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4.1 AVERAGE
4.1 AVERAGE
Cute. I always like Bryan Lee O'Malley more than pop culture transmogrifications make me think I should.
Katie is a 29-year-old chef with part ownership in a restaurant called Seconds—which doubles as her home, since she lives in the apartment above. Her personal life is a mess (ex-bf she still has feelings for, sleeping with the new chef) and her professional life is not quite going in the direction she wants it too—so when a weird girl (house spirit) with limited speech that lives in her dresser gives her a magic mushroom and a notepad that will allow her to “fix” her life she jumps at the chance. But of course nothing in life is perfect and as the saying goes, “Some things are too good to be true.” The first time she revises a part of her it doesn’t turn out how she wants it too, so of course she wants to try again. She finds a stash of the house spirit’s magic mushrooms and keeps revising her life, hoping the next time she’ll get things just right. Of course its impossible, but that doesn’t stop Katie from trying.
I’ve read and enjoyed Bryan Lee O’Malley’s Scott Pilgrim series (love the film version) and his stand alone graphic novel Lost at Sea and I can now add Seconds to the list of his works that I love. It was a great read. It was realistic—obviously not in the house spirit, magic mushroom, time change sense—but in the I’m getting older what the hell am I doing with my life, will I ever just get my shit in order sense. Katie is a likeable yet flawed character and there’s a shy character in the novel named Hazel who I think needs her own series! Really enjoyed reading Seconds, cant wait to see what O’Malley does next.
I’ve read and enjoyed Bryan Lee O’Malley’s Scott Pilgrim series (love the film version) and his stand alone graphic novel Lost at Sea and I can now add Seconds to the list of his works that I love. It was a great read. It was realistic—obviously not in the house spirit, magic mushroom, time change sense—but in the I’m getting older what the hell am I doing with my life, will I ever just get my shit in order sense. Katie is a likeable yet flawed character and there’s a shy character in the novel named Hazel who I think needs her own series! Really enjoyed reading Seconds, cant wait to see what O’Malley does next.
It was interesting overall. But I couldn't vibe with the art style and the story seemed too stretched out. Just meh basically
funny
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Here's the thing: I keep trying graphic novels because they sound so good, and I keep wishing they were just regular novels. Too many pictures getting in the way of my words. So if you know you like graphic novels, you should absolutely read this, because great story. And if, like me, you're iffy on graphic novels, maybe you should give this a try anyway.
This book was a fast read (der, graphic novel, but it wasn't like an Alan Moore GN where you get bogged down thinking, "WTF"). The art was LOVELY. Everything was adorable and/or beautifully rendered on the page. The story itself was interesting, but not AMAZING. I would have preferred more depth to the secondary characters so they made more sense in their roles supporting Katie. Also, the ending was so neat. It seemed to contradict the message of "life is messy". However, I still enjoyed it and will lend this out to people because more people need to read graphic novels.
An interesting and Eastern spiritual take on the classic wish fulfillment tale gone awry. O'Malley's writing and illustrations are as sharp, comedic, and dark (at times) as ever.