Paul Goes Fishing

A very affable autobiographical (-style?) tale told with charm and wit. It's not groundbreaking stuff, but there's a calmness of tone and precision of eye here that's comforting. The final act seems to come out of nowhere, and while it's true that real life is often like that, it's also true that real life isn't always great art.

While this volume has the emotional depth of previous entries in the series, the title is misleading--Paul Has a Summer Job was about Paul's summer job; Paul Moves Out was similarly exactly what you'd expect. In this case, Paul's fishing trip isn't the point of the story do much as an opportunity for Paul to reminisce about his teen years and reflect on what his life was like. His conclusions are sweet, heartwarming, and ... generous? somehow, in how he views--and viewed--his family, even his parents. But this volume is about so much more than that--it's about building new families and relationships, and how to use what you've learned in the past to go forward. Like the other volumes in the Paul series, Rabagliati isn't breaking any new show more ground, but he's treading the familiar paths in his quiet, understated style. show less

Graphic novels tend to be hit-or-miss with me. If the art is too detailed, I can't follow the narrative, and if the art is too easily ignored, I just end up reading the words as an unsatisfying short story. This book strikes the right balance for me: the narrative is compelling, and the art captures the emotionally significant details without being overwhelming.

Des moments forts, de l’observation humaine fine comme on le retrouve dans la série Paul, mais un fil conducteur moins clair que dans les volumes précédents, un tout plus décousu.

I love this GN, which is both beautifully drawn and features a story lovingly told. Paul & his wife are expecting their first born but during a vacation to a remote fishing hole his wife has complications with the pregnancy and they are forced to abort the fetus.