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Mid-Life (2011)

by Joe Ollmann(Favorite Author)

3.43 of 5 Votes: 5

ISBN

1770460284 (ISBN13: 9781770460287)

languge

English

genre

Graphic Novels & Comics

publisher

Drawn and Quarterly

review 1: I enjoyed this, Joe Ollmann's first graphic novel...with an underscore on "novel." I'm familiar with his shorter pieces, I guess what one would call the short-story equivalent to the "graphic novel." His longer-form narrative is similar to style/characteristics he employs in Happy Stories about Well-Adjusted People, but I can tell that the more sustained format required different kinds of storytelling strategies. The most noticeable one is his use of two different narrators (or focalizers?) in the story: John and Sherry. When the latter came into the mix, it threw me at first -- again, being used to Ollmann's shorter-form storytelling where he assumes the voice of one particular character or consciousness -- but then I understood where he was going and got used to the dual... more style. Did it work? Yes, I think it succeeded. But I came away from Mid-Life still thinking that the story was tilted heavily in favor of John...which makes sense, since (as Ollmann admits) parts of this are based on the creator's own life. But with the split narrators, I'd expected equal time for Sherry. And the fact that the book begins and ends with John and his dilemma, there emphasis is clearly place on him. Still, Ollmannn has to end with one character, so it makes sense that it be the one that is more closely linked to the author. As a result, John is the one we have the most access to and can sympathize with more.
review 2: I honestly have very little to say about this book. Essentially, the plot revolves around a man going through a mid-life crisis during his second marriage. I had a hard time connecting with the text because the themes it was centered around had little/nothing to do with my own life. However, it was a well-told story and I am still intrigued by the graphic novel format in general. I think I am going to try out a few more! less

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