Scan barcode
grey_jayne's review
I was reading this comic on my phone and the font isn't easy for my dyslexia. I might try again with the physical book later on, but I already have enough trouble with discerning t, l, and f from each other without the way this font is displayed.
endemictoearth's review
DNF at around 30% - I was simultaneously confused and bored. The story within a story (which was really an alternate history of the author's life, I suppose) didn't really work for me. There was one really powerful moment before I bailed, I couldn't tell if it was real (in the context of the story) or a dream or what. I did skim ahead and I think a lot of the art is lovely. There was a four panel page that worked beautifully on its own, but overall this just didn't come together for me. I agree with someone who complained about the font, as well; it wasn't easy to read, even when the page was magnified.
I'm going to try another book by this author, Apsara Engine, which I hope will work better for me.
I'm going to try another book by this author, Apsara Engine, which I hope will work better for me.
megansoetaert's review
reflective
fast-paced
4.0
A funny and authentic graphic memoir reflecting on finding yourself, career/purpose, gender identity, being Bengali, and family. Som tells her story through a character- Anjali, a cis woman- who is relatable and truthful and has the best sidekick, Ampersand the cat <3 I loved seeing Bishakh’s story through Anjali—it was a way for her to tell her story while affirming her womanhood throughout her entire life.
beccacondon's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Dementia, Terminal illness, Death, Dysphoria, Death of parent, Mental illness, and Grief
Moderate: Cursing, Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexism, and Xenophobia
natraf_reads's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Toxic friendship, and Grief
samgray's review
4.0
While the general plot wasn't groundbreaking for me, the format of the memoir was amazingly unique! Unlike any Memoir I've read, graphic or not!
Memoir usually deals with the truth of the subject, but Som challenges the assumption of personal "fact" through the substitution of a cis woman character in her early 30s to take her place while, in reality, she was still closeted and feeling "adrift" in her identity at 30-something. Negating gender troubles from the narrative, Som is at once exploring what her life could have been like while centering the "truth" of the other parts of her life that intersected with her gender journey: career, family, relationships, sexuality, and addiction. Begging the conclusion that personal history is stories we tell ourselves, and what we choose to center in those stories is both the whole "truth" and yet only a limited glimpse of the vastness our own lives.
Memoir usually deals with the truth of the subject, but Som challenges the assumption of personal "fact" through the substitution of a cis woman character in her early 30s to take her place while, in reality, she was still closeted and feeling "adrift" in her identity at 30-something. Negating gender troubles from the narrative, Som is at once exploring what her life could have been like while centering the "truth" of the other parts of her life that intersected with her gender journey: career, family, relationships, sexuality, and addiction. Begging the conclusion that personal history is stories we tell ourselves, and what we choose to center in those stories is both the whole "truth" and yet only a limited glimpse of the vastness our own lives.