A Review of Sarah Myer’s Monstrous (First Second, 2023)
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ljiang28
Written by Stephen Hong Sohn
Edited by Lina Jiang
Suffice it to say that I loved Sarah Myer’s Monstrous (First Second, 2023)—another one of my winter vacation reads—so much I actually reached out to the author via her website. Though I have yet to hear back and will likely not (given how many weeks have already gone by, sad face), this graphic narrative is definitely one I will add to the course I have taught in multiple iterations thus far called “Seeing Stories: Race and Graphic Narrative.” At Fordham University, I’ve already taught this course four separate times. Each time, I do try to add a new selection or two and sub out an equal number. Next time around, I will definitely add Monstrous!
The marketing description can be found here: “Monstrous is poignant young adult graphic memoir about a Korean-American girl who uses fandom and art-making to overcome racist bullying. Perfect for fans of Almost American Girl! Sarah has always struggled to fit in. Born in South Korea and adopted at birth by a white couple, she grows up in a rural community with few Asian neighbors. People whisper in the supermarket. Classmates bully her. She has trouble containing her anger in these moments—but through it all, she has her art. She's always been a compulsive drawer, and when she discovers anime, her hobby becomes an obsession. Though drawing and cosplay offer her an escape, she still struggles to connect with others. And in high school, the bullies are louder and meaner. Sarah's bubbling rage is threatening to burst.”
Despite all of this rage inside of her, Sarah continues to sort out her struggles with her racial identity and her artistic side, and the development of this particular character trajectory is hard-earned and heartwarming. By hard-earned, I mean to say that, in advance of teaching a book like this one, I would have to add a trigger warning. The amount of ridicule, bullying, and general bad energy that Sarah faces as a high school student was incredibly depressing to read. Just when you think she’s turned a corner, something else happens at school. I was most distressed at the lack of proper accountability that students were held to, on the one hand, and the almost universal lack of disciplining and oversight provided by adults in the educational system. To say that Sarah is a survivor is an understatement. Part of the reason that Sarah survives is that she never shies away from the power of art to be transformative for her. Of course, it helps a lot that her adoptive parents are so supportive of her unique talents and interests. In fact, I adored Sarah’s parents. One of the sequences in which Sarah’s father takes her to a local anime convention, where Sarah can cosplay and just meet other artists and creators was the moment I could breathe just for a second and know that she was finding a stable and secure path for herself. Of course, it wouldn’t be a graphic narrative review without images and art, and Sarah’s work is incredibly inviting, with shades of the anime she clearly was most drawn to as a child. The marketing description refers to Robin Ha, which certainly comes out a little bit in the similar ethnic contexts and artistic styles, but the plot of Monstrous specifically diverges in its focus on the Korean-American adoptees’ identity formation.
Buy the Book Here
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ljiang28
Written by Stephen Hong Sohn
Edited by Lina Jiang
Suffice it to say that I loved Sarah Myer’s Monstrous (First Second, 2023)—another one of my winter vacation reads—so much I actually reached out to the author via her website. Though I have yet to hear back and will likely not (given how many weeks have already gone by, sad face), this graphic narrative is definitely one I will add to the course I have taught in multiple iterations thus far called “Seeing Stories: Race and Graphic Narrative.” At Fordham University, I’ve already taught this course four separate times. Each time, I do try to add a new selection or two and sub out an equal number. Next time around, I will definitely add Monstrous!
The marketing description can be found here: “Monstrous is poignant young adult graphic memoir about a Korean-American girl who uses fandom and art-making to overcome racist bullying. Perfect for fans of Almost American Girl! Sarah has always struggled to fit in. Born in South Korea and adopted at birth by a white couple, she grows up in a rural community with few Asian neighbors. People whisper in the supermarket. Classmates bully her. She has trouble containing her anger in these moments—but through it all, she has her art. She's always been a compulsive drawer, and when she discovers anime, her hobby becomes an obsession. Though drawing and cosplay offer her an escape, she still struggles to connect with others. And in high school, the bullies are louder and meaner. Sarah's bubbling rage is threatening to burst.”
Despite all of this rage inside of her, Sarah continues to sort out her struggles with her racial identity and her artistic side, and the development of this particular character trajectory is hard-earned and heartwarming. By hard-earned, I mean to say that, in advance of teaching a book like this one, I would have to add a trigger warning. The amount of ridicule, bullying, and general bad energy that Sarah faces as a high school student was incredibly depressing to read. Just when you think she’s turned a corner, something else happens at school. I was most distressed at the lack of proper accountability that students were held to, on the one hand, and the almost universal lack of disciplining and oversight provided by adults in the educational system. To say that Sarah is a survivor is an understatement. Part of the reason that Sarah survives is that she never shies away from the power of art to be transformative for her. Of course, it helps a lot that her adoptive parents are so supportive of her unique talents and interests. In fact, I adored Sarah’s parents. One of the sequences in which Sarah’s father takes her to a local anime convention, where Sarah can cosplay and just meet other artists and creators was the moment I could breathe just for a second and know that she was finding a stable and secure path for herself. Of course, it wouldn’t be a graphic narrative review without images and art, and Sarah’s work is incredibly inviting, with shades of the anime she clearly was most drawn to as a child. The marketing description refers to Robin Ha, which certainly comes out a little bit in the similar ethnic contexts and artistic styles, but the plot of Monstrous specifically diverges in its focus on the Korean-American adoptees’ identity formation.
Buy the Book Here
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