cbr16bingo Dun-Dun (dread of the medical condition our main character has)
What I expected from the cover of The Jellyfish by Boum (translated by Robin Lang and Helge Dascher) was not what I got. I got my physical copy of the book soon after it came out, but it took months to get to it. Then a weekend came, I tripped over the box that I had put it in (moving things around) and decided it was time to clean up things. And when I was done, I had planned on donating it to the library. This looked like a great teen/adult crossover graphic novel and my library doesn’t have a lot of those. Unfortunately, due to being overtired, a box stuck to the table, (I was not having luck with boxes that day) and a plate of spaghetti not moving, I have a damaged copy now. (Anyone interested in a slightly stained book? It smells great…)
Seriously, before the Great Spaghetti Incident, the character Odette Biset-Yu had me entranced. It might sound odd but two things come out of this book for how I feel about it. First, I was not completely a fan of Odette, but we probably would be decent friends. And maybe this book is not the most amazingly perfect book ever, but it really hits most of the criteria. Things are simple, straight forward, nothing too surprising, yet, there is something about it that grabbed me from the start and would not let me go. I wouldn’t even stop to write notes about thoughts I had or even a name list (which I tend to do, to just keep people straight in my mind). I just kept plowing through.
Odette and their story is an interesting one and to tell it is to give it away. But just realize not everything is what it seems, yet it is all right there. Clever and emotional, not for the sensitive reader, but also all should read, just take your time, there is no rush. I will say you want to walk with Odette as they go through the journey of their realizing the medical condition. Near the end, my emotions were really on High. This was mostly due to how Boum physically creates the result of Odette’s journey.
This was a “feeling book” for me. I felt it had a French feeling, and since it was translated, I figure I’m not too far off. The author was born in Montreal and I felt that influence as well. And I really was feeling for Odette, feeling the black and white illustrations that had probably more punch than color ones would have. I do wonder how much of the author’s own experiences are Odette’s and how much is art, but regardless, it is a book that should be out there. At least ages 14 and up (due to concepts more than content, but there is some content that is mature as well. Such as some nudity, drinking and family situations).)