I’ve talked about this book in a few posts past so it’s about time I shared my review with you! This one is actually a graphic novel, made up of a series of drawings that the author/artist originally shared on Twitter. It’s a very quick read but filled with some touching moments so it’s one of my top recommendations of the year!
You & a Bike & a Road by Eleanor Davis
Genre: Graphic Novel / Memoir / TravelIn 2016, acclaimed cartoonist and illustrator Eleanor Davis documented her cross-country bike tour as it happened. The immediacy of Davis’ comics journal makes for an incredible chronicle of human experience on the most efficient and humane form of human transportation.
Get it here: Amazon | Avid Bookshop | Indigo
I picked this one to fulfill my ‘Y’ book for the alphabet challenge, so besides the title and knowing that it was a graphic novel I didn’t really know what I was getting into. I was also completely out of the loop when she shared this story on Twitter – obviously with much success since she was able to turn it into a book!
The artist set out on a cross-country trip across America, partly it seems as a challenge to herself and her biking ability but also to go on more of a personal journey. What’s really interesting about this collection and something I really haven’t seen before is that she drew each of these sketches in real time on her trip, so it’s not a planned-out story. Instead, we see how she feels each day as she’s experiencing it, and the sketches reflect that this is a quickly jotted down diary of sorts.
We follow her through two months of this adventure, where she averages over 40 miles a day (yes I calculated this :P). This is definitely a trip for an experienced cyclist, which she is, so don’t think you can just hop on your bike and follow in her footsteps. Even with her background, she mentions that a trip of this distance is out of her wheelhouse and she’s very honest about the pain she experiences along the way. Acupuncture comes up quite a bit, but there are also days where she can’t get on the bike at all.
Similar perhaps to this pain ties back to what I was saying above about a personal journey. Davis also brings up her struggles with depression, using cycling as almost a coping mechanism when she’s facing particularly bad days.
I don’t think I expected such an honest portrayal of both 
the artist’s own life and such a frank discussion of how she sees America as well. As her trip takes her across Southern USA, she comes across many border patrol agents on her travels and so is confronted with issues of immigration quite often. There’s one event she is witness to and which she shares for us that, even from her drawings alone, you can get the sense of how much of an impression it made on her. These silent panels are perhaps the most compelling in the collection. She even takes time at the end of the book to share information on how readers can donate to immigration support groups, and I’m really glad she chose to share these stories in her own journey.
It’s not all heavy though, despite all the pain she feels and sees along the way. She also makes room for humour (the best companion), meeting several quirky characters along the way who welcome her into their own family. The kindness of strangers she’s able to benefit from along the way is really reassuring and such a feel-good moment that it almost feels too good to be true.
As I was reading, I was marking pages/drawings I really liked and basically ended up marking up the whole book. I’ve shared a few of my favourites here but I’ll post a few more on Instagram soon so watch for those. This is a good one, guys; I don’t think you’ll regret picking it up
