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amieinstereo's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
meimeimeike's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
caedy's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
gabbrielle's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
I don’t really know what I expected, but it was kind of sad. It had a lot to do with family and depression I think. There was no real support for the characters who were suffering which was the sad part. I don’t think I will ever read this again.
titotaylor's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
bettyclementine's review
emotional
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
gmcuriousgeorge's review against another edition
3.0
3.5/5
The art is beautiful. Very beautiful. The plot is... well, there's kind of no plot. It kind of just goes around, and literally jumps around. It's extremely fast-paced, and it's a good thing that I was in the mood for a fast-paced book.
The art is beautiful. Very beautiful. The plot is... well, there's kind of no plot. It kind of just goes around, and literally jumps around. It's extremely fast-paced, and it's a good thing that I was in the mood for a fast-paced book.
reader4evr's review against another edition
3.0
Wasn't the best storyline that I have read for a graphic novel because I felt like it was geared more for adults than YA. I did however enjoyed the illustrations, wonder if either the whole thing was in color or parts of it were would have changed the way I viewed the story.
bookph1le's review against another edition
4.0
Very good read with impressive artwork. This is one that fans of realistic fiction should really enjoy. I know I could identify a lot with the themes of approaching puberty, being partially a kid yet trying to figure out all this weird, grown-up stuff. More complete review to come.
Full review:
I'm pretty new to the world of graphic novels, a genre that didn't much appeal to me in the past. This was one of the first I read, and I was blown away by how good graphic novel storytelling can be. That's not to say that I didn't think any good graphic novels existed, just that, as a novel reader, I wondered how graphic novels could convey the same depths with less text. I severely underestimated the impact of the artwork in graphic novels, a mistake I won't make again. Some spoilers to follow.
I read a lot of YA and coming of age is obviously a common thread in that genre. I've read few books, though, that I think captured the awkwardness and weirdness of that transition, but this book is one of them. While reading it, I felt like I was going back to my own experiences with transitioning from adolescence to adulthood. I think adults sometimes forgot how mystifying and confusing this change is. Between the art, the text, and the subplots in this novel, I felt the artists perfectly captured those emotions, which made me, as the reader, experience them on a very visceral level. The sheer emotion in this novel blew me away. I haven't reacted so strongly to a book in a while. If it weren't for some minor flaws, this book would have been a five-star review for sure.
My major problem with the book is the slut shaming that goes on in it. Rose is too young to fully appreciate what's going on with the town resident girl's pregnancy, so I will cut her some slack. What disappointed me was that, while other characters do call her on it, they never really talk to her about why branding the girl a slut is a bad thing to do and how it can negatively impact Rose herself. Rose may feel grown up, but she's immature, and I think this was a missed opportunity to help her reach a new level of maturity. I think the book itself treats the unexpected pregnancy more sympathetically than Rose does, but I would have liked to see it used as a means of furthering Rose's growth as a character. It was a real letdown to see this slip by in a book that's otherwise so well done.
Rose's mother's depression was another strong point of the novel, particularly as her back story plays out. It's a shame that a lot of this takes place off Rose's radar as well. I don't think it's abnormal for there to be some mutual obliviousness when it comes to adolescents and their parents, but this would have been a chance for Rose to establish a real, solid connection with her mother. It would make sense for her mother to want to protect her from something like this, and I have no doubt it was a painful experience for her mother to recount, but it would have been to the benefit of both characters to have a frank discussion of what happened.
Of course, this may be part of the point of the book. On the one hand, I was disappointed by the plot threads left dangling, but on the other hand I thought they were well done. The book feels like it offers just a snapshot into a life. There are definite arcs here, but it doesn't feel neatly tied up like a lot of other books do, and that's to its benefit. Would the novel have been stronger had the two plot points I mentioned been more thoroughly canvassed? Maybe, but I also like how the book highlights how messy and complicated life can be. Sometimes we do get closure and other times we don't. Sometimes it takes years to come to terms with certain aspects of our lives, and sometimes we never do reach a full understanding of the things that have happened to us and other people.
I'd be remiss if I didn't specifically discuss the artwork in this book, which is really masterful. Since this book is monochromatic, there's no opportunity for color choice to add mood. Instead, shading does. During some of the book's lighter, more carefree moments, the pictures are bright and open. During darker, moodier moments, the scheme is more oppressive. The drawings are sometimes simple and at others highly detailed. There's a lot of nuance to the characters' expressions and facial features, and one of the elements I most liked was how like normal people the characters look. There are no beauty queens of Hollywood hunks here, just normal people with odd bone structure, long noses, and messy hair. It's astonishing how skilled the artist is.
This book did a lot to help hook me on the idea of reading more graphic novels. I think the co-authors are very talented, and I hope they plan to write more graphic novels in the future. I would certainly be interested in reading them.
Full review:
I'm pretty new to the world of graphic novels, a genre that didn't much appeal to me in the past. This was one of the first I read, and I was blown away by how good graphic novel storytelling can be. That's not to say that I didn't think any good graphic novels existed, just that, as a novel reader, I wondered how graphic novels could convey the same depths with less text. I severely underestimated the impact of the artwork in graphic novels, a mistake I won't make again. Some spoilers to follow.
I read a lot of YA and coming of age is obviously a common thread in that genre. I've read few books, though, that I think captured the awkwardness and weirdness of that transition, but this book is one of them. While reading it, I felt like I was going back to my own experiences with transitioning from adolescence to adulthood. I think adults sometimes forgot how mystifying and confusing this change is. Between the art, the text, and the subplots in this novel, I felt the artists perfectly captured those emotions, which made me, as the reader, experience them on a very visceral level. The sheer emotion in this novel blew me away. I haven't reacted so strongly to a book in a while. If it weren't for some minor flaws, this book would have been a five-star review for sure.
My major problem with the book is the slut shaming that goes on in it. Rose is too young to fully appreciate what's going on with the town resident girl's pregnancy, so I will cut her some slack. What disappointed me was that, while other characters do call her on it, they never really talk to her about why branding the girl a slut is a bad thing to do and how it can negatively impact Rose herself. Rose may feel grown up, but she's immature, and I think this was a missed opportunity to help her reach a new level of maturity. I think the book itself treats the unexpected pregnancy more sympathetically than Rose does, but I would have liked to see it used as a means of furthering Rose's growth as a character. It was a real letdown to see this slip by in a book that's otherwise so well done.
Rose's mother's depression was another strong point of the novel, particularly as her back story plays out. It's a shame that a lot of this takes place off Rose's radar as well. I don't think it's abnormal for there to be some mutual obliviousness when it comes to adolescents and their parents, but this would have been a chance for Rose to establish a real, solid connection with her mother. It would make sense for her mother to want to protect her from something like this, and I have no doubt it was a painful experience for her mother to recount, but it would have been to the benefit of both characters to have a frank discussion of what happened.
Of course, this may be part of the point of the book. On the one hand, I was disappointed by the plot threads left dangling, but on the other hand I thought they were well done. The book feels like it offers just a snapshot into a life. There are definite arcs here, but it doesn't feel neatly tied up like a lot of other books do, and that's to its benefit. Would the novel have been stronger had the two plot points I mentioned been more thoroughly canvassed? Maybe, but I also like how the book highlights how messy and complicated life can be. Sometimes we do get closure and other times we don't. Sometimes it takes years to come to terms with certain aspects of our lives, and sometimes we never do reach a full understanding of the things that have happened to us and other people.
I'd be remiss if I didn't specifically discuss the artwork in this book, which is really masterful. Since this book is monochromatic, there's no opportunity for color choice to add mood. Instead, shading does. During some of the book's lighter, more carefree moments, the pictures are bright and open. During darker, moodier moments, the scheme is more oppressive. The drawings are sometimes simple and at others highly detailed. There's a lot of nuance to the characters' expressions and facial features, and one of the elements I most liked was how like normal people the characters look. There are no beauty queens of Hollywood hunks here, just normal people with odd bone structure, long noses, and messy hair. It's astonishing how skilled the artist is.
This book did a lot to help hook me on the idea of reading more graphic novels. I think the co-authors are very talented, and I hope they plan to write more graphic novels in the future. I would certainly be interested in reading them.