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elbarto's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
Nice to see Bill G. do a story that's so lucid. I love Zippy, but sometimes the ultra surreal setups and especially the lingo are a lot to get through. Here we have confirmation of Griffith's cartooning mastery and an interesting memoir subject.
trevoryan's review against another edition
3.0
The title is a bit misleading. This graphic novel is really a memoir, part of which is about his mother's affair. Also, the "famous cartoonist" is someone who most readers have probably never heard of. Lawrence Lariar? Anyone? I didn't think so. BUT this is still an engrossing, wonderfully drawn story of the author's deep dive into his family's past. With a better title and cover art that is more representative of the art inside (is his mom winking?), this book would probably have more appeal.
pixie_d's review against another edition
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
emckeon1002's review against another edition
4.0
I've always been a fan of Griffith, and Zippy, though I'm more fascinated by Griffith's notebooks, and sketches. And of course, since he's a "neighbor" and sometimes includes Middletown artifacts in his work, there's another kinship. I heard Griffith talking about this "memoir" on a local radio show, and was fascinated by the idea of a graphic memoir of his mother's infidelities. It pays off, between Griffiths own creativity and insecurity, his father's simmering rage, and his mother's unlikely coupling with a semi-famous comic strip artist.
bryanzk's review against another edition
5.0
family history, embedded with so many perspectives of lives
saidtheraina's review against another edition
3.0
Subtitle pretty much says it all.
This is a fairly engaging adult child's recounting of what he's learned about his mother's affair with cartoonist who did a lot of great things but the amateur probably won't recognize his name.
He also covers his family tree and general history. More melancholy than salacious, we don't get under the skin of either his mom or (even more) the cartoonist. The whole thing is kind of an enigma.
It's drawn effectively, black and white, and I'm really glad he includes a Family Tree at the end (which I had to look for - there's no heads-up that it's there).
I honestly find myself wondering if I would have liked this more if the author hadn't drawn himself (as the narrator/younger self discovering all of the data) with a ::ahem:: quite dated haircut. Which makes me wonder how biased I am for/against people's stories (in GN form or otherwise) based on my judgement of their appearances. Maybe this is why many cartoonists choose not to render themselves realistically?
Read with: [b: The Impostor's Daughter: A True Memoir|6351980|The Impostor's Daughter A True Memoir|Laurie Sandell|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1344264748s/6351980.jpg|6538560] and [b: Calling Dr. Laura|13429614|Calling Dr. Laura|Nicole J. Georges|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1344716812s/13429614.jpg|18920336]
This is a fairly engaging adult child's recounting of what he's learned about his mother's affair with cartoonist who did a lot of great things but the amateur probably won't recognize his name.
He also covers his family tree and general history. More melancholy than salacious, we don't get under the skin of either his mom or (even more) the cartoonist. The whole thing is kind of an enigma.
It's drawn effectively, black and white, and I'm really glad he includes a Family Tree at the end (which I had to look for - there's no heads-up that it's there).
I honestly find myself wondering if I would have liked this more if the author hadn't drawn himself (as the narrator/younger self discovering all of the data) with a ::ahem:: quite dated haircut. Which makes me wonder how biased I am for/against people's stories (in GN form or otherwise) based on my judgement of their appearances. Maybe this is why many cartoonists choose not to render themselves realistically?
Read with: [b: The Impostor's Daughter: A True Memoir|6351980|The Impostor's Daughter A True Memoir|Laurie Sandell|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1344264748s/6351980.jpg|6538560] and [b: Calling Dr. Laura|13429614|Calling Dr. Laura|Nicole J. Georges|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1344716812s/13429614.jpg|18920336]
scottapeshot's review against another edition
5.0
Awesome to see Griffy take on such a project. Sad to see why he lets so little personal juice into his work (not a great family life), but a joy that he has found the quirky outlets that such a difficult family life has fostered (Zippy, the weird old America obsessions, Claude, Mr. Toad, etc.). And, the ending of this book is probably one of the most satisfying things I've read in about a decade.
naimfrewat's review against another edition
3.0
It's a nice, entertaining read. I want to take it more seriously but somehow the comic book format does not yet fully engage me.
It's a nice flashback to the 40s, 50s & 60s seen through the writer re-discovering his parents, the dynamics between them, snd what this all means to him.
We travel along through letters that the writer was discovering for the first time about his mother and her secret affair.
I suppose it wasn't easy for him talking about her affair, particularly as he seems to have been quite close to her and in good ties with his extended family.
Therefore, I wonder if choosing the comic book format wasn't an easy choice on the details, as it spares him to reflect more about how the affair happened and how it later affected his mother; that's on the one hand. On the other, I suppose it mustn't have bern easy for him to draw his mother in love with another man, while still married. I even suspect it should be harder to execute.
I recommend this book; it's entertaining and a nice read.
It's a nice flashback to the 40s, 50s & 60s seen through the writer re-discovering his parents, the dynamics between them, snd what this all means to him.
We travel along through letters that the writer was discovering for the first time about his mother and her secret affair.
I suppose it wasn't easy for him talking about her affair, particularly as he seems to have been quite close to her and in good ties with his extended family.
Therefore, I wonder if choosing the comic book format wasn't an easy choice on the details, as it spares him to reflect more about how the affair happened and how it later affected his mother; that's on the one hand. On the other, I suppose it mustn't have bern easy for him to draw his mother in love with another man, while still married. I even suspect it should be harder to execute.
I recommend this book; it's entertaining and a nice read.
missjazzage's review against another edition
3.0
~ 3.75 ~
Love the sections of Bill talking to his wife
Love the sections of Bill talking to his wife