A review by meghan111
Lena Finkle's Magic Barrel: A Graphic Novel by Anya Ulinich

4.0

The cover and the title are a mismatch with the content of this fictionalized graphic novel memoir. I would describe it as a dating/OkCupid story, with the protagonist Lena being a Russian immigrant living in New York City, who's been in the US for over two decades and has two children. While it opens with a trip back to Russia, the bulk of the novel is about Lena experimenting with online dating and a relationship with a man she calls the Orphan. I loved the artwork, and the way the author would draw a small little figure of Lena on the bigger Lena's shoulder as a sort of truthful little conscience. Flashbacks to childhood are integrated well into the current-day storyline.