Reviews

Kiki de Montparnasse by Nora Mahony, Catel, José-Louis Bocquet

wcsheffer's review against another edition

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3.0

Lovely little biography. Not anything ground breaking in comic biography but certainly a detailed glimpse into the Paris art world in the 10-30s. I think some of the dialogue felt a little clunky which could have been translation. Great fun for art lovers or those interested in this time period.

moncoinlecture's review against another edition

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4.0

J'hésite entre 3,5 et 4... C'est bien mais quand on ne connaît pas beaucoup le personnage au départ, c'est un peu longuet par moments!

le13anna's review against another edition

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3.0

I couldn't finish this biographical novel because it started to feel redundant. But I enjoyed all the sexual exploration and art and philosophical discussions - in comic form.

emmalynn's review against another edition

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5.0

Ce long et dense roman graphique vous transporte à Paris au beau milieu des années folles.
Bien sûr, Kiki est le fil rouge, nous suivons sa biographie, mais ce livre la dépasse, il est également une galerie de portraits d'à peu près tous les artistes qui comptaient à cette époque, et c'est également une superbe fresque de l'époque en elle-même.

J'ai eu l'impression de revivre des choses que je n'ai bien entendu jamais vécues et je reste totalement éblouie par ce destin hors du commun à la fois si cruel et si fascinant.

Comme d'habitude, j'adore le trait de Catel.

Mention particulière aux notices biographiques à la fin du livre que j'ai trouvées instructives et particulièrement bien faites.

garconniere's review against another edition

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2.0

I'm a big fan of Kiki de Montparnasse, and graphic novels, so I was so excited when I heard about this book. Unfortunately, as well researched as it is, it fell short. I felt like that was so much potential to explore styles with the drawings but that was probably the weakest point.

Also this is probably my own perspective tainting the situation but there's a lot to get into around gender relations in the surrealist and dadaist movements. Instead, in the book it is made to be just relationship drama between Man Ray and Kiki, as petty rather than serious. A lot of the male artists who are constantly lauded for their genius continues to overshadow and discredit female artists as simply "muses" for the male gaze. I would have loved to see this element explored.

Oh well.

dustyloup's review against another edition

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4.0

la couverture m'a appellé depuis longtemps. J'ai résisté mais l'autre jour goodreads m'a conseillé ce livre donc voilà je le trouve à la bibliothèque et fini 2/3 avant de partir! j'y connaissais rien à propos de kiki avant de lire ce livre et ça m'a emporté dans son monde tourbillonnant. ça m'a plue - 4.5 etoiles

jameseckman's review against another edition

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4.0

What an odd graphic novel, Kiki is a real life left bank of Paris artiste who had many famous lovers and friends. She was a very free spirit, her autobiography was banned in the US for many years. Yet another interesting perspective on the roaring '20s. Extensive bio notes and bibliography. Note this is an adult graphic novel...

manika's review

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3.0

3.5

vannesiebp's review against another edition

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3.0

Ok... puede ser una buena biografía que marca los momentos claves de Kiki, su relevancia en la historia y su amor por el arte, si bien tiene varios saltos en el tiempo. Pero no me gustó para nada que la historia de una mujer independiente, dependiera tanto de los hombres que la rodeaban, cada conversación y momento de Kiki finalizaba en "pero quiero estar con él, o lo necesito, o el es bueno en la cama". Siempre, sin importar de la persona con quien hablara. Hombres. Hombres. Hombres.
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