Jillian Tamaki

Spare and excellent writing paired with eloquent imagery. I don't know what I was expecting, but it blew me away. There was one image in particular that I sort of took in when reading the story. Stopped reading. Thought: that is an image of a woman drawn by someone who is in love with her. That is a first crush on paper. I read it and re-read it. It delighted me.

A delightful graphic novel, recommended for YA but really perfect for adults who remember their summers in a golden haze of swimming and sun, forgetting what lies beneath.

Two friends, Rose and Windy, see each other once a year at Awago Beach. Rose is a year older, slender and thoughtful; Windy is like a chubby, immature little sister. They exchange what they've learned over the winter about "boobs and boys" and live through difficulties within their families. There's also teenage angst and show more drama all around them, which they are ripe for absorbing.

The drawings and dialogue are blue and purple tinged liveliness and loveliness, capturing all that's contradictory about coming of age. show less

Aquietly moving graphic novel explores a teen girl’s experience with friends, suicide, cliques and love. Both overweight and of mixed ethnicities, Kimberly Keiko Cameron—also known as “Skim” because “she’s not”—is slowly moving through high school with her best friend Lisa. Both sharply witty and incisive, the two girls dabble in various forms of self-expression and exploration, like dressing with Gothic flair and trying Wicca. The two girls come to an impasse when Lisa gets show more an unexpected chance to join the popular clique. Coupled with her tumultuous friendship, Skim also harbors a crush on a female teacher, which leads her to begin to question herself and her desires. Long, languid lines portray Skim’s turmoil and angst with pitch-perfect resonance and show how, for teens, time seems to be so drawn out. While Tamaki’s faces are sometimes unsettling, the reader has the distinct impression that they should be uncomfortable. Recommend this to fans of Daniel Clowes’s Ghost World, who have been waiting for another graphic novel of teen angst and suburban ennui. (Graphic novel. YA)

-Kirkus Review show less

Oh, this was so painfully realistic. The in-betweenness of the age of Rose and Windy, wanting boobs, almost studying the "townies" of their beach getaway town Awago, like trying to peer behind the curtain of grown-upness. They watch horror movies to prove something - to themselves? To the "Dud" at the check out counter at the corner store. I love that Windy is more true to her self - she is afraid of the movies and says so, she stands up to Rose when she starts name-calling all the girls in show more the town. But I understand Rose's POV, too. That age, it's so easy to villainize other women - the competition. Luckily, she's got Windy to keep her honest. Rose's parents' struggles are also so painfully realistic, too. Struggles with infertility, depression, wanting to disappear, the strain on the marriage.

A slice of life, a snapshot in time. Don't expect something big on plot, or any big moralizing lessons for these girls. Some summers are just about being in between. show less