pmileham's review against another edition
5.0
I love how real and relatable the people are in these stories.
maxwelldunn's review against another edition
4.0
This was a pleasant surprise. It was sent to me unsolicited from the publisher, but I decided to give it a shot and actually ended up really enjoying it. I'd never heard of this book or author prior to reading it.
The book is made up of 2 graphic novellas, each following young men who are struggling in some way in their life. It's not overstated, in fact the stories are quiet but nuanced. I loved the emotional pull these stories had and how they really, in a short time, made me feel connected to and invested in their lives. It was frustrating at times and made me smile at others. Winterhart really did a great job of capturing so many emotions without making it melodramatic. It's a very realistic look at life from these two guys' POVs.
The book is made up of 2 graphic novellas, each following young men who are struggling in some way in their life. It's not overstated, in fact the stories are quiet but nuanced. I loved the emotional pull these stories had and how they really, in a short time, made me feel connected to and invested in their lives. It was frustrating at times and made me smile at others. Winterhart really did a great job of capturing so many emotions without making it melodramatic. It's a very realistic look at life from these two guys' POVs.
rah10's review against another edition
5.0
Winterhart has a skill for creating intimate portraits of everyday people and their relationships with each other. The water color and fine line illustrations match the realistic, intimate, and often the fragility and transition of the characters they bring to life. The usage of the blues and browns in Driving Short Distances connects to an element of the story itself (a found watercolor set).
Winterhart is in this book which seem evident by the intamacy, care, and detail that comes with character expressions and complexity.
I could see this in the adult graphic novel collection, but also would want teens/young adults to read it considering the ages of Daniel in Days of the Bagnold Summer and Sam in Driving Short Distances.
Winterhart is in this book which seem evident by the intamacy, care, and detail that comes with character expressions and complexity.
I could see this in the adult graphic novel collection, but also would want teens/young adults to read it considering the ages of Daniel in Days of the Bagnold Summer and Sam in Driving Short Distances.
glitterandtwang's review against another edition
4.0
I was unfamiliar with Joff Winterhart prior to reading this collection, but I will be on the lookout for more of his work.
Days of the Bagnold Summer examines the family dynamics of a single mother and her metalhead teenage son, who is disappointed to find that he will not be going to visit his father in America for the summer. His mother does her best to draw her son out of his shell, and her son works to discover who he really is outside of the insular bond he shares with his best friend. It's sweet, awkward, and honest - maybe one of the best portrayals of that awkward relationship between a teenager and a parent that I've seen in a graphic novel so far this year. It's sort of subdued and quietly heartfelt. Worth a read.
Driving Short Distances is the story of Sam, an aimless young man who takes on what he hopes is a temporary position working for Keith Nutt as . . . an apprentice? an assistant? an employee? It's never quite clear, even to Sam, who is dismayed to find himself primarily sitting in Keith's passenger seat as they drive around from place to place. Keith soon begins to make gestures toward including Sam in more of the business - allowing him to come inside at stops, demanding that he order their lunches, and eventually insisting that he take over the driving. As Keith's behavior becomes more inscrutable and erratic, Sam starts to find his feet.
I was sad to leave the characters when this book ended.
And I received access to this title via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Days of the Bagnold Summer examines the family dynamics of a single mother and her metalhead teenage son, who is disappointed to find that he will not be going to visit his father in America for the summer. His mother does her best to draw her son out of his shell, and her son works to discover who he really is outside of the insular bond he shares with his best friend. It's sweet, awkward, and honest - maybe one of the best portrayals of that awkward relationship between a teenager and a parent that I've seen in a graphic novel so far this year. It's sort of subdued and quietly heartfelt. Worth a read.
Driving Short Distances is the story of Sam, an aimless young man who takes on what he hopes is a temporary position working for Keith Nutt as . . . an apprentice? an assistant? an employee? It's never quite clear, even to Sam, who is dismayed to find himself primarily sitting in Keith's passenger seat as they drive around from place to place. Keith soon begins to make gestures toward including Sam in more of the business - allowing him to come inside at stops, demanding that he order their lunches, and eventually insisting that he take over the driving. As Keith's behavior becomes more inscrutable and erratic, Sam starts to find his feet.
I was sad to leave the characters when this book ended.
And I received access to this title via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
romcm's review against another edition
5.0
These are gorgeous stories. Heartfelt portraits of different kinds of intergenerational relationships, between a mum and teenage son, and between a young man and an older man. Just beautiful.
elna17a9a's review
4.0
A touching, painful, and beautiful exploration of the relationships we form and need. The moments that pass between characters are so human and so relatable that it's impossible not to like them, even though they make the same mistakes we all do.
While the art isn't necessarily my favorite, the characters are so true-to-life and sympathetic that the style they're drawn in becomes incidental.
Days of the Bagnold Summer is about a mother and her young son, heavily into the emo/goth/heavy metal scene, spending summer together. They fight, they get along, they spend quiet moment together, and they move a little closer towards understanding each day. This one alone is 5 stars. We were all teenagers once, even if we weren't exactly like Daniel, and can all understand the frustration and directionless anger and apathy that we suffered from. And Daniel's mother, while she has flashes of moments where she almost understand her son are heartbreaking. She's the best mother she can be, and that's pretty good. Understanding is not always necessary for love.
The short vignettes were, at first, a little disappointing - I wanted more of a straight forward narrative. But, as time went on, I appreciated how they mimicked the true passing of summer: long stretches of nothing eventful, with small impactful moments.
Driving Short Distances was not quite as good - Sam comes home from the hospital (after an implied suicide attempt), ready for something to finally go right. His mother meets an old acquaintance, Keith Nutt, who offers Sam some kind of job, where he mostly waits around in the car for Keith to come out of various buildings. There's some kind of mystery around his job, with various characters alluding to how Sam doesn't seem cut out for it, and some similar allusions around Keith's sexuality, which muddied the overall clarity of the story. Was it about Sam coming to terms with himself and healing? Or was it about a strange job he had with a strange man?
But, of course, both Sam and Keith need the interaction, and both come out slightly changed from it. Keith, a little more bowed and lonely than before, and Sam more at ease with himself and being alone. They ended up needing each other, just a little bit.
While the art isn't necessarily my favorite, the characters are so true-to-life and sympathetic that the style they're drawn in becomes incidental.
Days of the Bagnold Summer is about a mother and her young son, heavily into the emo/goth/heavy metal scene, spending summer together. They fight, they get along, they spend quiet moment together, and they move a little closer towards understanding each day. This one alone is 5 stars. We were all teenagers once, even if we weren't exactly like Daniel, and can all understand the frustration and directionless anger and apathy that we suffered from. And Daniel's mother, while she has flashes of moments where she almost understand her son are heartbreaking. She's the best mother she can be, and that's pretty good. Understanding is not always necessary for love.
The short vignettes were, at first, a little disappointing - I wanted more of a straight forward narrative. But, as time went on, I appreciated how they mimicked the true passing of summer: long stretches of nothing eventful, with small impactful moments.
Driving Short Distances was not quite as good - Sam comes home from the hospital (after an implied suicide attempt), ready for something to finally go right. His mother meets an old acquaintance, Keith Nutt, who offers Sam some kind of job, where he mostly waits around in the car for Keith to come out of various buildings. There's some kind of mystery around his job, with various characters alluding to how Sam doesn't seem cut out for it, and some similar allusions around Keith's sexuality, which muddied the overall clarity of the story. Was it about Sam coming to terms with himself and healing? Or was it about a strange job he had with a strange man?
But, of course, both Sam and Keith need the interaction, and both come out slightly changed from it. Keith, a little more bowed and lonely than before, and Sam more at ease with himself and being alone. They ended up needing each other, just a little bit.
otterno11's review
5.0
I’d read Joff Winterhart’s graphic novel Days of the Bagnold Summer a few years ago and recall really enjoying it, so when I saw that it had been adapted into a film soundtracked by Scottish indie band Belle and Sebastian, I decided to revisit it before seeing the movie. Here, it is bundled along with another of Winterhart’s understated depictions of everyday life, Driving Short Distances, which I think I enjoyed even more. Winterhart’s art, muted yet full of detail perfectly captures these aimless and yet poignant slice of life pieces. A master of evoking unstated emotion, I was quickly drawn into their stories of commonplace ennui and hope.
Both of the stories collected in Other People deal with the relationships between sons and their single mums for some weeks in working class English towns far from the glamor of London. In Days of the Bagnold Summer, library worker Sue tries to connect with her metal loving teenage son Daniel, being reminded of her own unpleasant adolescence. In Driving Short Distances, 20-something Sam moves back home with his mum after a breakdown and ends up working for her old acquaintance, the odd and rigid Keith Nutt. I was very impressed by the way everyone feels like a real person, someone you could know, both in their problems and their passions. In each case, I feel Winterhart really draws you into these specific times and places, and the emotional struggles the characters grapple with feel endearing and real.
In spite of living across the pond, there was a lot that really resonated with me. I’m definitely looking forward to checking out the adaptation of Bagnold Summer and Joff Winterhart will be a comic artist I will watch.
Both of the stories collected in Other People deal with the relationships between sons and their single mums for some weeks in working class English towns far from the glamor of London. In Days of the Bagnold Summer, library worker Sue tries to connect with her metal loving teenage son Daniel, being reminded of her own unpleasant adolescence. In Driving Short Distances, 20-something Sam moves back home with his mum after a breakdown and ends up working for her old acquaintance, the odd and rigid Keith Nutt. I was very impressed by the way everyone feels like a real person, someone you could know, both in their problems and their passions. In each case, I feel Winterhart really draws you into these specific times and places, and the emotional struggles the characters grapple with feel endearing and real.
In spite of living across the pond, there was a lot that really resonated with me. I’m definitely looking forward to checking out the adaptation of Bagnold Summer and Joff Winterhart will be a comic artist I will watch.
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