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A review by betweentheshelves
The Golden Hour by Niki Smith
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Where do I begin with this graphic novel? I loved almost everything about it. Following the story of Manuel, who has witnessed a tragedy at his school and uses photography to cope with it. He makes friends through the assignment of an art project, and they help him heal, too. From the relationships, art, writing, and just general format, there's nothing I didn't like about this book.
The way that PTSD and panic attacks are portrayed in this book are some of the best I've seen done in graphic novel format. For Manuel, all of the color disappears, and you almost feel the panic with him. His relationship with Sebastian was perhaps one of my favorite things in the book because Sebastian really wants to be there for him. There are subtle hints throughout that their friendship is more than a friendship, and if you're not paying close attention, you might miss them. When it's a first relationship like this, in a middle grade novel, I feel like this formatting works so well for the story.
The art! How have I gotten this far and not talked about the art yet? Formatted around the idea of the golden hour for photography, there are just some goregous shots in here. Absolutely gorgeous. I only know Niki Smith from The Deep and Dark Blue, but I feel like this book has built on what I loved about that book.
All in all, this fits the middle grade genre so well. It's one I will keep thinking about and will definitely keep an eye on what Niki Smith does next.
The way that PTSD and panic attacks are portrayed in this book are some of the best I've seen done in graphic novel format. For Manuel, all of the color disappears, and you almost feel the panic with him. His relationship with Sebastian was perhaps one of my favorite things in the book because Sebastian really wants to be there for him. There are subtle hints throughout that their friendship is more than a friendship, and if you're not paying close attention, you might miss them. When it's a first relationship like this, in a middle grade novel, I feel like this formatting works so well for the story.
The art! How have I gotten this far and not talked about the art yet? Formatted around the idea of the golden hour for photography, there are just some goregous shots in here. Absolutely gorgeous. I only know Niki Smith from The Deep and Dark Blue, but I feel like this book has built on what I loved about that book.
All in all, this fits the middle grade genre so well. It's one I will keep thinking about and will definitely keep an eye on what Niki Smith does next.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence
Moderate: Mental illness and Panic attacks/disorders