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A review by kumishona
Love Languages by James Albon
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
After Himawari House and Love Languages, I have all my fingers crossed that contemporary slice-of-life, coming-of-age books about (especially Asian!) language/culture is becoming a thing!
The narrative quality of the storytelling distinctly made it feel like I was following along a biographical journey of a real person. It reminded me of artists I follow on social media that make comics about their lives. This sort of art style isn’t usually my thing, but I had to appreciate the lovely watercolor and attention to detail in the careful outlining and patterns. There is something European about the curvy lines and silhouettes, which is very well-suited to the French setting. I loved how vibrant colours would seep in whenever Ping appeared, or even just within Hong Kong, compared to the bleak monochrome of Paris, where Sarah hated living.
I enjoyed the way language (and the process of learning it) was portrayed in the speech bubbles, as well as the depiction of the loneliness/cultural dysphoria of being an expat, social anxiety, grappling with work-life, and the pressure to “succeed”. I think it also cleverly shows the sociopolitical centrism of white women, who tend to easily excuse the most vile behaviour from white men, plus feel the need to save face in front of them. Sarah’s initial embarrassment towards communication struggles was in stark contrast to Ping’s unabashed willingness to connect across their mutual language barriers. (The emojis!) I always felt that some western cultures *really* depend on certain social rhythms and coming off “cool”. Given Sarah’s anxiety (and her terrible job with American work ethic and French assholes that made me want to breathe fire), it just made *sense* that she found confort in Ping’s world of carefree, warm connection instead. Reading about characters quitting their jobs and beginning new lives will never not be heartwarming to me.
I enjoyed the lesbian awakening! It was just a few pages (and some earlier subtext) and yet it spoke volumes. (Attraction, possesiveness, desire, joy denial, acceptance, self actualisation.) Also greatly appreciated the much-needed rep of Asian pocket mascs! I was wondering if this book would portray the difficulties Ping may face in being a Hong Konger and queer, but in the end I’m glad the book left it where it did. Sarah definitely grew a lot! But I didn’t connect with the characters as much as I’d hoped, given how much I was excited for the premise (queer, sapphic, contemporary, Asian, language/culture, graphic novel). Still required reading in the genre IMO! 3.75⭐️
Thank you to NetGalley and IDW Publishing for providing an Advanced Reader’s Copy for an honest review! This is my first one. 🥹
The narrative quality of the storytelling distinctly made it feel like I was following along a biographical journey of a real person. It reminded me of artists I follow on social media that make comics about their lives. This sort of art style isn’t usually my thing, but I had to appreciate the lovely watercolor and attention to detail in the careful outlining and patterns. There is something European about the curvy lines and silhouettes, which is very well-suited to the French setting. I loved how vibrant colours would seep in whenever Ping appeared, or even just within Hong Kong, compared to the bleak monochrome of Paris, where Sarah hated living.
I enjoyed the way language (and the process of learning it) was portrayed in the speech bubbles, as well as the depiction of the loneliness/cultural dysphoria of being an expat, social anxiety, grappling with work-life, and the pressure to “succeed”. I think it also cleverly shows the sociopolitical centrism of white women, who tend to easily excuse the most vile behaviour from white men, plus feel the need to save face in front of them. Sarah’s initial embarrassment towards communication struggles was in stark contrast to Ping’s unabashed willingness to connect across their mutual language barriers. (The emojis!) I always felt that some western cultures *really* depend on certain social rhythms and coming off “cool”. Given Sarah’s anxiety (and her terrible job with American work ethic and French assholes that made me want to breathe fire), it just made *sense* that she found confort in Ping’s world of carefree, warm connection instead. Reading about characters quitting their jobs and beginning new lives will never not be heartwarming to me.
I enjoyed the lesbian awakening! It was just a few pages (and some earlier subtext) and yet it spoke volumes. (Attraction, possesiveness, desire, joy denial, acceptance, self actualisation.) Also greatly appreciated the much-needed rep of Asian pocket mascs! I was wondering if this book would portray the difficulties Ping may face in being a Hong Konger and queer, but in the end I’m glad the book left it where it did. Sarah definitely grew a lot! But I didn’t connect with the characters as much as I’d hoped, given how much I was excited for the premise (queer, sapphic, contemporary, Asian, language/culture, graphic novel). Still required reading in the genre IMO! 3.75⭐️
Thank you to NetGalley and IDW Publishing for providing an Advanced Reader’s Copy for an honest review! This is my first one. 🥹