#2021reading

[jeffstern]

Bastien Vives, Jerome Mulot, Florent Ruppert - The Grande Odalisque

A book club selection that we read in between a couple of "Paul" graphic novels by Michel Rabagliati (we got confused by titles, and ended up reading three of that series). The Grande Odalisque was a fun action adventure heist kind of story, with romantic subplots. I enjoyed it, but couldn't help thinking that the creators made this with selling the movie rights in mind (lots of spectacle - very grand indeed). But still a very fun read.

[penelopecat]

This Batman graphic novel by European creator @marini_art was a fun read, but suffers from the same issues I had with Three Jokers: lack of consequence. The notion of Batman trying to rescue a kidnapped girl with whom he may have a very specific relationship with from the Joker was certainly well told. But knowing that we will probably never see these new characters again, and will never hear of the events in this book again, kind of takes the wind out of its sails. It definitely sets up ideas that I’d love to see explored further… but knowing that’s unlikely to happen ends up feeling frustrating rather than fulfilling. Otherwise, this was a really great Batman story. #thismakesmehappy #books #2021reading #bookstagram #comics #graphicnovel #superhero #batman #batmanthedarkprincecharming #darkprincecharming #harleyquinn #enricomarini #marini #joker https://www.instagram.com/p/CTfJIMLlKq-/?utm_medium=tumblr

[jeffstern]

Matthew Dooley - Flake

Another book club graphic novel - we were really into reading short stuff after having read a few longer things. This one, a story about love, friendship, and finding your way in the world as a bit of an oddball/weirdo, is set in the apparently cutthroat world of the ice cream truck business. Probably my favorite of the graphic novels we read in this period of time. Which was Sept/Oct of 2021, so I’m a bit behind in logging my reading. And at least a few of these books/posts are out of order because The Overstory was something we started in 2021 and ended in 2022. Oops, at least I’m logging.

[jeffstern]

Michel Rabagliati - Paul at Home

Paul is older, and this one is darker. Enjoyed it more than the first we read. I feel like I’m giving these short shrift, as they were thoughtful and detailed, but they just didn’t really hit me right.

[jeffstern]

Michel Rabagliati - Paul in the Country

This was just a slim thing, I barely remember it

[jeffstern]

Michel Rabagliati - Paul Moves Out

This was another book club selection - a few people had a hankering to get into some graphic novels, and we managed to confuse each other (likely mostly/all my fault) with the titles enough that we read a few different ones. This was the first we read, and they are all pretty "slice of life" stories, apparently autobiographical to some degree. I liked that the author didn't attempt to make himself a "hero" or even particularly likable, as the central character. That being said, some of the casual/lowkey racism was off-putting (after discussion with others, I'm still not sure if it's meant as a critique of the main characters - a sort of "look at how honest I am about how dumb we were" attempt at , or was simply "a product of its time," and that may be a big part of my issue).

[jeffstern]

Nnedi Okorafor - Remote Control

This is a slim/short book, but filled with big ideas. Very similar in style, pace, and tone to Nnnedi's other Africanfuturism books, yet also stands on its own. I am continually impressed with how she is able to create characters and worlds that incorporate a lot of technology and/or juju, but they never feel like the tech/juju is the point. The stories are always human, even when the characters are not. This one somewhat reminded me of the tv show Kung Fu, but with a bit more gravitas.

[jeffstern]

Evan Dara - Permanent Earthquake

I really like Evan Dara, and his style of giving the reader direct insight into his characters thoughts without the aid of quotation marks, or even any indication of whose thoughts we are in. While that could be confusing (especially at first) in the earlier books that I read (The Lost Scrapbook, which is very well-regarded in certain circles, and Flee, which I might have enjoyed even more), in this one he keeps it simple by leaving us in the head of a single character. However, that character is traversing an island that is in the midst of what seems to be a permanent earthquake (intensity varies) and so this could be read as some sort of climate crisis novel. However, Dara seems not to worry about causes, instead focusing on how someone with few tools and little power or influence manages to make a life of meaning in a mixed up world. At least, that was my reading. I really enjoyed how over time we went from the day-to-day struggles, and learned more about the character's background and history.