A review by harlando
Portugal by Ruby, Cyril Pedrosa

3.0

This was recommended to me as one of the best graphic novels around. I don't agree and think it is at the low end of three stars. It is an artists journey to find his roots in Portugal, and its a bit slow and vague. I think lots of family stories are vague, but I like a little more clarity in my fiction. There is also a lot of Portuguese which is not translated in order to emphasize the protagonists lack of understanding, but its a little irritating. The artist also has a technique of illustrating background conversations as tiny illegible text. I found that irritating.

The kindle version of this book had some limits on magnification which hurt my reading experience. There artist uses a lot of tiny print and fine detail and there were some things I just couldn't make out.

I enjoyed many parts of the book, but found several sections confusing or a little dull. The protagonist is also unsympathetic. He is lost, and being lost is often uninspiring. However, he could be a more interesting and proactive figure.