27 February 2015

Two Graphic Novel Mini Reviews


For the first time since riding the train back from BEA in 2007, where I read a fun YA graphic novel whose name eludes me, I read not one, but two graphic novels.  I'd heard quite a bit about both of them, either through bloggers or via industry buzz, and since both Sarah Says Read and Nylon Admiral have been sharing their enthusiasm for comics and graphic novels in general, I thought I'd pick these up to read.

This One Summer by Jillian and Mariko Tamaki, which earlier this month was awarded both a Caldecott Honor and a Printz Honor (I think the first time in history that a graphic novel has won both) is the story of two friends who meet every summer at the lake cottages where their families vacation.  Rose is a little older than Windy, and though both of them are on the cusp of adolescence, it's Windy who often is the wiser of the two, despite her silliness.

Rose and Windy become quasi-involved with the drama among some of the local teens as a means of distracting Rose from her own family troubles, and before the summer is over, both of them have begun  that process known as coming of age.



I didn't love this book the way I thought I would, especially after all of its accolades and the raves of two of my coworkers, but I liked it and it was an easy way of incorporating a graphic novel into my usual reading.  My artist/illustrator husband teased me for reading it, to which I didn't pay him a bit of mind, but as he was teasing me, he grabbed the book out of my hands to study a few pages.  "Well, whoever drew this sure knew what they were doing," was the surprised compliment out of his mouth. The single panel pages held particular sophistication.

I picked up Strange Fruit: Uncelebrated Narratives from Black History by Joel Christian Gill to read specifically during Black History Month after seeing it on somebody's blog.  I ordered in several copies for the store, where it sold pretty well, and I finally settled in to read it last week. Of the nine narratives, I was only familiar with one story, that of Henry "Box" Brown, so I was glad to get a mini-education in these pages.

Unfortunately, what I had mistaken for a graphic novel for adults (I mean, come on, it's called Strange Fruit, after all) is actually aimed at middle grade kids, and because of that the author/illustrator seemed much less interested in narration than didacticism. What's more, the humor used to minimize the dreadful situations of the characters for younger readers came across as back-pedaling when read through adult eyes.

While I'm glad I read this book, it ultimately wasn't a book that I liked very much, but that has more to do with my incorrect expectations of it.  The instructive tone throughout is better suited to the classroom than to a graphic novel, and the illustrations didn't do much for me, either, I'm afraid. If, however, you're a teacher or librarian looking for ways to get kids to read more history, particularly history that has been minimized, this book could be just the thing.



NB: I purchased copies of each of these books for myself.  This One Summer is published by First Second and Strange Fruit is published by Fulcrum. 

8 comments:

  1. Daaaamn that's a huge compliment from your husband. I MIGHT read that first one. I was interested in Strange Fruit, but yeah, I totally thought it was for adults.

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    1. Yeah, I realize now that it probably does *not* sound like a compliment, but it really was one. I would have liked Strange Fruit so much better if it had been for an adult audience.

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  2. Man, I'm kinda bummed about Strange Fruit being more of a book for kids. Seriously, that title does not suggest "for children!". I was thinking that would be a great graphic novel for me to try cos need more black history education and I'm finding the traditional superhero comics aren't so much my thing.

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    1. I know, I know. I was well into my second story in Strange Fruit and getting so frustrated with it before I checked to see what the targeted age was supposed to be: 12 and up.

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  3. Onto my tbr list for This One Summer! The Strange Fruit thing is a bummer. I wonder if the author/publisher could be persuaded to do an expanded version for adult readers...

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    1. I would 100%, without a doubt, read the adult version of Strange Fruit.

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  4. YAY :-)

    This One Summer is one I still haven't read, and really need to. I love that style of art. Check out Craig Thompson's Blankets and Habibi - they're BIG books, but they're so beautifully drawn.

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    1. I know Habibi, but I don't think I'm familiar with Blankets. Hope to get around to both of them one day, now that I've broken the ice with graphic novels.

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