Review: It's a Good Life if You Don't Weaken

One thing that all readers should know about me is that though I love graphic novels, I am extremely picky. However, this graphic novel was perfection! It tells the story of Seth who is depressed and feels lost in the world until he discovers an obscure cartoonist named Kalo. Though there is little information on this man, Seth decides to devote years of his life to discovering the man's true identity. He even goes as far as to find Kalo's house in a small town and visits the man's family. As he does so, he also returns home to his mother and brother and find himself traveling to his childhood house. Though this is far from being a "coming of age tale" (I hate that phrase), Seth certainly does develop throughout the story. His search does not change his identity, but it does help him understand himself better.

Though the book is set in Canada, I felt that the scenes were familiar and could be found in any country. The pictures are drawn in shade of blue and black that help illustrate the dark and depressed mood of Seth. There are also numerous drawings of houses, landscapes, and cityscapes. I found these to be incredibly interesting. In many graphic novels, I feel as if the artist uses landscapes as filler pictures for when the action is stopped. However, in this book, I felt as if drawings of these scenes were photographs of the setting. Many were bleak or lonely which, of course, reitterated Seth's view of the world.

In many graphic novels, the art will override the text. However, this book was superb in the exquisite blending of the two. Seth's observations were philosophical and I felt that they pertained to all people at any point in life. His conversations with his friend Chet, were also enlightening to his character as well to how people interact in a friendship. Though Seth was not a completely likeable character, I did find myself enjoying his company, philosophies, and observations.

If you do decide to read this book, it is extremely important that you read the ENTIRE book. At the end of the book, there are cartoons that Kalo supposedly created as well as a picture of him. Lastly, there is an "about the author" with a photograph of Seth. In order to get the entire flavor of the book, you must read until you hit the back cover!

The reason for this is because Seth makes the reader believe that there really is a cartoonist named Kalo who drew these cartoons and is shown in the photograph at the end. However, this is not true! There is no cartoonist named Kalo. Though the story of him as a man, is probably true for other cartoonists, he is a completely fictional character. Still, Seth's mother and brother are true to life. In this way, the graphic novel is semi-autobiographical and the reader must discover what is true about the author and what is not.

Clearly, you can understand why I had trouble putting this book down and would read it into the early morning hours. The story is exquiste, the pictures are divine, and the relationship between truth and lies is always an interesting debate to struggle with in a tale. I recommend that everyone go out and request this book from your library. For those of you unsure of graphic novels, this is an easy read that will not confuse you. In fact, it reads a lot more like a novella than a graphic novel. For those of you who love graphic novels (like myself), you will be blown away by the text as well as the pictures. It really is the complete package!

-DLP