This week I read the graphic novel This One Summer, written by Mariko Tamaki and illustrated by Jillian Tamaki. While reading this story, I was amazed to find that it was not autobiographical. The coming of age themes presented are so on point that without knowing otherwise, anyone would assume they are a personal recounting. The emotions and experiences that the main character, Rose, undergoes are things that everyone, especially girls can relate having gone through in their youth. The element of family traditions during the summer, having a place that you always go to (like Awago) is certainly accurate to my childhood. Rose's slightly younger friend, Windy, is a character that many of us have encountered growing up, whether it is through a friend, cousin, or in my case sibling. It is always an interesting dynamic when kids are so close in age, but clearly on different levels of maturity. This goes hand in hand with the theme of wanting to be or thinking of yourself as more grown up than you really are. Other very relatable elements of the story are the crush on an older teenager, the desire to expose yourself to "adult things" (in this case, horror movies), and the awareness conflict between your parents.
Reading this book reminded me of my experience with Blankets, another coming of age story that we read this semester. Both stories have bitter sweet moments, and do not necessarily conclude with happy endings. They just sort of end, which adds to the realism (although Blankets is based on the author's personal experience). Both these books left me wondering what part of my life I would illustrate if I were to ever write a graphic novel. Since childhood is such an important time of discovery and growth, that is probably the time I would pull from.
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