Graphic Novel Review: This One Summer
Summer stories are fairly universal in their relatability. That span of two or three months, free of the daily routine of school, sometimes in a place away from home for an extended period, can feel like a foreign country to those who are fully grown, out of school, and settled into the so-called real world of adulthood. One can feel a bit of a yearning for what seem, in comparison, like simpler times of less responsibility and more freedom to do as you please. And while it’s true that the levels of responsibility and freedom might be drastically different as a kid than they are as an adult, it’s not always accurate to say that being a kid is simple.
Mariko and Jillian Tamaki’s This One Summer is, not surprisingly, a summer story, that centers on pre-teen girl Rose as she vacations with her parents in the small town of Awago Beach. She has a friend there, a younger girl named Windy, with whom she has grown up. Her parents are having a rough time, with her mother going through a depression and her father trying to make the best of their trip. There’s also a group of local teenagers with whom Rose and Windy get somewhat mixed up. It’s an intimate story with a small cast of characters, and the cousins Tamaki tell it perfectly.
Pages 3-5 of This One Summer.
Mariko Tamaki’s writing is top-notch, complex and nuanced, providing exactly as much information as the reader needs while leaving some things to be sussed out without being explicitly stated. Much of that nuance is on display in the character interactions, particularly the central relationship between Rose and Windy. These are people who are friends for basically two months out of the year, and while they have comfortable habits together, each also has to adjust to the changes that the other has made in the intervening months. Tamaki conveys that dynamic perfectly, with a superb ear for dialogue and the wisdom to know when nothing at all needs to be said. Enhancing their relationship is the way that Rose and Windy experience the action of the book. They don’t get up to a lot this summer, but they’re witness to a lot of things happening around them, and they each experience those things differently. Rose wants to be a part of the action, while Windy is more than content to spectate. Both go through a lot emotionally and psychologically as a result of the surrounding goings-on and their disparate reactions to those events.
Pages 6-8 of This One Summer.
On the art side, Jillian Tamaki’s work is absolutely breathtaking. Her splash pages are lush and full of painstaking detail. Rather than black-and-white, she uses a blue-and-white scheme that adds great warmth to her pages. Her pacing and page layout are equally well-done. Tamaki lets the story breathe when it needs to, utilizing pages with only one or two smaller panels and wide-open white space as well as silent full-page and double-page spreads. Often those pages are in succession, giving the splashes an extra kick when turning from a mostly-empty page. Much of this story is found in what’s left unsaid between characters, and Tamaki does an amazing job of telling that story when the burden falls entirely on her.
This One Summer is the latest title published by First Second Books. The graphic novel wing of Macmillan has recently put out such quality books as Friends With Boys, Relish, Red Handed, and National Book Award finalist Boxers and Saints. Excellently written and beautifully drawn, This One Summer continues First Second’s streak of high-quality, affecting books. It’s at times funny, dramatic, tense, and poignant, and always a fantastic read. The book hits stores at the beginning of May, and for fans of good books with strong, personal stories, it’s not to be missed.