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

4.0

Man. So smart, so funny, so tender and cynical all at once. At first I hated the juxtaposition of realistic art and cartoon caricature panels, but I grew to love it. And I loved Lena, and her honesty, and her determination to look things in the face - whether that's what it means to be in love, what it means to have sex, or what it means to depend on a lover or a mother or a child. And I especially loved her relationship with Russia - feeling connected and drawn to her "homeland" even as she is repulsed by it - how she wants to go back but knows the place she wants to return to doesn't exist any more. Which, as someone who has lived 5000 km away from "home" for two years, struck me especially hard. Yeah. Just thoughtful. And wonderful.