not simple

not simple

Natsume Ono

Viz, 2010

$14.99, Paperback

978-1421532202

April 27^th, 2012

Genre: Realistic

Age: 12+

Description: This is the story of Ian, a young man with a messed up past, as he travels from Australia to England to the United States in the hopes of reuniting with his beloved sister, who just might happen to be his real mother. Ian’s story is revealed backwards through the narrative story of Jim, his friend and reporter who turned Ian’s story into a best selling novel called Not Simple. Ian’s story is anything but simple—it’s a intricate web of lies, emotional and physical abuse, and more.

Opinion: This is a graphic novel everyone should read. Ian’s story starts out hopeful as we find him journeying to locate his sister who we soon find out is indeed his mother. It is a realistic graphic novel of epic proportions. Give this to anyone who thinks graphic novels are nothing but comics for kids. This is a moving story as we learn about Ian’s life growing up while his sister was in jail (for a minor crime), his “parents” divorcing, his “mother’s” hatred of Ian which led her to alcoholism and forcing a young Ian into prostitution, the secrets of who his father was (which led to issues of incest), and how it all has effected poor Ian. Add on to it all Jim, Ian’s only friend who might actually have been in love with him, and the secret that Ian was dying already of AIDS which he probably contracted from his pimp who ended up eventually dating and infecting his beloved sister/mother and killing her. This book features some, obviously, heavy topics—incest, AIDS, homosexual feelings—but it is a strong realistic story. It shows how poor Ian’s life was not simple