ellemnope's Reviews (2.4k)

A good continuation of the New Kid series. I really enjoy how Jerry Craft handles different situations regarding race and how he presents the view from both sides.

It's a really good thinkpiece for both kids and adults. There are a lot of subtleties that maybe don't get considered in childhood friendships where race and economic status are involved. This graphic novel presents situations that may be mishandled, but then also navigates how to rectify and handle actions that may be less than appropriate.

His characters are wonderful and really represent their ages well. His children are appropriately naive without being over simple. His adult characters are not perfect. They make mistakes. And they approach topics from myriad directions, resulting in really full pictures of "normal" life. Everything feels natural and real...no sugar coating and no stereotypical characters. 

This book is really a different format that is meant for more of a "coffee table" book. There isn't a real cohesive movement to the "plot". Instead it is small vignettes completed via interview with Dolly regarding her feelings and some background on certain songs throughout the progression of her career.

It's interesting bits of information, but the construction did really lead me to develop any continuous interest in the book as a whole. It's one I would consider more of one to look at in snippets or something of a collector's item.

Also...just a note: Dolly pretty much says every song is "a favorite" or one she really loves. It gets a bit repetitive and kind of takes away from understanding the true depth of how she feels about pieces of her career in lyrics. 

The background behind this story is so incredibly heartbreaking. I cannot imagine the absolute hell that Tom Hart and his wife have been through following the loss of their daughter, Rosalie. There were moments in this graphic novel that tore me apart. The emotional journey is just blow after blow and a constant pressure of sadness. The recognizing the struggle of letting go, the moments of thinking it must be a dream, the guilt that comes with not knowing why and the wondering of if they did enough during her short little life to let her know how much she was loved. Just imagining myself in their place hit me so incredibly hard.

However, I did struggle with a few things. Though they definitely express the darkness and the lost feeling from losing their child, the dark scribbling of some of the artwork and the disjointed nature of the story made it harder to follow and harder to feel...welcome...to the story. There was a level of discomfort just as a reader that somehow made it feel that my experience with it was an intrusion. It felt as if the story and I were at odds the entire way and the plot wasn't willingly unfolding. It was an odd experience and one that just didn't sit right for me. 

Oh my goodness I just love Toni. She has the most wonderful and friendly personality and she's always there with a good joke. I have a feeling she and I could be good friends despite the very long distance between where we live. Geography is a silly obstacle.

Her candor in baring her thoughts and feelings in this memoir are so well managed. She is honest and really does some great introspective work with her memories and her history, understanding that despite her rather privileged upbringing, she still struggled with a mental illness that created stress and struggle for her beyond her control. She accepts responsibility for the issue, but also gives herself the grace of knowing that she handled things as best she could at the time. As she has grown, so has her ability to deal with the anxiety and the damage it has done. This is not to mention the absolute devastation of her mother's death when she was young has created a lot of trauma for her.

I listened to the audiobook of this memoir and it had me blazing through a round of emotions. There were moments where she was clearly experiencing the hilarity of her memories and there were times when you could hear the sadness and devastation in her voice when she spoke of her mother. It was absolutely moving, yet hilariously funny at the same time. I will say it again. I love Toni. She is an amazing and lovely person. 

Backman always has a talent for creating quirky characters. This short story is packed with them despite its size. A weird premise mixed with this crazy cast results in a lot of awkward but humorous moments and I just love the feel of Backman's writing. There is something so "at home" about it, as if the storytelling is coming from a close friend. It's relaxed and conversational in a way that makes the reading go by in a blur.

As an introvert bordering on hermit I found a lot of myself in Lucas, so it was easy for me to get quickly bonded to the character. But I'm guessing that this bond will be easy for most everyone just based on how Backman creates him. You can't help but side with him and his plight.

Short and sweet, but hilarious and entertaining all the way through. A satisfying read from Backman as always. 

I love the atmosphere that Harrow creates and the dark magic woven through every moment. It's gritty and weird and a bit convoluted, but it's creative as hell. The thing preventing this one from a 5 star is really a silly reason considering I knew it was a short story when I went in, but...it's too short. This really needed more context and more backstory to the characters. It needed more exploration and a chance to spread its wings. There is so much potential in this short little snippet and I was really left so terribly wanting of more.