kihou | Recent Reading

On a Sunbeam by Tillie Walden. This graphic novel was really fun and interesting because it takes place in a rather surreal space future with a lot of weird unexplained elements like buildings (ruined and occupied) free-floating in space. It started as a webcomic which seems relevant to how it has different sections that feel very different genre-wise (slice of life space building renovation, boarding school flashback, sci fi adventure). I think it works though and it keeps you on your toes about what to expect. You might call it found family overall, but not in an excessively cozy way IMO. I feel like the thing it reminds me most of is The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet. Does some cool stuff with color, though that did hurt character recognizability for me a bit. Definitely a worthwhile read.

My next read was Fierce Femmes and Notorious Liars by Kai Cheng Thom, which I thoroughly enjoyed. Sort of a magical realism memoir about being a trans woman, the way trans stories are told in the mainstream, and about brutality and violence. I think it felt very real and very compelling, the way it's presented with various fantastic elements some of which seem like direct metaphors and some of which are harder to interpret and generally with a heightened but authentic emotional register worked very well for me. Reminds me of, like, Hitherby Dragons or The Magic Fish or Freakboy, but really its own thing entirely. I'd definitely call it a must-read.