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A review by dhrish
Juliet Takes a Breath: The Graphic Novel by Gabby Rivera
5.0
TW: Racism, implied racism, homophobia, implied homophobia, cheating
This graphic novel blew my mind and it paints a beautiful picture of how many young, queer people I know got into feminism and then had to unlearn and recenter to a conversation in the process.
A quick disclaimer: I can't speak on the Puerto Rican or Black representation in this novel.
Juliet is interning for her favourite author. A white woman, Harlow Brisbane, who seems to be one of the leading author's of feminist and queer theory. Which Juliet is excited for even with the heaviness of coming out to her family, especially her mom, who thinks her identity is a "phase".
There are so many glorious moments in this book: Juliet finding a community who loves her as is, the very many characters we get to meet (each with their own journey into figuring out and accepting their queer identity), and the very many struggles of someone who is trying to figure all this out for the very first time without a fully supportive biological family.
While I have not read the actual novel, the graphic novel does a great job in portraying the story through the pictures used. Celia Mascote's art definitely ties the story together in a gorgeous way and the colour palette used was a feast for the eyes.
Some may find this book to be an overtly feminist read, and I think that is kind of the point. Until very recently feminism has been framed in mainstream media by white voices and many times the advocacy that white voices lend to poc-ones is incredibly flawed. Harlowe doesn't get a pass because she is trying to be a good feminist and I love that. It shows that as a society we still have a lot of work to do when it comes to allyship and how marginalized voices seem to need to be given permission before they can speak on topics that affect them.
My absolute favourite bit was framing how queer people step in for one another, especially queer POC. How our families of choice, are just that. Families, deeply flawed, but usually there when our biological ones no longer want to understand or need a moment to understand. The fact that this book centres BIPOC queer experiences and journey's reminds me that we don't often get these stories of joy in mainstream media and that these stories of joy, understanding and self-love are vital experiences that must be celebrated.
I shouldn't have been surprised that I love Gabby Rivera's story as much as I did because I definitely adored her Marvel hero "America Chavez".
Thank you to NetGalley and BOOM! Studios for allowing me to read an arc of "Juliet Takes a Breath". All opinions stated are my own.
This graphic novel blew my mind and it paints a beautiful picture of how many young, queer people I know got into feminism and then had to unlearn and recenter to a conversation in the process.
A quick disclaimer: I can't speak on the Puerto Rican or Black representation in this novel.
Juliet is interning for her favourite author. A white woman, Harlow Brisbane, who seems to be one of the leading author's of feminist and queer theory. Which Juliet is excited for even with the heaviness of coming out to her family, especially her mom, who thinks her identity is a "phase".
There are so many glorious moments in this book: Juliet finding a community who loves her as is, the very many characters we get to meet (each with their own journey into figuring out and accepting their queer identity), and the very many struggles of someone who is trying to figure all this out for the very first time without a fully supportive biological family.
While I have not read the actual novel, the graphic novel does a great job in portraying the story through the pictures used. Celia Mascote's art definitely ties the story together in a gorgeous way and the colour palette used was a feast for the eyes.
Some may find this book to be an overtly feminist read, and I think that is kind of the point. Until very recently feminism has been framed in mainstream media by white voices and many times the advocacy that white voices lend to poc-ones is incredibly flawed. Harlowe doesn't get a pass because she is trying to be a good feminist and I love that. It shows that as a society we still have a lot of work to do when it comes to allyship and how marginalized voices seem to need to be given permission before they can speak on topics that affect them.
My absolute favourite bit was framing how queer people step in for one another, especially queer POC. How our families of choice, are just that. Families, deeply flawed, but usually there when our biological ones no longer want to understand or need a moment to understand. The fact that this book centres BIPOC queer experiences and journey's reminds me that we don't often get these stories of joy in mainstream media and that these stories of joy, understanding and self-love are vital experiences that must be celebrated.
I shouldn't have been surprised that I love Gabby Rivera's story as much as I did because I definitely adored her Marvel hero "America Chavez".
Thank you to NetGalley and BOOM! Studios for allowing me to read an arc of "Juliet Takes a Breath". All opinions stated are my own.