug Follies,'' for example, is essentially a sweet-natured adventure yarn, the sort of thing in which a dangerously curious young heroine gets in over her head and finds herself pursuing and being pursued by bad men with beards. (That's old-school bad men with beards, by the way, rather than the post-9/11 variety.) Those familiar with Herge's Tintin will recognize Little's Bee -- she even has the same red hair -- and Little is clearly an admirer of Herge's strong, crisp, bright graphic art. The temperament and style of ''Shutterbug Follies'' suggested that it might make a perfect -- and, let's face it, free -- Christmas present for my 12-year-old niece, but I'm not sure how her parents would feel about the references to masturbation or the mutilated and naked bodies. (Bee works in a photo lab, where she sees lots of things unsuitable for a young niece, and many of them are reproduced in the book.) The resulting tone is curious, like a Nancy Drew mystery adapted by Brian De Palma, and one suspects that Little may have alienated both of these potential audiences. He's a great illustrator, and he tells a convoluted story with economy and flair; he will, I'm sure, find his range eventually.