This One Summer - Tamaki

Title: This One Summer
Author: Mariko & Jillian Tamaki
Published: 2014;  Pages: 258
Genre: Fiction
Rating: 2/5- Just okay.  Choose with extreme prejudice.

Book Source: I received this ARC, free of cost, in exchange for an honest review.

Recommended if you like: Graphic Novels, YA


What Its About:  

Rose is visiting her family's Awago Beach lake house, as she has done every summer since she can remember. Usually, its a time filled with joy and fun. But this year is different. 

Rose is growing up. She is noticing things she never has before, like boys and other people's problems. Her mother isn't acting normally, and her parents are fighting. Her friend Windy is there to weather the storm with her, but some things even friends can't fix.


Bottom Line: 

Eh...

Admittedly, I am not a big graphic novel reader. The graphic part was pretty cool though and it was fun to read something new like this. 

That wasn't why I wasn't impressed with this book.  
  
First, there seemed to be an expectation that tweens have the inability to complete a focused thought. At least, that is how it seemed to me from the writing. The book jumped from scene to scene, thought to thought, subject to subject with no chapter breaks, no page breaks...nothing to indicate a new thought had begun. Perhaps that is typical of graphic novels? Or do the authors just think that is how a teen's mind works? I certainly don't recall being that way, nor are any of the teens I know. I had trouble following along because of it. I would have preferred at least some structure.

Second, though the subject matter was fairly deep for a graphic novel (which was great), overall the book didn't delve deep enough into any of those subject matters to make it worth reading. Teen pregnancy and miscarriage - great topics, great opportunities to learning...both barely mentioned in passing.

Even the friend character, Windy, didn't really seem to have any purpose. The friendship was barely developed, which I felt was a loss. I was just sort of left going...uh, why bother?!

Overall, it was a quick read. But just eh...