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A review by beththebookdragon
Fights: One Boy's Triumph Over Violence by Joel Christian Gill
4.0
(note: I'm a middle-class white woman so much of this content is not part of my personal experience)
A powerful and intimate look at the author's life seen through the lens of the battles, physical and otherwise, he faced as a child and teen. Gill's portrayals pull no punches (unless you count the Black-stereotype face he uses in place of a white character using the N word, which happens frequently. He learned to fight, hide, and do his best to avoid fights with both neighborhood kids and with some family members. Gill's learning and maturing process is messy but progressive, bookended with a conversation with his teen son about fights.
Gill's use of color to show emotion and to differentiate characters is excellent. Occasionally I couldn't track which character was which but mostly that was easy. Art is honest about elements such as injured and dead people without being sensationalized.
This book is up for an Eisner in 2021 and justifiably so. For teens and adults.
Content warnings: Frequent violence and profanity, child abuse and neglect including a brief mention of sexual abuse.
A powerful and intimate look at the author's life seen through the lens of the battles, physical and otherwise, he faced as a child and teen. Gill's portrayals pull no punches (unless you count the Black-stereotype face he uses in place of a white character using the N word, which happens frequently. He learned to fight, hide, and do his best to avoid fights with both neighborhood kids and with some family members. Gill's learning and maturing process is messy but progressive, bookended with a conversation with his teen son about fights.
Gill's use of color to show emotion and to differentiate characters is excellent. Occasionally I couldn't track which character was which but mostly that was easy. Art is honest about elements such as injured and dead people without being sensationalized.
This book is up for an Eisner in 2021 and justifiably so. For teens and adults.
Content warnings: Frequent violence and profanity, child abuse and neglect including a brief mention of sexual abuse.