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A review by panda_incognito
A First Time for Everything by Dan Santat
4.0
This graphic novel about a school trip to Europe explores universal themes related to overcoming social isolation, discovering yourself, experiencing the mind-broadening effects of travel, and falling in love for the first time. This memoir includes flashbacks that enrich the story, and it is a very vulnerable, honest take on the author's middle school years. I would recommend this to teens and adults.
It is truly unbelievable what Santat and his peers got up to on this trip, considering that middle schoolers in my era were barely allowed to go to the bathroom by themselves, let alone cavort around Paris with no adult supervision. Santat mentions in the author's note how different things were in 1989, and he also says that he would not recommend or encourage some of the things he and others got up to, such as stealing a bike, smoking, etc. Santat includes pictures and images of other ephemera here at the end of the book, and I really enjoyed getting glimpses of the real-life things he based this story on.
I really enjoyed this story. The illustrations are great and express emotion well, and the story is a fascinating glimpse into a lost era. I also appreciated the different elements related to European history and culture, and I enjoyed my ability to read all of the German dialogue or guess it from context, even though I had no idea what was going on when people were talking in French. This book will appeal to teens and adults, and I fully expect it to win awards in the next award cycle.
It is truly unbelievable what Santat and his peers got up to on this trip, considering that middle schoolers in my era were barely allowed to go to the bathroom by themselves, let alone cavort around Paris with no adult supervision. Santat mentions in the author's note how different things were in 1989, and he also says that he would not recommend or encourage some of the things he and others got up to, such as stealing a bike, smoking, etc. Santat includes pictures and images of other ephemera here at the end of the book, and I really enjoyed getting glimpses of the real-life things he based this story on.
I really enjoyed this story. The illustrations are great and express emotion well, and the story is a fascinating glimpse into a lost era. I also appreciated the different elements related to European history and culture, and I enjoyed my ability to read all of the German dialogue or guess it from context, even though I had no idea what was going on when people were talking in French. This book will appeal to teens and adults, and I fully expect it to win awards in the next award cycle.