Matilda Cackle photobomb!

Sunny, Vol. 1 by Taiyo Matsumoto: Jason warned, ‘get yer hanky ready!’ and oof- there are definitely some heartbreaking moments. ‘Sunny’ is a broken-down car/playhouse in the yard of a Japanese orphanage. For every first crush, runny nose, and action movie fantasy, there’s something terrible that made me go, ‘Eff this terrible world and all the adults in it.’ The book itself is a beautiful. I wish more manga got the fancy hardcover treatment.

The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters: The story is set in London, at the end of the first World War, and Frances and her mother have fallen on hard times. To make ends meet, they open their house to two young lodgers who rock Frances’s world. I read this quickly and think Sarah Waters is a sublime writer (I’d been meaning to read her novels for some time). However, the limitations in this time period are so fucking frustrating, I had to put the book down at one point to groan loudly. Sorry for this hint of a spoiler but AHHHH!– if only these women had been born a few decades later to enjoy baller lifestyles!

The Hospital Suite by John Porcellino: An account of Porcellino’s health problems. It’s perfect.

Snowpiercer, Vol. 2: The Explorers by Jacques Lob, Benjamin Legrand, Jean-Marc Rochette: I don’t want to hate on a COOL dystopian future story with great art but I didn’t love this. The plot is riddled with confusing jumps and the ending seems very abrupt. Also, why is it ok for the train to stop now? I enjoyed the movie and the first volume of the original comic but this follow-up left me COLD.