Rate: ★★★★★
Is there a better way to finish your “reading year” than by reading the one graphic novel you can say you would read over and over again?
No, there isn’t.
I’ve read quite some good graphic novels before. But none compares to this. There was something beautifully overwhelming about this story.
I am still at a loss for words because I am feeling so many things at once, but one thing is for sure: this is, by far, my favorite graphic novel ever. And one of my favorite stories as well.
Synopsis
A failed artist, lacking any will to live, trades his life for a chance of having his art recognized. But when he finds out why life is worth it, he wonders if art is even worth it.
Positive aspects
I won’t even bother setting up a “negative aspect” category because my rating was a solid 5 just because I couldn’t give it more. I would, if I could.
And I could spend a whole day enumerating the things I loved about the book, the art and the story. In shades of white and blue, this book throws us into a very nostalgic and melancholic world. It throws us inside the despair and hopelessness of David’s mind, showing us how a failed artist is willing to trade literally anything for a bit of recognition. As it progresses, you witness David’s life changing, you witness a man falling in love with life again and learning that, even during the darkest hours, being alive is one of the greater of gifts. Everything happens within a clever narrative, with realistic dialogs and relatable characters.
And let me just dedicate a few words to the beautiful art. Artists are all different from each other, that’s for sure, that this illustrator was one of my favorites: the emotions he puts into those lines makes you feel everything, deeply.
I wonder how I only found out about this book now. I feel like this story will stay with me and I will want to read it times after times. Everybody should give it a try, I am sure they would not regret reading something so beautiful, so raw and so strong.
“To be a “thing” that thinks and moves and wants…that’s MIRACULOUS.”
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