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hellocookie's review
3.0
I’m on a big graphic novel kick right now and the other night I curled up with An Elegy for Amelia Johnson by Andrew Rostan. A story about how one persons journey to discovering how she affected the lives of others on her deathbed.
“In her 30 years on earth, Amelia Johnson has touched many lives with her compassion, intelligence, and spirit. Now, at the end of a year-long battle with cancer, she asks her two closest friends to take her final messages to the people who have touched her life the most. Henry Barrons is a cocky, Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker whose demeanor hides deep insecurities. Jillian Webb is an acclaimed magazine writer with an inability to make long-term commitments. They set out across the country to fulfill Amelia's dying wish...and end up learning more about her - and themselves - than they ever imagined. “
I honestly didn’t really know what to expect when I went into this story. I only knew the synopsis that I just shared with you and aside from that, went in blindly. I guess I’m more or less referring to the art. When I’m picking out graphic novels, most of my decisions are based on what the art is like. I know that seems silly, but I’m extremely visual and I find it distracting when the images in the book don’t really match the story. An Elegy For Amelia Johnson had a perfect mix of excellent writing and simple, straightforward and yet elegant art. I’m a big fan of the simple.
Graphic novels can be tricky because you don’t want the images to take away from the story and you also don’t want the story to take away too much from the images. They have to work together to tell the story… some of the pictures need to say what words can’t and the words need to fill in the blanks.
It takes us a little while to find out who Amelia is. We start off the story meeting Henry, a successful filmmaker and Jillian, a successful writer who has lost her love for it. They’re doing separate things and we get brief glimpses into their lives before Amelia is brought into it. Henry and Jillian are Amelia’s best friends from throughout the years. Together, they set out on a journey to fulfill Amelia’s last request – to bring Amelia’s last words to a few friends across the country and to film it all so Amelia can see it before she dies.
The story isn’t fully of sappy moments about a friend that is dying… it portrays a realistic scenario in which Jillian and Henry try to discover who their friend really was. All of our friends have separate lives when they’re not with us and we can never know our friends as well as we think. Jillian and Henry discover the good, the bad and everything in between that they could ever want to know about Amelia. When it boils down to is this: how much do we really know about our friends and when is enough, enough?
I enjoyed the story very much and I always feel like there’s a place in the world for an excellent graphic novel that is well-written and extremely enjoyable – even while dealing with a subject matter that isn’t necessarily considered enjoyable. An Elegy For Amelia Johnson was heartfelt, sincere and well-worth the read.
“In her 30 years on earth, Amelia Johnson has touched many lives with her compassion, intelligence, and spirit. Now, at the end of a year-long battle with cancer, she asks her two closest friends to take her final messages to the people who have touched her life the most. Henry Barrons is a cocky, Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker whose demeanor hides deep insecurities. Jillian Webb is an acclaimed magazine writer with an inability to make long-term commitments. They set out across the country to fulfill Amelia's dying wish...and end up learning more about her - and themselves - than they ever imagined. “
I honestly didn’t really know what to expect when I went into this story. I only knew the synopsis that I just shared with you and aside from that, went in blindly. I guess I’m more or less referring to the art. When I’m picking out graphic novels, most of my decisions are based on what the art is like. I know that seems silly, but I’m extremely visual and I find it distracting when the images in the book don’t really match the story. An Elegy For Amelia Johnson had a perfect mix of excellent writing and simple, straightforward and yet elegant art. I’m a big fan of the simple.
Graphic novels can be tricky because you don’t want the images to take away from the story and you also don’t want the story to take away too much from the images. They have to work together to tell the story… some of the pictures need to say what words can’t and the words need to fill in the blanks.
It takes us a little while to find out who Amelia is. We start off the story meeting Henry, a successful filmmaker and Jillian, a successful writer who has lost her love for it. They’re doing separate things and we get brief glimpses into their lives before Amelia is brought into it. Henry and Jillian are Amelia’s best friends from throughout the years. Together, they set out on a journey to fulfill Amelia’s last request – to bring Amelia’s last words to a few friends across the country and to film it all so Amelia can see it before she dies.
The story isn’t fully of sappy moments about a friend that is dying… it portrays a realistic scenario in which Jillian and Henry try to discover who their friend really was. All of our friends have separate lives when they’re not with us and we can never know our friends as well as we think. Jillian and Henry discover the good, the bad and everything in between that they could ever want to know about Amelia. When it boils down to is this: how much do we really know about our friends and when is enough, enough?
I enjoyed the story very much and I always feel like there’s a place in the world for an excellent graphic novel that is well-written and extremely enjoyable – even while dealing with a subject matter that isn’t necessarily considered enjoyable. An Elegy For Amelia Johnson was heartfelt, sincere and well-worth the read.
zach_collins's review
2.0
I’m kind of embarrassed to admit I read this one. The cover artwork and the blurbs on the back of the book should have been enough to warn me, but for some reason it didn’t register. I thought I was picking up a contemplative story on death and dying; what I read was the comic book equivalent of a Lifetime movie. Clunky plot, strained dialogue, overemotional outbursts, nauseating confessions of love... ugh. Those who like cheesy, saccharine stories will probably fall in love with An Elegy for Amelia Johnson; anyone else will likely pull a muscle from constantly rolling their eyes.
saidtheraina's review
3.0
Two previously-unacquainted best friends of a dying woman go on a trip to document interviews with some of the woman's loved ones.
I don't know, I think this one was lacking some punch for me. It's pretty much what it appears at first glance, the illustrations are attrative/adequate. Didn't grab me, though.
I don't know, I think this one was lacking some punch for me. It's pretty much what it appears at first glance, the illustrations are attrative/adequate. Didn't grab me, though.
shanyreader's review
1.0
Man, this is the second graphic novel in two days that's earned one star from me...which makes me feel guilty.
I mean, nothing against the author--he's following his dream, and you know what--I don't think I would take back reading this book. Like, I'm happy I read it, the ending had some things to think about, but I'm not going to read it again. A one-day stand, but I just expected more till the very end.
The illustrations weren't bad--consistent, cute, and the cover is my favorite part actually, but not my kind of style. I can live with them though.
The story...would be better as a movie. I agree with a few other people here--a movie version of this would probably be much more impactful than a book this jam packed with information. It needed to be a little slower and well paced out to really get all the emotions and a woman's life story across...felt like it was missing a few things.
Not a BAD book...like...1.5 stars here, but just...mm...mmmm....MMMM. >.> Don't start out with much expectation, and just read it. Let it come to you.
I mean, nothing against the author--he's following his dream, and you know what--I don't think I would take back reading this book. Like, I'm happy I read it, the ending had some things to think about, but I'm not going to read it again. A one-day stand, but I just expected more till the very end.
The illustrations weren't bad--consistent, cute, and the cover is my favorite part actually, but not my kind of style. I can live with them though.
The story...would be better as a movie. I agree with a few other people here--a movie version of this would probably be much more impactful than a book this jam packed with information. It needed to be a little slower and well paced out to really get all the emotions and a woman's life story across...felt like it was missing a few things.
Not a BAD book...like...1.5 stars here, but just...mm...mmmm....MMMM. >.> Don't start out with much expectation, and just read it. Let it come to you.
domskeac's review
5.0
I cherished reading this book (written by a friend) about friendship, love, forgiveness, and time. A heart-felt expression of life and death with the whimsy needed to get you through them both.
noelles's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
tense
medium-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
3.25
sunbear98's review
4.0
I read this because a friend of my daughter's wrote it. I have never met Andrew Rostan, but from what I hear and from reading this, I know he is an amazing guy! I hope Andrew will continue to write even though he is busy with other projects and his many talents. This first book is an excellent start. I will be curious to see what my students think of it.
akmargie's review
2.0
Eh, I found the story to be jumbled and a little hard to follow. Some stories I don't think are suited to the graphic format and this is one of them. It is very much about relationships and how they change over time and I don't think the art really captured that sense of time moving, changing. I also didn't feel the characters were fleshed out enough. It was hard to see why these characters would be so closely tied together with how little information we got about each of them together or separately.
booksandbosox's review
3.0
Finally got around to reading this graphic novel that a publisher gave me many ALA conferences ago. I was a bit disappointed by this one - the romance felt very forced and false and the story hiccuped in places. Wanted to like it more than I did.