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Summary: The phrase "coming of age" often times means becoming aware of the world around you.  No longer does our attention focus in on our selves and our immediate friends, but to the lives of others who we normally may not have noticed. This is a common experience and many stories are based on them. This One Summer is a perfect example. The main character, Rosie, is a young pre-teen girl who heads to her family summer home, which allows for them to get away, to relax, to slow down. From the beginning though, it's obvious this family get-away is loaded with emotional issues. Naturally, the issues aren't clear, but as the story progresses we gain a little more insight. To add to the already existing emotional drama, Rosie begins to notice a older boy who works at the local convenience store, but as would be expected, he knows very little of Rosie's existence. The young man also has teenage relationship issues, along with his friends, that soon become the latest gossip of the small resort town.. Rosie discovers though that those "issues" are far heavier than anything she's ever experienced and may even be far more that she really wants to know.  Through her lazy summer days and her endless hours with Windy, her summer friend, Rosie discovers that her crush isn't who she thinks and that her family problems are based on events far greater than she may have realized.  Sometimes coming-of-age stories can be a pleasant trip down memory lane, but sometimes that trip is a melancholic one, reminding us of how simple life was before we became aware.

Reference: Tamaki, Jillian; Mariko Tamaki (2014). This One Summer. First Second, New York, NY 10010.    

Impressions: "For every reader there is a book, for every book its reader." This anonymous quote is ideal for this graphic novel.  There has been a dichotomy of reviews from various people, some absolutely loved it, some only liked the illustrations, and some despised it. This is the beauty of story. All stories may not be universally liked, but that doesn't mean they can't be liked.  Personally, I liked it.

What immediately grabbed my attention was the sloth-like pace of the story. This slow pace superbly reflects the atmosphere and setting of This One Summer, which is long summer days filled with quiet introspective moments shared with familiar people. The Tamaki drawn panels showing the natural elements of the beach and wooded area helped further portray the story's feeling and emotion. Though there isn't a great deal of depicted action, a good amount of the story does take place in between the panels, the things unseen and the things unsaid. There are some moments of our lives that stay in our memory not because they were crazy, scared-me-to-death moments, but rather the introspective, I-see-the-world-differently-now ones. This is what the Tamaki cousins magnificently deliver.

The characters and relationships are also applicably depicted, whether its Rose and her relationship with her mom or Dud and his relationship with Jenny. I could easily see these characters in real life and easily associate them with people I know. For me that's quality of writing, which invariably quantifies as good reading.  As for the art work -and I do mean "art" - it needs to be seen to be appreciated. Again the Tamaki cousins do wonderful illustrations that help to convey emotions and feelings. Some panels are drawn with great detail and others come off as brush-stroked images, but all are essential in comprehending this wonderful novel.

This One Summer is an excellent book to be read while sitting on your comfortable living room sofa. 


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