Status
Checked out
Publication
Fantagraphics (2010), Edition: Hardcover Edition, 232 pages
Description
YA. Graphic Novel. Prior to cartoonist Megan Kelso's long-awaited 2022 release, Who Will Make the Pancakes, Kelso spent six years creating her first long-form graphic novel, 2010's Artichoke Tales. The book, a fantastic family saga spanning three generations and an entire continent, was a critical smash named to many "Best of 2010" lists. Fantagraphics is proud to bring this perennial classic back in print with a new paperback edition. Artichoke Tales is a coming-of-age story about a young girl named Brigitte whose family is caught between the two warring sides of a civil war. It takes place in a world that echoes our own, but whose people have artichoke leaves instead of hair. Influenced in equal parts by Little House on the Prairie, The Thorn Birds, Dharma Bums, and Cold Mountain, Kelso weaves a moving story about family amidst war. Kelso's visual storytelling uniquely combines delicate linework with rhythmic page compositions, creating a dramatic tension between intimate, ruminative character studies and the unflinching depiction of the consequences of war and carnage, lending cohesion and resonance to a generational epic. 16 yrs+… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member mikewick
A graphic novel about civil war, inter-family strife, hewing to traditions and breaking from them, and love gained and love lost, Kelso's "Artichoke Tales" isn't the epic tale I expected (which was an assumption born from reading the back-cover summary which described it as a "family saga") but
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rather a succinct tale that's masterfully told. It's not a complaint when I say that--Kelso's at her best when telling a short tale, and this book feels like three closely-entwined short tales rather than a family saga. After all, it's only at the books half-point that we realize the mother of Brigitte, and near the end when introduced to another character as her father. Kelso's artwork is brilliant (as always), and the use of green lines is a nice touch, giving the art a lightness that it deserves to match the storytelling. Show Less
LibraryThing member kivarson
This is a difficult, complex and haunting piece of work. Each chapter brings a new layer explaining the origins of the war between the northern and southern regions of the Artichoke people, revealing how we weave our own fate long before the final tapestry of destiny is clear. Readers will not find
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comfort in this tale's short-lived romantic pairings, either. Show Less
LibraryThing member keristars
Artichoke Tales got on my radar a few different ways - lists of graphic novels on LibraryThing; a browse through the Fantagraphics website; and a few stumbled-upon reviews. For the most part, I was intrigued by the art style and general story description, but came away with the idea that most of
I rather wish I had heeded the take-away feeling I got from those reviews. The book isn't bad, but it's not really great, either. While I like the art and the use of teal for printing, rather than shades of grey, I had a lot of trouble figuring out who was who and what was going on after a scene transition. Some of the characters are easy to tell apart, but others are just a little too similar. Perhaps the similarities are meant to show that things don't change much from generation to generation, or perhaps I just didn't notice key differences quickly enough.
As for scene transitions and plot action, there were labels to indicate a season or event, and sometimes even places, but I didn't have enough frame of reference to be able to understand them. I wasn't always sure how one thing led to another, or when a flashback was switching to current-time narrative. Again, this may be on purpose, to show the way time and generations run together, but it just left me confused and unable to follow the story easily.
I did like the drawings and the way certain things were depicted - foraging in the woods for mushrooms and herbs; Jimmy building a greenhouse for Charlotte; the various sex scenes and frank nudity; Brigitte's travels to the North to find Adam.
I wonder if the story wouldn't be more clear with multiple readings, or with knowledge gleaned from author's comments on a blog or elsewhere. Unfortunately, I don't feel that I have enough invested in the book to make it worth my time to seek such things out, and I don't have enough interest to try to reread it.
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the reviews were telling me "don't bother". Were the reviews negative like that, or was that just my memory of what the comments meant for my tastes? I can't recall, but I decided to read the book anyway.I rather wish I had heeded the take-away feeling I got from those reviews. The book isn't bad, but it's not really great, either. While I like the art and the use of teal for printing, rather than shades of grey, I had a lot of trouble figuring out who was who and what was going on after a scene transition. Some of the characters are easy to tell apart, but others are just a little too similar. Perhaps the similarities are meant to show that things don't change much from generation to generation, or perhaps I just didn't notice key differences quickly enough.
As for scene transitions and plot action, there were labels to indicate a season or event, and sometimes even places, but I didn't have enough frame of reference to be able to understand them. I wasn't always sure how one thing led to another, or when a flashback was switching to current-time narrative. Again, this may be on purpose, to show the way time and generations run together, but it just left me confused and unable to follow the story easily.
I did like the drawings and the way certain things were depicted - foraging in the woods for mushrooms and herbs; Jimmy building a greenhouse for Charlotte; the various sex scenes and frank nudity; Brigitte's travels to the North to find Adam.
I wonder if the story wouldn't be more clear with multiple readings, or with knowledge gleaned from author's comments on a blog or elsewhere. Unfortunately, I don't feel that I have enough invested in the book to make it worth my time to seek such things out, and I don't have enough interest to try to reread it.
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LibraryThing member bluepigeon
I had read The Squirrel Mother by Kelso before. The Artichoke Tales is similarly engaging and certainly not "for kids." The main adult issues such as war and socio-economics are interwoven with more personal themes like loneliness and alienation and motherhood. But reading the story, one cannot
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help but think "Personal is political and political is personal." My one complaint about the storyline is that at times it gets confusing what time period we're witnessing. With many stories told by different people at different times, this may become a bit disorienting. I really like the drawing style as well as the parts where nothing is said but time and emotions flow from panel to panel. But the fact that the characters, especially at the beginning, look similar does not help. All in all, I enjoyed the story and the visuals and am looking forward to reading more by Kelso. Show Less
LibraryThing member inkyphalangies
I enjoyed it, but I had a hard time telling the characters apart sometimes. I would definitely recommend reading it in large chunks close together instead of a couple pages at a time. I did enjoy the art style even though the characters looked so similar. I am not sure if it was because I read it
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in small chunks, but I also had a hard time telling what was a flash back and when the story switched locations. Regardless of the troubles I had, I found something endearing about the story. Show Less
LibraryThing member Rosa.Mill
This was an epic tale covering the life of Brigitte, her mother and how the Civil War that tore their land apart started.
The cute factor of the people may make you think this book is for children but it's definitely an adult book. I also had trouble differentiating characters from time to
Brigitte learns her countries history and tries to make sense of her decision to follow someone from the North at the same timer. Her mother also tried to make things work with someone from the North. It's interesting to see the parallels between Brigitte and her mother and Brigitte's grandmother's anger puts an interesting spin on things.
The cute factor of the people may make you think this book is for children but it's definitely an adult book. I also had trouble differentiating characters from time to
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time.Brigitte learns her countries history and tries to make sense of her decision to follow someone from the North at the same timer. Her mother also tried to make things work with someone from the North. It's interesting to see the parallels between Brigitte and her mother and Brigitte's grandmother's anger puts an interesting spin on things.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Rosa.Mill
This was an epic tale covering the life of Brigitte, her mother and how the Civil War that tore their land apart started.
The cute factor of the people may make you think this book is for children but it's definitely an adult book. I also had trouble differentiating characters from time to
Brigitte learns her countries history and tries to make sense of her decision to follow someone from the North at the same timer. Her mother also tried to make things work with someone from the North. It's interesting to see the parallels between Brigitte and her mother and Brigitte's grandmother's anger puts an interesting spin on things.
The cute factor of the people may make you think this book is for children but it's definitely an adult book. I also had trouble differentiating characters from time to
Show More
time.Brigitte learns her countries history and tries to make sense of her decision to follow someone from the North at the same timer. Her mother also tried to make things work with someone from the North. It's interesting to see the parallels between Brigitte and her mother and Brigitte's grandmother's anger puts an interesting spin on things.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Rosa.Mill
This was an epic tale covering the life of Brigitte, her mother and how the Civil War that tore their land apart started.
The cute factor of the people may make you think this book is for children but it's definitely an adult book. I also had trouble differentiating characters from time to
Brigitte learns her countries history and tries to make sense of her decision to follow someone from the North at the same timer. Her mother also tried to make things work with someone from the North. It's interesting to see the parallels between Brigitte and her mother and Brigitte's grandmother's anger puts an interesting spin on things.
The cute factor of the people may make you think this book is for children but it's definitely an adult book. I also had trouble differentiating characters from time to
Show More
time.Brigitte learns her countries history and tries to make sense of her decision to follow someone from the North at the same timer. Her mother also tried to make things work with someone from the North. It's interesting to see the parallels between Brigitte and her mother and Brigitte's grandmother's anger puts an interesting spin on things.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Rosa.Mill
This was an epic tale covering the life of Brigitte, her mother and how the Civil War that tore their land apart started.
The cute factor of the people may make you think this book is for children but it's definitely an adult book. I also had trouble differentiating characters from time to
Brigitte learns her countries history and tries to make sense of her decision to follow someone from the North at the same timer. Her mother also tried to make things work with someone from the North. It's interesting to see the parallels between Brigitte and her mother and Brigitte's grandmother's anger puts an interesting spin on things.
The cute factor of the people may make you think this book is for children but it's definitely an adult book. I also had trouble differentiating characters from time to
Show More
time.Brigitte learns her countries history and tries to make sense of her decision to follow someone from the North at the same timer. Her mother also tried to make things work with someone from the North. It's interesting to see the parallels between Brigitte and her mother and Brigitte's grandmother's anger puts an interesting spin on things.
Show Less
Language
Original language
English
Physical description
232 p.; 6.9 inches
ISBN
1606993445 / 9781606993446