A review by rickyvigil
Tales from La Vida: A Latinx Comics Anthology by Frederick Luis Aldama

4.0

I really enjoyed this anthology! Dozens of Latinx writers and cartoonists were brought together to answer one question: "What is the most significant moment in your life as a latinx person?" Being an anthology, the book features a lot of different styles, from manga-influenced art to realism to experimental weirdness, and with most of the comics only being two pages long, each one is easily digestible and you'll never find yourself skipping an entry. The stories are divided into a few different sections (my favorite was the one that focused on folklore and mythology) all while exploring each creator's latinidad. As a latino who has never felt entirely latino, I identified deeply with a lot of stories in this collection--it was comforting that so many of these creators had/have experiences similar to mine, from not being able to speak Spanish to having relatives who insist that our family is from Spain, not Mexico. I only recognized the names of a few of the creators (Los Bros Hernandez, Stephanie Rodriguez) but was happy to be exposed to a bunch of new favorites (Dave Ortega, Alejandro Juvera, Kelly Fernandez and Jaime Crespo, to name a few). I really enjoyed this book and hope that it inspires more comic collections featuring latinx creators.