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A review by crankyisgood
The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Cartoonist by Adrian Tomine
It made me laugh, it made me cringe. It covers a lot of ground in a short book - from honest and funny moments of dealing with fame & snarky detractors & comparing himself / being compared to or confused with those more famous, to honest and frustrating moments with kids. I want to upvote yelling “I’ll slap YOUR ass” to people who think they know how to parent other people’s children.
Once upon a time, I got to review comics for Punk Planet and I was clear on what I did and did not appreciate. “Owly” received the most scorn. I honestly found it boring and annoying though librarians aplenty love it. And I love librarians. The critics depicted in this book - particularly the v-neck’d snob defining “novella” to criticize him at an in-person reading - really are assholes, determined to prove their own worth by their ability to prove themselves above others (aka snobs). And Tomine knows his responses are visceral, emotional, neurotic. Which is to say, as the dang blurbs on the back say, we can identify with Tomine even if we’re not famous writers and illustrators and stuff.
Which is to say, you can change how you relate to your feelings, but no matter where you go, there you are. (Adrian, have you tried meditation yet?)
Once upon a time, I got to review comics for Punk Planet and I was clear on what I did and did not appreciate. “Owly” received the most scorn. I honestly found it boring and annoying though librarians aplenty love it. And I love librarians. The critics depicted in this book - particularly the v-neck’d snob defining “novella” to criticize him at an in-person reading - really are assholes, determined to prove their own worth by their ability to prove themselves above others (aka snobs). And Tomine knows his responses are visceral, emotional, neurotic. Which is to say, as the dang blurbs on the back say, we can identify with Tomine even if we’re not famous writers and illustrators and stuff.
Which is to say, you can change how you relate to your feelings, but no matter where you go, there you are. (Adrian, have you tried meditation yet?)