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barrybonifay's review
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
dajna's review
4.0
So, this time Mr Eisner brings us through the Depression era. 55 Dropsie Avenue is still the same, with kids, newlyweds, and families coming from all over the world. This time the italian immigrants and mafia have quite a big impact on the story, but all's well that ends well.
I like the circularity of Eisner graphic novels: every subplot has its own end, every end is a sort of happy ending.
I like the circularity of Eisner graphic novels: every subplot has its own end, every end is a sort of happy ending.
jasonfurman's review
5.0
I found this graphic novel stunning, perhaps the best graphic novel I've read (although hard to compare to Maus since I read that twenty years ago). The second volume in "The Contract With God" trilogy, it surpasses the first with a combination of sophisticated near-perfect plotting, excellent artwork, and compelling visual arrangements. Like the stories in the first volume, it is set in the tenements the mythical Dropsie Avenue in the Bronx in the 1930s. Most of the characters are Jewish, but it also features a recent Italian immigrant (plus some mobsters) and a down-on-his-luck WASP.
The story is both original but also feels universal, a series of events that snowball from the Great Depression including a man who is on the verge of giving up, a Rabbi that gives him a small project and hope, an Italian immigrant being harassed by the mob, the good fortune of their hooking up with a WASP who was ruined in the crash but has a good idea bout pulling businesses out of bankruptcy--and a whole series of events around this, including a rekindled romance with a German-Jewish refugee--as this cast of characters struggles to make it in America.
This is all drawn in black-and-white, mostly with conventional panels but also some pages of news clippings and other media that create an air of authenticity around the entire book. It is also a relatively quick read.
The story is both original but also feels universal, a series of events that snowball from the Great Depression including a man who is on the verge of giving up, a Rabbi that gives him a small project and hope, an Italian immigrant being harassed by the mob, the good fortune of their hooking up with a WASP who was ruined in the crash but has a good idea bout pulling businesses out of bankruptcy--and a whole series of events around this, including a rekindled romance with a German-Jewish refugee--as this cast of characters struggles to make it in America.
This is all drawn in black-and-white, mostly with conventional panels but also some pages of news clippings and other media that create an air of authenticity around the entire book. It is also a relatively quick read.
cafedetinta's review
4.0
Me encantan estas historias de Eisner, pequeños dramas de familias en la ciudad. Muy del estilo de 'Contrato con Dios'
earlapvaldez's review
Had I known earlier that there was a "sequel" to [b:A Contract With God and Other Tenement Stories|861023|A Contract With God and Other Tenement Stories|Will Eisner|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1328363057s/861023.jpg|250281] I could have gotten this as soon as possible. Here, Eisner was able to show his brilliance which came with his vast knowledge of the American Jewish life. At first, it seems that the story can't be brought to a single thread; however, it is through the themes that these stories became livelier, meaningful, and more real. Indeed, a must-read.
rahulporuri's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
tense
fast-paced
5.0
It is absolutely amazing that in 140 pages Will Eisner is able to introduce us to the depression-era life in New York, the plight of the immigrants in the Bronx, the rising threat of Nazism, and how it impacted Jewish families in the US and Germany, and make us contemplate why people continue to live.
It might be challenging material at times but a must-read for anyone interested in graphic novels.
It might be challenging material at times but a must-read for anyone interested in graphic novels.
jason1234's review
5.0
I loved this book as well.The way he used the graphic novel medium is just fantastic. It shouldn't be too surprising really, since his 'a contract with God' was allegedly the first graphic novel. He looks into history through the lives of people- how it happened , what it meant to their daily lives etc... A very good read