Blankets
Recommended by a friend of mine who is a writer himself, I picked up my first ever graphic novel. ”Blankets” by Craig Thompson is beautifully drawn and written. At almost 600 pages, I thought it’d take me a while to get through, but the story was so engaging, and the graphics so well drawn and harmonized with the story that I had a hard time putting it down. I met the end within three days of light reading.
I was a bit leery about reading a graphic novel when I first picked it up as I highly respect the mind’s ability to imagine environments and situations without the aid of visuals. This is why books are so often better than movies. The imagination is incredible. But I was pleasantly surprised by Thompson’s ability to harmonize literature and 2D art. His artistic ability in drawing alone is worth picking up this book.
Ultimately it’s a story of coming of age, struggling through a fundamentalist Christian upbringing, and first love. It’s heart wrenching in it’s honesty and humble in its search for truth. I loved it, and plan on reading more graphic novels because my first one was such a good experience. You can check out Craig Thompson’s blog here.
