My Favorite thing is monsters is a graphic novel unlike anything I had read before. It’s a very open, intimate story about a young girl’s self-image. It feels like we can see through her eyes in this comic, especially because of the illustrative style. They’re rough, and this can be jarring, but their very emotive and serve to show you the main character’s thoughts and opinions, including those on herself. She portrays herself as a monster, and this parallel, quite literally shown is very impactful for the reader. We are struck by the gravity that one’s image has on their self-esteem and how those themes fit into an unstable part of one’s life. Growing up is hard, and coming to terms with one’s self is even harder as it’s a part of that process. The way that this graphic novel is able to abstract these concepts through the drawings is really effective.
I recently had the opportunity to read "Marriage of a Thousand Lies" by SJ Sindu and hear explanations of her work by Sindu herself. I found the book extremely interesting and was especially fascinated with how Sindu talked about rebellion. She talked about how she provided the main character with sisters to play against, who took different paths in life. One is in an arranged marriage, and one is off living a free, albeit disconnected life. The two sisters are both satisfied with their lives surprisingly, and I enjoy this part of the book because it provides us with a little complexity. A lot of writers taking on the subject of rejecting traditional norms would only cast an arranged marriage in a cold light, but Sindu chose to make it a successful relationship to give the impression that there are a variety of paths in life, not just two (the right and the wrong). One might choose not to rebel, but to bend to their society or parent's will, and still have a fulfilling li...
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