Characters: Jane
Graphic Novel Review: Continental Drifter by Kathy Macleod
Posted on July 25, 2024 at 6:57 am by Gene Ambaum
Continental Drifter by Kathy Macleod. First Second, 2024. 9781250813732. 218pp including an afterward, photos of Kathy and her family, and comics that she drew when she was a kid.
Kathy and her older sister Jennie grew up in Thailand where they were raised by older parents (their dad is a retired US soldier, their mother a Thai businesswoman). They attended international schools where they were educated in English. Their family also spent some summers in Maine with their father’s family.
A lot of the book is about Kathy not feeling like she fit in, no matter where she is. It also explores the way her family didn’t talk about the past and so often kept their feelings from each other.
Some people thought Kathy’s dad was her grandfather. In Thailand after friend’s brother told her she wasn’t American, Kathy started to look forward to going to Maine, where she would be attending summer camp for the first time. (She also started keeping a diary as she began her countdown to the Maine trip.) In Maine, though, she and her family were clearly different from those around them. Despite a group of loving relatives there, it wasn’t always a great experience. But camp wasn’t a complete and utter disaster, either.
There’s a lot to love about this book. It feels like the kind of story that might open up some kids’ eyes about how they treat others, especially how questioning and excluding kids can make them feel like they don’t belong. I’m a huge fan of Kathy’s warm and welcoming camp counselor. And I loved the fart jokes, her relationship with her dad, the bits about Thai culture, and the cringy moment when her mom gave her a special something to take with her to camp.
Graphic Novel Review: The Naked Tree by Keum Suk Gendry-Kim
Posted on July 23, 2024 at 6:40 am by Gene Ambaum
The Naked Tree by Keum Suk Gendry-Kim. Translated by Janet Wong. Drawn & Quarterly, 2023. 9781770466678. 320pp.
The Naked Tree is based on a Korean novel by Park Wan-Suh that was originally published in 1971. According to the introduction by Park’s son Ho Won-Sook, his mother always said she was going to write about the artist Park Su-geun, who drew portraits for American soldiers at the PX in Seoul. Gendry-Kim’s graphic novel version veers from Park’s a bit but, according to Ho’s introduction and my wife’s readings, it seems to be quite loyal to it while extending beyond the original. (If you’re going to read the graphic novel, make sure you read the forward and Gendry-Kim’s afterward, which has photos of Park Wan-Suh and Park Su-geun.)
The story itself gives the sense of being a memoir, with the characters conveying at least in part the experiences of Park Wan-Suh and Park Su-Geun. It begins in 1951, after UN forces reclaimed Seoul from Communist forces. Miss Lee works in the PX, behind a counter where foreign soldiers come to have portraits painted on “silk” scarves. The artists who do the work are paid by the piece, and are called “signies.” No one makes much money. Miss Lee is very much alone; she lives with her mother, but she doesn’t like her. And she longs for someone to love. The shop’s owner hires a real artist, Ok Huido, and it’s Miss Lee’s job to bring in enough work for him and the others. Even as another man who works at the PX starts to show an interest in her, she falls herself falling for the married Mr. Ok.
I love the sense of history and tragedy that permeates this story, and particularly Miss Lee’s attitude toward her mother, which made it feel real and shocking. Gendry-Kim’s adaptation has sent my wife seeking more of Park Wan-Suh’s novels (and luckily the University of Washington’s libraries have several in Korean and English), and I’m planning on reading an English translation of the original just as soon as some of the details of this adaptation have left my brain. We both admire and highly recommend all of Gendry-Kim’s graphic novels.
Graphic Novel Review: 12 by Manix Abrera
Posted on July 18, 2024 at 7:29 am by Gene Ambaum
12 by Manix Abrera. Ablaze, 2022. 9781684970001. 152pp.
Abrera’s graphic novel features twelve wordless stories, each about one of the individuals on the cover. They’re for adults, but I don’t want to describe them to you more; I didn’t know what to expect when I opened this book, which made it a better read.
Abrera’s simple style makes most feel ponderous. My favorites involve 1) a fantastic partner who is brought to life in an inventive way only possible via the language of comics and 2) a little girl who uses a balloon to look around after she loses her parent.
If that sounds good to you at all, check it out from your library. It’s available on Hoopla at mine. (Ablaze has also published 14 by Abrera; it looks like it’s available through Hoopla as well.)
Graphic Novel Review: Hidden Systems: Water, Electricity, the Internet, and the Secrets Behind the Systems We Use Every Day by Dan Nott
Posted on July 16, 2024 at 6:38 am by Gene Ambaum
Hidden Systems: Water, Electricity, the Internet, and the Secrets Behind the Systems We Use Every Day by Dan Nott. RH Graphic, 2023. 9780593125366. 266pp.
I frequently listen to the 99% Invisible podcast, but that’s generally the extent of the information I get on infrastructure.
Nott’s amazing graphic novel pulled me in in a way few nonfiction comics have; I don’t think I’ve ever read this complete an explanation of the water cycle including the problems humans create, solve, and need to address. The chapters on the internet had me noting buildings in Seattle that I walk past without seeing, anonymous places full of servers and other tech that I don’t really understand (but should). Nott explores history to show how we’ve arrived at where we are now, shows us the way things work (there’s a quote on the cover from David Macaulay), and makes us aware of current and potential crises. In other hands this would be overwhelming, but Nott’s work invites further exploration of the topics he covers.
There’s a lot to love in this nonfiction graphic novel, but my favorite parts are the pages from Nott’s sketchbooks at the end; looking at them after reading the book gave me a glimpse of how his mind works. He also includes notes and a selected bibliography.
Fiction Review: Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
Posted on July 11, 2024 at 10:28 am by Gene Ambaum
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt. Ecco, 2022. 9780063204157.
Tova works nights cleaning the Sowell Bay Aquarium. It’s there that she notices that the giant Pacific octopus, Marcellus, occasionally leaves his tank in search of snacks. He’s much smarter than anyone (except Tova) believes, and the two become friends. Marcellus knows what happened to Tova’s son, and he can perceive things Tova can’t, particularly about Cameron, the young man who takes over cleaning when Tova is injured. But Marcellus isn’t sure how to tell her what he knows.
This book is lovely, and I’m loaning my copy to lots of friends. My favorite parts were the chapters from Marcellus’s point of view, but I also enjoyed Cameron’s quest to contact the man he believes to be his father and how Tova changes throughout the book.
(Thanks again for the present, Karen!)
Tags 1 Comment - Read MoreGraphic Novel Review: Sins of the Salton Sea written by Ed Brisson and illustrated by C.P. Smith
Posted on July 9, 2024 at 6:32 am by Gene Ambaum
Sins of the Salton Sea written by Ed Brisson and illustrated by C.P. Smith. AWA, 2024. 9781953165541. 128pp. Contains #1 – #5.
I loved Brisson’s previous crime graphic novel Catch & Release: A Murder Book Story. CP Smith’s art makes this one feel a bit more cinematic, and it’s got a fun, somewhat sudden (if you weren’t paying attention to the tenacles on the cover) genre shift at the end.
Jasper finds his brother Wyatt living in a motor home; Wyatt disappeared a while back after some horrible personal stuff. Jasper wants to pull one last heist before retirement, and he needs someone who knows explosives. Wyatt takes some convincing, but the next day he’s rolling with Jasper’s heavily armed crew to take down a truck full of cash. Everything goes wrong. There’s no cash. The rest of the story involves a cult, an attempt to avoid the end of the world, and a hunt for those who survived the attempted heist (and what they found in the truck).
The story is relentless, and it took me right back to visiting the creepy, desolate Salton Sea with my great aunt and uncle when I was a kid. It was super spooky; if you’d told me monsters lived there, I’d have believed you.
Read on! Cosmoknights and The Horizon
Posted on July 4, 2024 at 6:30 am by Gene Ambaum
Cosmoknights Book Two by Hannah Templer. Top Shelf, 2023. 9781603095112. 278pp.
This graphic novel is as good as the first in the series, though you should read that one if you haven’t. It’s about a crew of women who seem to be competing in combat contests to win the hands of princesses, but who are actually setting the princesses free. They may soon be ready to take their mission to the next step even as freeing the princess they have in hand gets more complicated. Pan (you’d know her if you’d read the last book) begins training in zero-gravity combat. Plus there’s queer romance galore and space pirates!
This book is just so satisfying, and so much fun. I can’t wait for the third book. Worth noting: It has my favorite dedication ever: “To Found Family”
The Horizon Volume 2 by JH. Translation by Ultramedia. Ize Press, 2023. 9798400900303. 360pp.
The Horizon Volume 3 by JH. Translation by Ultramedia. Ize Press, 2023. 9798400900310. 360pp.
This Korean graphic novel series wraps with volume 3. It’s the story of two kids in a post-apocalyptic world. Highlights include The Man in the Suit, who rescues the kids at the beginning of Volume 2 and then teaches the boy how to use a gun. The girls’ survival backstory is told in detail. Volume 3 continues with a meeting that’s heartbreaking, and then the story jumps into the future a few decades.
Great Korean stories never go places I expect, and this continues that trend in a way I admire.
Graphic Novel Review: A Guest in the House by Emily Carroll
Posted on July 2, 2024 at 6:30 am by Gene Ambaum
A Guest in the House by Emily Carroll. First Second, 2023. 9781250255525. 250pp.
Carroll’s graphic novel is the best kind of creeps-up-on-you horror adult horror, one of those the-less-you-know-the-better type books. (Apologies if you hate hyphens.) It’s about a bad marriage and a controlling husband. At the center is Abby, a quiet woman trying to help raise her stepdaughter, Crystal, and the story of what really happened to her husband’s first wife. There’s a ghost, fantasy imagery, and a creepy use of color that is pure Carroll.
If you’re an adult and you’ve never read one of her books, this is the perfect place to start.
Graphic Novel Review: The Phantom Scientist by Robin Cousin
Posted on June 27, 2024 at 6:30 am by Gene Ambaum
The Phantom Scientist by Robin Cousin. Translated by Edward Gauvin. MIT Press, 2023. 9780262047869. 125pp.
This graphic novel opens with the arrival of Sorokin at the 4th Institute for the Study of Complex and Dynamic Systems. The armed clean-up crew that has just finished with the 3rd Institute is leaving the site, and one of the masked men hands things over to him. Sorokin watches a video from the previous director who explains the Institute a bit, from the type of researchers it includes to the fact that the system tends toward entropy and chaos in its last year, when results are expected. Sorokin’s role is to slow the spread of chaos at the end of the 4th Institute during its final year.
Then on the next page, the book jumps forward six years, to the arrival of the final researcher, Stéphane, whose field is morphogenesis. He is offered a lab plus whatever resources he needs. On the way to his lab he meets two others who live in his building, Louise (linguistics) and Vilhelm (he seems to be modeling the Institute itself). As Louise gives him a tour, a lone scientist in the woods observes them. He’s the so-called Phantom Scientist of the title, a man supposedly living in their building (though he’s never been seen), a researcher looking into the mathematical problem of P vs. NP.
It all makes for a decent mystery full of drawings that I loved, and it had me searching and reading scientific terms. After finishing the book I was able to send a cryptic (to me anyway) text to the smartest math person I know, which will (I hope) lead me to a deeper understanding of P vs. NP next time we talk. If not, at least I’ll have a better sense of how much my brain has petrified in recent years.
Worth noting: There’s some cool stuff on plants and origami and much more in here.
Graphic Novel Review: The Gull Yettin by Joe Kessler
Posted on June 25, 2024 at 6:30 am by Gene Ambaum
The Gull Yettin by Joe Kessler. New York Review Of Books, 2023. 9781681377391. 216pp.
This wordless graphic novel begins with a soccer match, after which a strange, shape-shifting creature follows a boy home. That night the boy’s house catches fire. He escapes the flames but is taken to a hospital. The creature liberates the boy from the hospital and takes him on a harrowing journey that includes many bizarre moments, parental figures, tenderness, and some horrific violence.
The drawings might look primitive at first glance, but they have a power that comes from the sense of quick rendering combined with Kessler’s storytelling skills. Their odd colors and childlike style are deliberate and compelling; both forced me to pay attention and think about what I was reading in a way that slicker-looking graphic novels rarely do.
Kessler’s work is inspiring and I hope you’ll give this book a quick but thorough read.
