#8. Clumsy by Jeffrey Brown
Read this in one sitting. Brown has a way of just sucking a reader in, despite the loose artwork and constant self-obsession, and the story he tells touches on a myriad of relationshippy things. Clumsy is the story of a doomed love, of a deep look into sex, intimacy, and heartache. It is an autobiographical account of Brown's...er, involvement...with a girl named Theresa. Sometimes the narrative is a bit unfollowable, which is to blame for the lack of a solid voice throughout. The back page of the book explains the timeline, but it still can be very unclear. One strip has them in bed together, the next they are miles away talking on the phone.
And boy are they in bed a lot. Brown doesn't shy away from detailing sex, during-sex, and after-sex moments. But I think that's what makes this book more special than any other graphic telling of young love. It doesn't dance around the most intimate of moments; instead, rather bluntly, it shows the world them, and for that Clumsy is a well-recommended read that I'm sure I'll pick up again at some point and immerse myself in fully.
5 comments:
I am still waiting for you to finish the Michelle Sagara book. It sits on your list and never seems to move up. Get on with it, Biff
OMG, love your new icon! Hee hee.
And look, Cast in Courtlight is coming along real slow for me. Other books seem more enticing, and so I put the Sagara book down from time to time. I guess that isn't a good sign. I'm not as concerned about Kaylin's wellbeing this time around. But I should be finishing it soon...
It's Filbert. OMG - He's my bestest friend in the world, for ever and ever and ever. giggle giggle
I HEART CHIPMUNKS!
My FAVORITE writer/artist - Jeffrey Brown. I'm a super fan. Clumsy is excellent - but Unlikely is my favorite of his "trilogy" have you read it? It's not wildly different than Clumsy in a way, but I find them all lovely in their own details - you should check it out. Glad you enjoyed this one - a lot of people can't get away from the lack of straight through narrative and the scribbling drawing, but I LOVE. :)
This is actually the first book I've read of his. Liked it A LOT. Next time I have some $$$ and am ordering from Amazon, I'm getting the other 2 in the girlfriend trilogy. A shame I can't find them in bookstores around here.
But the loose art and open honesty is what really sold the book to me.
Post a Comment