Review: An Age of License

You know what I don't review enough? Graphic novels. You know what I don't read enough? GRAPHIC NOVELS. Seriously. Graphic novels are fab, super easy and quick to read. It's a wonder I don't read more of them.

Lucy Knisley's travelogue An Age of License is one I've wanted to read for a really really long time, but it never seemed like anyone ever had it in stock. I actually found it by accident, while going on my annual Post Christmas Book Binge (aka the day that I go and use up all the gift cards that the lovely people in my life have given me). A pleasant surprise! I read the majority of it on the bus the next day. (Like I said--graphic novels provide some very fast reads!)

I'm unfamiliar with Knisley's work, but her ilustration style is what drew me to the book in the first place. It's very simplistic, cute, and welcoming to the reader. It wasn't super exaggerated, and I really appreciated some of the full-page illustrations of the things she saw while abroad. (That girl knows her watercolours!)

Some people may find this book a bit slow, to which I say....well, it's a journal. It recounts most of what she did day by day while in Europe in a visual way, including some unique sights she saw and conversations she had with others. It's not meant to be thrilling or an exciting adventure--it's more retrospective, with thoughtful consideration about her accomplishments, her future, etc etc. It's a memoir; a travelogue, as she calls it. The key is relating to the illustrator--if you can't find a similarity or two, if you can't relate to her in some shape or form, you probably won't take much away from this. (But if you do relate to her, she talks about some really interesting stuff in a very thoughtful way!)

This book really gave me the travel bug--I've always enjoyed travelling, but seeing the places she travelled to and following her along this journey really made me want to hit the road (or plane?) again! Which is bad, because I'm a poor student, as are most of my friends. Oh, well. It'll happen eventually. 

I'd give this book a solid 4 stars--and I definitely recommend it to any artists or travellers out there!

Until later,

- Justyne

Review: We Should Hang Out Sometime

WARNING: The following blog post contain spoilers for the novel under review, ranging from mild to heart wrenchingly major. If you have yet to read this novel and dislike being spoiled, leave now and return upon completion.

If you HAVE read this novel (or just don't give a crap about spoilers), then continue on.

But don't say I didn't warn you.

~~

HELLO, FRIENDS! I've been considering turning these into weekly reviews, but this is something that has yet to be decided--on the one hand, I have been reading a fair bit lately. (I finished today's reviewed book on April 9th, and I have since read two other books that I will be reviewing on future Wednesdays.) One the other hand, this comes in spurts--I started today's reviewed book on March 23rd. If I did them every week, eventually I'd run out of previously prepared reviews.

Who knows, maybe I'll be able to manage it in the future. We'll see.

In the meantime, enjoy today's review of We Should Hang Out Sometime, a memoir / experiment by Josh Sundquist.

THE PLOT-Y BIT

Josh thought he had a serious girlfriend, until one day: SURPRISE! She's actually dating someone else. What he thought was a serious relatinoship turned out to be...well, whatever you call that awkward period of time between meeting and "officially" dating.

Then Josh realized something: he's never had a serious girlfriend. Plenty of those awkward time periods, sure, but never an exclusive relationship. So where has he been going wrong?

In a series of hilarious flashbacks, somewhat plausible hypotheses and incredibly awkward reunions, Josh sets out to discover why those delightful beginnings of love never really turned into the real thing. From a super awkward, 23-hour relationship in eigth grade to his most sincere attempts for a grand gesture at a Miss America pageant in his 20's, Josh begins looking for a problem to fix--only to discover that, maybe, there isn't really anything wrong with him at all.

THE REVIEW-Y BIT

First off, this story was extremely comforting. As someone who has never been involved in any romantic relationship (I, myself, have never made it past the "we should hang out sometime" stage), I've had those moments, those, "Is there something wrong with me?" questions more times than I can count. The fact that someone else not only feels the same way, but planned a whole investigation around it, is comforting to me. It's nice to know that I'm not alone in my feelings and experiences (or lack thereof).

The writing style was a pleasure. Sundquist took no shame in the utter awkwardness that accompanies teenage relationships, instead choosing to put it in the spotlight. Reading it almost felt like he was standing right in front of me and telling me the story himself. The writing was humourous and the storytelling style was super natural.

I liked the way his stories were laid out and told, as though he were actually performing a science experiment. (Which, depending on the way you look at it, he kind of was.) His graphs and pie charts doodled throughout the book were absolutely charming, and only added to the appeal.

That being said, the "Investigation" section of every relationship he revisited was a little disappointing after reading the hilarity of his initial encounters with these girls. I mean, I get that he can't really change what he found out (or didn't find out with each girl), but I wish there had almost been...a little more of a conclusion for each story. It almost felt like he didn't really finish off each investigation--I was just kind of left to wander on to the next section, without really feeling like the last one was properly finished.

Overall, though, while I may be a stranger to the world of nonfiction, I definitely enjoyed reading his story.

THE STAR-Y BIT (previously known as THE RATING-Y BIT)

Four stars. Completely relateable, charmingly awkward, but I'm not 100% sure if there's much reread value in this.

Until later,

- Justyne

Creative Nonfiction (BEDS #6)

The sky is my favourite. It's that shade of blue, my favourite blue, the kind I remember staring up at from the pool in our backyard back home. The only time I ever really liked to swim was when I wasn't swimming at all.

~~

I have a confession: my life is a little boring. Very boring, actually, which really shouldn't be surprising, considering how much time I spend alone in my room. There are only so many adventures you can have in seclusion.

This is why I sometimes have trouble blogging, actually. When I have no advice to give, no unique contribution to make to what the other writing-themed blogs have already said, I find that my mundane life provides very little blogging material. It's easy, in theory, to talk about what's going on in your life. The reality of it can be true, as well...but that goes more for friendly chats and less for blogging on the internet.

My audience may be small, but I'm sure you don't want to hear me complain about my sister taking my clothes again.

That's why I never even considered writing creative nonfiction before. Or why I never thought that I'd even pen an autobiography, because my story is a short and repetitive one. It's not exciting, nor is it really inspiring. People won't really take anything away from it. Even my own personal and private journals / diaries have been this way for almost as long as I can remember:

"Dear Diary,

This happened, then that happened. I feel like this.

The End."

How did I even get into this whole writing business?


But the other day, I tried something different. On the way back from my vacation, while I was sitting on the plane, airborn for Winnipeg, I stared out the window. That small action in and of itself really wasn't new at all, but it was the things I was thinking about, and the way I was thinking about them, that motivated me to pull out my journal.

Normally, I'd write another mundane entry. Normally, I'd write the date, and say something along the lines of, "I like staring out the window and thinking about stuff." (No, really. That right there is practically a direct quote.) But this time, I stopped, and I opted for something different:

The wall of the plane is cold. I can lean against it more comfortably than in the train I was on earlier in the summer; back when the days were still growing and the imminent change that is now so close, didn't seem so imminent. But even though my seat is arranged in such a way that I could easily rest my head against the heavy structure and fall asleep, I shift carefully away from it. The cold is shocking to my skin--I can only imagine what it's like out there.

There's a reason I never enjoyed writing about my life, even in the private confines of my journal--it was boring. It was boring and dull and I'm sure that in twenty years I will not be interested in reading about the toys I got for Christmas when I was 11.

This, though...this was different. I had never written about my life this way before--not without changing some major detail, or falsifying my life in a way that would make things more interesting to the non-existent reader.

This was interesting. It was fun.

Maybe someday I'll share the full piece with you. But for now, I think I might write some more.


Until later,

- Justyne