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A review by rachelbookdragon
Kiss Number 8 by Colleen AF Venable
3.0
Not sure what to think of this one. I was frustrated upon reaching the middle point of the novel at the poor portrayal of a transgender man who just wanted to love his family and live his life and the hatred and shame his family displayed and felt.
This family’s ‘dark secret of the past’ is mirrored in Amanda’s journey through adolescence as she explores different aspects of growing up, from partying to kissing a few people and feeling peer pressure.
The story does turn as she discovers she’s bisexual. Within her small Catholic school, she is cast out by her friends, peers, and her father, and she struggles to find her way back to happiness and in doing so, reconnects to her mother and step-Grandma in the process. It was a lovely and happy ending.
The art of this graphic novel is good, and the lesson of family’s making progress over time was ultimately heartwarming. I don’t know how desirable reading the hate speech spewing out of the father’s and grandparent’s mouths is to anyone actually discovering a non-heteronormative sexuality within a religious community, even if it is relatable to someone’s lived experiences. I find it curious that the transgender reveal isn’t mentioned in the summary of the book in terms of initially showing more representation.
The last tidbit that bothered me was how some of the art panels didn’t quite fit for me. I couldn’t figure out exactly what was going on because they didn’t connect easily to the other context of the page and it definitely took me out of the story trying to figure out what was going on.
Overall, somewhat heartwarming end, but the journey is filled with ignorant people spewing hatred. Not sure how relatable this story is, even to it’s target audience. I’m all for diversity, but maybe this isn’t the delivery needed.
This family’s ‘dark secret of the past’ is mirrored in Amanda’s journey through adolescence as she explores different aspects of growing up, from partying to kissing a few people and feeling peer pressure.
The story does turn as she discovers she’s bisexual. Within her small Catholic school, she is cast out by her friends, peers, and her father, and she struggles to find her way back to happiness and in doing so, reconnects to her mother and step-Grandma in the process. It was a lovely and happy ending.
The art of this graphic novel is good, and the lesson of family’s making progress over time was ultimately heartwarming. I don’t know how desirable reading the hate speech spewing out of the father’s and grandparent’s mouths is to anyone actually discovering a non-heteronormative sexuality within a religious community, even if it is relatable to someone’s lived experiences. I find it curious that the transgender reveal isn’t mentioned in the summary of the book in terms of initially showing more representation.
The last tidbit that bothered me was how some of the art panels didn’t quite fit for me. I couldn’t figure out exactly what was going on because they didn’t connect easily to the other context of the page and it definitely took me out of the story trying to figure out what was going on.
Overall, somewhat heartwarming end, but the journey is filled with ignorant people spewing hatred. Not sure how relatable this story is, even to it’s target audience. I’m all for diversity, but maybe this isn’t the delivery needed.