Coming in paperback: the groundbreaking graphic memoir that has inspired breast cancer patients to fight back—and do it with style....
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Dec 16, 2009
Curlita
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It's cool to see graphic novels becoming mainstream. This one is written and drawn by a cartoonist for the New Yorker and Glamour. It chronicles her experience with breast cancer; the fact that she uses illustrations gives it a whole different impact than if the tale had been strictly narrative. The reader gets a sense, first, of what her life is like (life as a New Yorker, her friends, her family, her adorably drawn and characterized fiance) and then adds the impact of the breast cancer. The st
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Dec 28, 2008
Barky
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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May 17, 2011
Michèle
rated it:
Une histoire vraie, tellement vraie que voici le courriel que j'ai envoyé à l,auteure à la place d'une critique:
A true story in graphic novel form. In full color. So true that, instead of a critique, here is the actual e-mail I sent to the author the exact day I finished the book
Dear Marissa,
I just finished your comic book Cancer Vixen. It was a powerful trip down a city that is as almost remote as the Moon for me (hiih! The New-York scene, the “stick figures More...
A true story in graphic novel form. In full color. So true that, instead of a critique, here is the actual e-mail I sent to the author the exact day I finished the book
Dear Marissa,
I just finished your comic book Cancer Vixen. It was a powerful trip down a city that is as almost remote as the Moon for me (hiih! The New-York scene, the “stick figures More...
Dec 16, 2009
Emilia
rated it:
Some great things about this book: It was in color. It was by the lady who does the Glamour cartoons, which I always find just a little bit better and funnier than the magazine deserves. So yes, she has a great sense of humor and it shines in this book. Also I learned some really technically interesting things about the chemotherapy process! Finally, and of course this is totally personal preference, she had a really great Italian-American attachment to Saint Philomena and to the Virgin Mary who
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Aug 03, 2009
Amber
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I read “Cancer Vixen” which were very emotional read for me. It got me thinking about all of my family (my grandmother had breast cancer, but is in remission), and the prayers flowing! I had seen this book on the display at the library where I work for quite a while, but I was rather turned off by the cover art. Specifically, her face- her eyes and eyebrows looked mean, and did not at all scream, “Cancer Victim!” But after reading the book, the body language of her in a “falling-on-her-butt” po
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Jun 06, 2011
Vanessa
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Oh, this book is so hard to rate. It's a graphic memoir by Marisa Acocella Marchetto of her struggle with breast cancer which she discovered she had right as she got engaged. Her cartoons have appeared in Glamour and The New Yorker.
What I liked: I loved the author's cartoons. She is often quite funny-her anthropomorphized cancer cell doodles were cheekily hilarious. She promotes a positive outlook while realistically wallowing in self pity from time to time. There is a good deal of More...
What I liked: I loved the author's cartoons. She is often quite funny-her anthropomorphized cancer cell doodles were cheekily hilarious. She promotes a positive outlook while realistically wallowing in self pity from time to time. There is a good deal of More...
Sep 03, 2009
Lee
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What an amazing book!! I was so thankful when another BC friend brought this to me when I was diagnosed with breast cancer at 35. Powerful in the sense that it is in full color, and there were definitely days after being diagnosed with cancer that I didn't feel so colorful. The author, who also is a cartoonist for The New Yorker and other publications, tells her journey through cancer diagnosis and treatment. After reading this, I felt better in that I am not alone in my experience. I loved
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Feb 05, 2009
Marisa Marchetto, whose comics collection Just Who the Hell Is She, Anyway? jumped off the page from the artist's Mirabella strip circa 1994, shows her range__and an indomitable sense of humor__with a graphic memoir depicting her battle with illness in the prime of life. Endearing and informative, as well as fun and, at times, riotously funny, Cancer Vixen explores the emotions and explodes the stereotypes of women with breast cancer. Marchetto, with her Sex in the City attitude toward life, ins
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Apr 07, 2010
Jessi
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This was surprisingly good. The cover and title don't really do much to represent the content here, and thank god. They seem more like the product of pandering editors than anything the author may have come up with on her own (though, who knows... I'd like to assume as much, anyhow). It's a very self-aware telling of suddenly inhabiting two seemingly at-odds phenomenon -- cancer and a regular life -- and how the author grapples with reconciling the two. Even without cancer, it resonates -- as yo
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Nov 21, 2008
Marnie
rated it:
I saw this book at Bath & Body Works. It's about how the author survived cancer & it's in graphic form. It's a good story & very real. The art was just ok, not great. I liked how colorful it was though. The saddest part was when she found out she'd never be able to have children (it shows a dream she had of her fantasy kids saying goodbye to her). I thought she was kind of self-centered & immature, even though her experience helped her grow up some. It was pretty long & had some parts that weren
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Jul 25, 2010
Ann
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I don't know if it's fair to say this, but I just really feel like I cannot critique in substance the story of one woman's battle with cancer. I can say that though I enjoyed the book(and in fact blew through it in a day) and loved most of the images, I couldn't always relate to the author - and not just because of the cancer. How I relate to her shoe obsession or whirlwind romantic travels or New York society circles though is completely irrelevant to her narrative of what is her own very uni
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Jan 25, 2010
Sarah
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I bet this book really is entertaining and endearing to women who have or have had breast cancer, but I simply couldn't get into it. People may read my opinion and say I'm heartless, but this book is just too depressing for someone without cancer. I had no desire to read it at all. I'm also against modern medicine and think chemotherapy is propaganda in a country that focuses on maximizing profits for some corporations due to specific government ties. I have nothing negative to say about the aut
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Jul 25, 2011
Jessie
rated it:
This should be required reading for anyone who's been diagnosed or knows someone who's been diagnosed with breast cancer. Marchetto is frank and honest, sharing her thoughts, feelings, and reactions at every step, from diagnosis, to lumpectomy, to chemo and radiation. Her cartoons do much of the explaining and it was interesting to sort of go behind the double doors of the hospital and experience the doctors' visits along with her. The graphic novel has given me a clear view and a new understa
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Jul 31, 2011
Ronald
rated it:
An amusing comic-strip account of the author's diagnosis of, and treatment for breast cancer. Her experiences parallelled mine in so many little ways ("What's your birthdate?"), but she was able to depict it in a much more amusing manner. One difference: While she tracked the time she had to wait during her treatment, I tried to get as much reading in as possible. One similarity: Going through it with her mother was very similar to my going through it with my partner David. I learned o
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May 30, 2011
Karen
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I had trouble deciding whether to give this book a four or a five. I find it very hard to rate graphic novels on the same scale used for "normal" text-only book since there's so many different aspects between the two book types. And I'll admit, I feel a little guilty not giving it a huge rating since it is about surviving cancer, but realizing this particular guilt and remembering the tone of this book, I give it an honest four stars.
It is great and I've read it twice, which More...
It is great and I've read it twice, which More...
Aug 17, 2011
Rebekah
rated it:
Marisa, a cartoonist for the New Yorker and Glamour, is diagnosed with cancer and recounts her journey in this hilarious graphic novel. The drawings are raw and she spends lots of time talking about her fabulously rich Italian fiance and all of the beautiful models who hit on him right in front of her, but overall this was a very detailed and humorous account of life with cancer. I would pass this along to anyone with breast cancer looking for more information about the treatment who are sick of
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Jan 14, 2009
Teeni
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This was a very good read about a terrifying subject. The fact that it was done like a cartoon made it easier to digest but don't let that fool you. This is the author's very real journey to wellness after having her life and wedding plans interrupted due to breast cancer. The treatment she endures and the fears she experience are easy to relate to. For other survivors it is a good story to share. When I bought my copy, a donation was being given to a breast cancer charity so that was a nic
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Feb 22, 2011
Colleen
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This is the first adult graphic novel I've ever read. And with this particular story--it works. I know many adults who dislike graphic novels--especially for kids. But I say--why not? There's room for lots of different formats. Marchetto was already a successful cartoonist living in New York City. Her career was humming along, she had a fab social life, and was engaged to a successful restaurateur. Then, right before her wedding, she discovered a lump in her breast. And she had no health
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Mar 07, 2011
Jenna
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I'm kinda torn about how to rate this book. I was very drawn into the story, as I quickly read it in a day and a half. I felt a lot of sympathy for the character as she went through her journey of diagnosis and treatment, including her dealings with her friends and family, her ruminations on how and why this is happening to her and the long-term effect of this on her life. She made herself very human and accessible.
The part I struggle with is that she is writing from such a positi More...
The part I struggle with is that she is writing from such a positi More...
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Feb 16, 2010
Ashley
rated it:
Unputdownable! I finished this book in less than 24 hours.
Marchetto's "Cancer Vixen" cartoons have appeared in brief in Glamour magazine, which was my first exposure to her. Her story is raw and real, but she still maintains her sense of humor and self, ala wearing designer shoes to her treatments. The glimpses of her vulnerability and struggles with her diagnosis and treatments were so enlightening. I've been incredibly fortunate to have never been a first-hand witness to More...
Marchetto's "Cancer Vixen" cartoons have appeared in brief in Glamour magazine, which was my first exposure to her. Her story is raw and real, but she still maintains her sense of humor and self, ala wearing designer shoes to her treatments. The glimpses of her vulnerability and struggles with her diagnosis and treatments were so enlightening. I've been incredibly fortunate to have never been a first-hand witness to More...
Dec 10, 2009
Stephanie
rated it:
I have read several graphic novels in the past year, and many of them have been memoirs. This story, about a fabulous New York cartoonist who dons equally as fabulous shoes, chronicles her year spent kicking cancer's ass. The cover image really depicts the personality of Marisa - she deals with her fears, her upcoming wedding, and her career through her magical storytelling and imagery. I really felt as though I came to know Marisa through her journey and I think this would be a great book for s
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Nov 14, 2008
melydia
rated it:
This is the true story, told as a graphic novel, of a NYC cartoonist and her battle with breast cancer. She is diagnosed mere weeks before her wedding to resturantuer Silvano Marchetto, and between that, her job, and the constant nuisance of models hitting on her fiance, things start to get a little harried. The comic format lends levity when needed, but never detracts from the serious parts. Since Marchetto describes every excrutiating step of her diagnosis and treatment in great detail, I lear
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Nov 09, 2009
Jennifer
rated it:
i was thinking this would be really dark and depressing, but i was pleasantly surprised by how funny and entertaining a woman's journey through breast cancer treatment can be. the art style isn't what i usually go for in comics, but i enjoyed the art too, and what a weird line it is when you do autobiographical comics and are drawing real people in your life. i can see the hubbub now over this book and enjoyed it, for also being a weird peek into socialite culture of hoity toity new yorkers.
Mar 12, 2009
Kayleigh
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Once I opened this book last night, I really couldn't stop reading it, it was just that good. It was nice to hear about a battle with cancer from a different perspective- that of a fashionable, young, hip, New Yorker (who in fact gets her comics published by the New Yorker) and her both superficial and spiritual concerns relating to cancer. (can i please not have my hair fall out?) It was a good work combining a love story with a battle with cancer, with an ultimately happy ending.
Mar 09, 2010
Jschwabenland1
rated it:
This was a very cute and very true tale of a cancer survivor in graphic novel form. No downfalls at all except that she only had a lumpectomy, no a masectomy, or more commonly--a double masectomy. Also, she chose a lighter chemo so she wouldn't lose her hair which she didn't. No everyone has that choice, though. So in that regard, the book was wrong. She didn't have the same adversaries as I did. Also, she wore high heels throughout the book. So not fair, not fair, not fair.
Dec 29, 2008
Granma
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This was a very interesting book for me because Marisa and I had many of the same experiences and treatments. It was a quick read, and I enjoyed that it was all done in a cartoon strip. A very serious story done in an amusing and flashy style. It was great to read about this success story of a woman who faced the scary diagnosis of cancer and yet she could still keep a sense of humor throughout the journey. Loved the shoes she wore to her chemo treatments.
Sep 03, 2011
Rebecca
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Of all the books I've read dealing with breast cancer this one is one of my faves! It's so important to have laughter in your life when dealing with this disease. This is an account of Marisa's personal cancer journey. She is a famous cartoonist and the book is written in cartoon format. I recommend this book to all the family and friends of cancer patients who attend the support group that I facilitate.
Aug 04, 2009
Stephanie
rated it:
I enjoyed reading this book. I didn't love Marchetto's drawing style, though I thought her compositions were very creative and interesting. Despite my initial dislike of her illustrations, her excellent storytelling ability kept me hooked to the end. This book is funny, touching, and empowering. I consider it a success in that I was highly entertained and motivated to take better care of myself.
Apr 23, 2011
Am
rated it:
I read this a few years ago in a grad class on multiliteracies. I picked it because my best friend Tracy was, at the time, finishing her treatment for breast cancer. I re-read it recently after my other best friend Mary was diagnosed with breast cancer. It is a great read to gain insight into the struggle, but it was fun to see how Marisa beat cancer with style! Funny and bitter sweet read!!!
Feb 03, 2012
John
rated it:
This was a book I did not expect to like because it's not the usual type of graphic novel I would pick up, but her artwork is spectacular. Her use of colors and text captured my attention until I got past the "Sex in the City" vibe and my own stupid reservations. The tale of cancer survival she tells is really moving and humbling. I recommend it strongly.
