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book data
315 ratings,
3.90
average rating, 73 reviews
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published
October 25th 2007
by Astiberri
(first published 2001)
details
Paperback, 200 pages
literary awards
isbn
1594973962
(isbn13: 9781594973963)
description
El suizo Frederik Peeters, dotado de un vibrante genio creativo, cuenta con humor, nervio y profundidad una emocionante historia de amor con el VIH co…more
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 442)
All ratings
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5 stars (88)
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4 stars (124)
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3 stars (89)
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2 stars (13)
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1 star (1)
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avg 3.90
editions: all | this edition
editions: all | this edition
Read in June, 2008
Fantastic autobiographical comic about author Frederik Peeters and his relationship with his HIV positive girlfriend and her son. Very moving, intense, and an over-all wonderful comic about the lengths one will endure for love. The graphics were neat and Craig Thompson-esque. I especially loved the mammoth near the end.
"when i look backward, i have the impression of happiness, and of a diffuse and permanent pleasure. but i know that it's because of movement, of the close con...more
"when i look backward, i have the impression of happiness, and of a diffuse and permanent pleasure. but i know that it's because of movement, of the close con...more
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Read in January, 2009
recommended to Wealhtheow by:
Julian
An autobiographical comic about a young man who learns his girlfriend and her young son are HIV+. The relationships (between Fred and his gf, his friends, and especially the little boy) are sweet and feel true, and the art is really good. His ink is fluid but nevertheless conveys a great deal of information. That said, the language often feels clunky and overwrought. The artist has a long conversation with a mastadon about his confused feelings about science. He overuses ellipses. There's ...more
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bookshelves:
adoption,
adult,
biographical,
feminist,
funny,
graphic-memoir,
graphicnovel,
nonfic,
not-amerika,
psychological,
realistic,
romance
Read in January, 2010
I looked for this title because it was mentioned in French Milk by Lucy Knisley. At the time, she bought it in the original language. This really is lovely. The translation is a little bit rough (I was kinda excited to be able to identify that as the problem), but the illustration is just gorgeous. Very Craig Thompson with a different philosophical approach. These are slices of musing by the author about his relationship with an H.I.V. positive woman with an H.I.V. positive child. There is...more
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Read in August, 2008
If I could give this 3.5 stars I would. I thought the romance between the main characters was sweet and kind, and I loved the Swedish doctor character. I'm not sure if something was lost in the translation, but a lot of the language seems pretty overwrought, and the mammoth bit had me sighing out loud. Still, I would recommend it to anybody who's a fan of the graphic novel memoir.
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Read in May, 2009
Really this book deserves 2.5 stars, but I pushed it up to 3 because for me 2 stars typically means that a book isn't worth reading. In this book I got small glimpses of wit and good writing/illustrating, which hint at the author's potential to be a really good comics writer. The subject of living with HIV or having a partner with HIV was interesting, though this book left me wanting many parts of the story explored in more depth. It's also interesting to see this story with a hetero couple, ...more
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Read in June, 2009
A very different, very real tale of making a good relationship work against the odds. The tagline is "a positive love story" for a reason-- one of the characters is a mother who is HIV positive. Some people feel the language sounds a bit contrived but I could almost hear it in French, which lent it a specific beauty. The drawings were quite expressive, even though I found his drawing of the eyes distracting. (Ever since I heard of sanpaku eyes, I see them everywhere. I don't know, i...more
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Read in July, 2008
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Read in February, 2008
recommended to MAMA CIERRA by:
I find alot of graphic novels on my ownrecommends it for: Everyone
what I percived from this book is that Love is truly deep, and to love someone regaurdless of the situation or condition there in, is real love. In the Graphic Novel Blue pills, I was carried through intense illistrations and breath taking dialague. I loved Blue Pills, It really made me think about life, and love, and how we take it for granted. People theise days in my oppinion dont love any more, the think they love, but they dont truly know it. I feel as if blue pills sent across a few amazin...more
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This comic has excellent dry-brush work, and Peeters wrings a lot of emotion out of basically only 2 or 3 different facial expressions. The mostly unvaried panel layout is not very jazzy, but it suits the somber tone and pacing of this autobiographical story about living with somebody with AIDS. This book seems to get a lot of praise for not being "sentimental," but as a romance it certainly is "mushy." The narrator's over-educated tone should not bother you if you have read ...more
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Read in February, 2008
recommends it for:
Sociology bums whose libraries consist of comics and graphic novels.
This graphic novel was very eye-opening. The book/memoir deals with a condition that I have not been remotely exposed to, and feel unfortunate for not having been well educated on those with this condition. Blue Pills helps separate people with HIV/AIDS from their condition. It is so easy to empathize with the feeling that (because an illness is so dangerous and consuming) you have become your illness, and you are just as dangerous and destructive. This book beautifully illustrates the human ...more
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Read in May, 2008
Good stuff. I’m surprised Drawn & Quarterly didn’t snap this one up a few years ago when it was published in French. It’s the author’s memoir of falling in love with his girlfriend, who is HIV+. Words are used pretty minimally, which made me think about how the images in a graphic work can feel sort of open to interpretation, leaving you room to find your own connections. Peeters’s brushwork reminds me of Craig Thompson’s in that it’s so fluid, but it’s also rougher and, I think,...more
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Read in January, 2009
I hate to rate this book 5 out of 5 because the author is so honest. this is the story of his life's great love that is undeniably tangled with the grief and guilt of HIV infection and the looming fear if AIDS. I like the non-linear format and his first person visuals make you really get inside his head as he tries to work through his feelings, fears, and frustrations without appearing to agonize too much over them. A really heartfelt work.
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Read in February, 2010
When Fred and Cati meet again after many years it is love a first sight. A deep bond formed instantly. But when thing get serious Cati confesses that she and her son are HIV positive which stimulates Fred to face his values and priorities. It is a good graphic novel but I kept wishing for more. It would have made a better novel than graphic. Too many nuances are left out. I hope Peeters considers rewriting this in a longer form.
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Read in January, 2009
Truly a heartfelt story of what the public would consider a relationship with complications. Peeters captures a very beautiful and flowing image of the human condition, and shows that while HIV is a physical issue, it does not have to be so much of a social problem. Mortality is captured in this comic in a way I've never imagined before, and I enjoyed learning about such an outlook at life.
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Peeters work with the brush pen is very reminiscent of Craig Thompson, as is the autobiographical story focused on self examination. While these elements provide the initial spark of attraction, the story, concerning a relationship with an HIV positive woman, quickly overtakes these signifiers. I hesitate to say I was educated by it, I surely was, but to say that I learned something seems to distract from the ideological reorientatons that provide the focus of this story. And it does an amazing ...more
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best ever comic book about running into someone and almost dating then years later dating and marrying your long lost friend when ...tadaaa...she has a kid....and also HIV. Very expressive art. So expressive it makes you realize that graphic novels can do everything that regular novels can do. Painful poignant and beautiful...just like life.
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Read in June, 2009
For me, bits and pieces of Peeters' memoir got lost in translation (from the original French "Pilules bleues" into English) -- like I had to reread the chit-chat near the end with the mammoth several times -- but all in all, it was an honest rendering of the evolving relationships between love, connection, disease, and mortality.
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Read in March, 2009
a perfect example of the effectiveness of expressionist linework, I loved the art style and the story effectively conveyed the difficulties and labor that goes into making a relationship work. the main character was easy to relate to as a thinker, he constantly questioned and attempted to define his love and worldview.
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Read in February, 2008
This was my first graphic book (besides Maus years ago) and i really did enjoy it. The story was thought provoking and sweet and a quick read. I didn't think it was all happy though. I felt a heavy sadness reading about the little boy starting his HIV medication at age 3 and the "step"father and mother having the face the child's immanent death. It did make me think of what children with AIDs and their families had to live through in the 80's. Remember little Ryan White who wasn't ...more
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So far I have been very lucky when reading graphic memoirs, which is in no doubt due to the fact that I have read some really high quality titles like Fun Home and Blankets. My winning streak continues with Blue Pills: A Positive Love Story by Frederick Peeters. Fred and Cati run into each other a few times over the years before becoming romantically involved. When their relationship begins to get serious, Cati has a confession for Fred: She and her son are HIV positive. The book is translated i...more
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