WARNING: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS BELOW
Catrina and her family are moving to the coast of Northern California because her little sister, Maya, is sick. Cat isn't happy about leaving her friends for Bahía de la Luna, but Maya has cystic fibrosis and will benefit from the cool, salty air that blows in from the sea. As the girls explore their new home, a neighbor lets them in on a secret: There are ghosts in Bahía de la Luna. Maya is determined to meet one, but Cat wants nothing to do with them. As the time of year when ghosts reunite with their loved ones approaches, Cat must figure out how to put aside her fears for her sister's sake - and her own.
I'm not really a graphic novel fan. As much as I love art and animation and all that, graphic novels never really caught my eye. Maybe it's because graphic novel art reminds me a lot of the new Cartoon Network art, which is kind of unappealing to me. Also, a lot of graphic novels just kind of blend together and none of them stand out when I browse for books at my local library.
But this month I read not one but two graphic novels. And I remembered another reason why I don't usually read graphic novels, but I'll get to that in a second. This is the first, which I picked up on a whim and also because, as I think I mentioned before, I really enjoy Raina Telgemeier's work. She's one of the few middle grade writers who have managed to hold my interest, and I find her art style unique and pleasant for a graphic novel. I especially like her memoirs, though I did also enjoy Drama, her first middle grade straight up novel.
So with all that in mind I picked up Ghosts. I was intrigued by this book when it first came out in the September of last year, but then got distracted by other books that came out around that time, like A Gentleman in Moscow and Crooked Kingdom. I liked the fact that it was about a little girl with cystic fibrosis and her older sister dealing with the very real possibility that her sister will not live very long. I've never read a book that had a girl with cystic fibrosis in it, though I was aware of its existence, and really liked that representation. I also liked the Mexican cultural elements. Latin, especially Mexican, culture is so vibrant and colorful and quite interesting. Also, the Day of the Dead is easily one of the most interesting holidays out there, and I was a little in love with the Northern California town she created to set her story in- I'd never live in California, but if I had to, it'd be to there. Or San Francisco. Either one.
That being said, my favorite part was the illustrations. I loved Telgemeier's take on ghosts. I admit, I expected a more realistic style of drawing ghosts and was really happy when I saw those cute little things. I also really liked her character designs and how she goes to extra lengths to make sure that all of her characters, even the background ones, are visually interesting and unique.
Of course, this book does have flaws. It is a middle grade book, and a graphic novel, so the emotions don't reach as deep as they could have been. The characters aren't as developed as they could have been, and their development was pretty instantaneous. Both of these are common problems I have with graphic novels- I find that they're usually pretty short, and as such are pretty surface level in terms of depth. Often I leave them wanting more.
But overall, I did enjoy this book, about as much I can enjoy a middle grade graphic novel. Also, ghosts. I really love ghosts. I'm tempted to pick up Anya's Ghost now because of this book. Recommended for any middle grade reader, graphic novel lover or not.
7.5 out of 10
And now, a mini review of Dare to Disappoint by Ozge Samanci
Growing up on the Aegean Coast, Ozge loved the sea and imagined a life of adventure while her parents and society demanded predictability. Her dad expected Ozge, like her sister, to become an engineer. She tried to hear her own voice over his and the religious and militaristic tensions of Turkey and the conflicts between secularism and fundamentalism. Could she be a scuba diver like Jacques Cousteau? A stage actress? Would it be possible to please everyone including herself?
In her unpredictable and funny graphic memoir, Ozge recounts her story using inventive collages, weaving together images of the sea, politics, science, and friendship.
Not crazy about this book. It had a lot of the same problems as Ghosts, but with a storyline that endeared me less and with what seemed like much less heart. I felt like Samanci just wrote this book because of the success of books along the same lines as this, like Persopolis (haven't read that one, and honestly, it doesn't really appeal much to me).
I also felt that Samanci didn't really know where she was going with this book. Did she want to write a book about her father's pressure on her, fundamental Islam, a picture of Turkey at the time, what? The book felt as confused as Turkey did during the 80s. The lack of her telling us any time periods confused me, and made this not the best book for someone interested in a history of modern Turkey. Perhaps that's intentional, to mimic her feelings about what she should do with her life, but I don't know.
So what did I like? It was easy to read- I read the whole thing in one sitting without even checking it out because I was tired of my other book- and the mixed media elements were interesting even if it did add to the confused, jumbled together nature of the book. Some parts were actually pretty funny, but other times her jokes missed the mark a bit. My favorite parts were at the beginning of the book, when she talked about her experiences in primary school- the book kind of lost me as she entered her teenage years.
But the art style was mostly unpleasant and the ending felt unfinished and I left this book feeling very meh. I suppose if I want to read a book about Middle Eastern culture (I'm referring to the Middle East more as a cultural construct, not a geographical one in this context, because I know that Turkey isn't part of the Middle East geographically and people get all butthurt about it), I'd pick up something by Khaled Hosseini. His books are longer, and they lack the pictures, but his characters and portrayals of their situations are unmatched. Adore his stuff.
5-5.5 out of 10
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