Giant Days, Vol. 5

Giant Days (Single Issues) #17-20

by John Allison, Max Sarin (Illustrator), Liz Fleming (Inker)

Going off to university is always a time of change and growth, but for Esther, Susan, and Daisy, things are about to get a little weird.

Their freshman year is finally coming to a close and Daisy, Susan, and Esther say goodbye to Catterick Hall forever. Literally forever. It’s being bulldozed and re-purposed as a luxury dorm next semester. But as one door closes, another opens and between end of semester hookups, music festivals, and moving into their first home together, the life experiences are just getting started.

Written by Eisner Award nominee John Allison (Bad Machinery, Scary Go Round) and illustrated by Max Sarin, Giant Days Volume 5 finishes off freshman year in style, collecting issues #17-20 of the Eisner and Harvey Award-nominated series.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Young Adult, Contemporary, Fiction, Humor, Graphic Novels Comics

112 pages, Paperback

First published June 20, 2017

About the author

John Allison is the author and artist of the British webcomics Scary Go Round and Bad Machinery.

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See other authors with similar names.

Reviews

[karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

i disagree, esther...

volume 5 was a little uneven for me. there were definite high points



but the term paper fiasco went on too long - no one needed that to straddle two issues, and daisy’s archaeology dig was a tedious diversion that didn’t contribute anything to the larger story and then it just … ended abruptly and suddenly she was back with her gal pals with no “lesson learned” or “anecdote shared,” or anything at all. the last story ended the same way - on a low-energy fizzle that must have been disappointing enough as the ending to a single issue, but to conclude a 4-issue collected graphic novel on a shrug like that, it kind of casts a boring shadow over the entire reading experience.

but those are my gripes and now they are finished. because i do still love reading about these characters and their adventures. this one sees them at the end of their first year, through a single summer adventure and then back at school for year two, moving into their own house and adulting with fervor in the form of a trip to ikea. because who doesn’t feel like a card-carrying grown-up when they enter ikea?



and this issue cements it, esther fenella de groot is officially my favorite. or my gothier doppelganger:







i feel all her pains here.

that’s not to say i’m not still loving the others.

daisy’s positive attitude:



and languid dance moves:



babe-quoting susan’s resistance to the tyranny of tents:



and her unsober texts:



even mcgraw’s not without his moments:



but wait, GRAHAM???? did we even know that before??

this one didn’t have enough susan in it - she’s getting lost between esther’s high-drama outbursts and daisy’s high-energy chippery-dippery. poor girl can’t even get some binocular time:



but she does get to pay back revoked peeping-privileges with everyone’s favorite game: poking the superstitious:



so, yeah, 3.5 because of the peaks and valleys of my interest, but i am in no way losing interest/faith in this as a series. how could i, with such a boldly-stated promise?



also, i do enjoy all the hilarious ways us and uk slang differs and makes things gross.



bring on the next one!

****************************************

3 1/2 overall, with lots of standout moments.

come to my blog!

[Nat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was in a really foul mood today and was more than ready for it to change, when I decided to read the latest volume of Giant Days, and lo and behold it worked like magic.


Freshman year is finally coming to a close and Daisy, Susan, and Esther say goodbye to Catterick Hall forever. Literally forever. It’s being bulldozed and re-purposed as a luxury dorm next semester. But as one door closes, another opens and between end of semester hookups, music festivals, and moving into their first home together, the life experiences are just getting started.


I've been following the adventures of the Giant Days group for over a year now, so I felt like a proud mother when I got to see the ending of Daisy, Susan, and Esther's freshman year. They've been through quite a lot together, and I'm beyond ecstatic that I got to tag along.

So without further ado, here are some of my favorite moments the group went through in this volume (with a few subtle *spoilers* ahead):

• Esther finding a way to make money with the help of Ed, but then it turns out to be a shifty kind of business deal.


The Saul-Goodman-type lawyer that helped them out made it all the more laugh-out-loud worthy.
• Susan is still mournful about McGraw moving on with new his girlfriend, Emilia Martinez.


The mention of the song More Than Words made me crack a smile thanks to Noora Sætre.
• Speaking of music, getting to see the girls at the Avon Valley festival was exciting as hell. Especially having Daisy - my favorite- out and about enjoying the fresh air and the songs.


• Also, shoutout to this subtle shoutout given to the Steven Universe characters in the background:


• I was over the moon when both Daisy and Esther wanted to be the mom-friend:


• And another wave of proudness fled over me (I can't help it) when the girls went furniture shopping at IKEA for their new home:


#relatable.

All in all: I'm excited to see what the start of year two will hold in stores for us. I cannot wait!!

4/5 stars

Note: I'm an Amazon Affiliate. If you're interested in buying Giant Days Vol. 5, just click on the image below to go through my link. I'll make a small commission!


Support creators you love. Buy a Coffee for nat (bookspoils) with http://Ko-fi.com/bookspoils

[Chelsea (chelseadolling reads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was great but also I need more McGraw in my life thank you

[Dannii Elle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Our three fledgling university students are growing up, attending music festivals together, renting their first home, and completing their first years of higher education. I have enjoyed every volume but found the previous one my least favourite, as the issues combined seemed to cover disparate topics. I was pleased to find this a far more cohesive read, and just as drama-filled.

[Sam Quixote · Rating 5 out of 5]

As their first year at university ends, the girls prepare for summer. Daisy goes on an archaeological dig and encounters a mean professor, Esther and Ed take a job from Dean Thompson that seems too good to be true (and of course is), and Susan’s still not over McGraw. They reunite for an extremely muddy music festival before moving into their new place ready for the second year - if only their furniture weren’t held together by glue!

Giant Days is still the jizz. It’s amazing how much John Allison crams into these relatively small volumes but they’re all killer, no filler! I loved all the stories without exception. I love how the characters are progressing with Daisy standing up for herself at the dig, to Esther and Ed’s will they/won’t they romance becoming briefly, dangerously will they, to Susan’s nefarious Northampton past rearing its fire-breathing face once more, this time in the form of The Cowboy!

Max Sarin’s art is the perfect amount of silliness to match Allison’s happy-go-lucky scripts, and the pages are beautiful throughout. Without telling you how much I enjoyed every little detail, I’ll leave it here. Each new volume of Giant Days is like a comfort blanket for my head and heart - John Allison somehow never lets me down! The fifth volume continues the improbably high quality of this magnificent series - can’t wait to see how the gang do in their second year!

[Calista · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series is so much fun. I enjoyed this one very much. The girls first year came to an end and summer break. They got jobs and then ... Music Festival. That was hilarious. Rain and mud and funny times. Then they have to set up their new apartment. It's all those things you learn to do when you are growing up.

This series is really growing on me. I look forward to reading more of this. It's good fluff.

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Happy happy happy, as university year one ends for roomies Susan, Daisy and Esther. Ed and Esther figure out a way to make money from his roommate Dean Thompson, rewriting plagiarized term papers. Such a good idea. . .. wait! This whole madcap story is terrific, complete with a visit to a pretty lawyer for advice, but pretty funny is the norm in this series, as everyone cracks jokes, and they are mostly good ones.

Susan is still sad about McGraw, especially as she sees his new Spanish girlfriend, Emilia. So it’s summer, with a muddy music festival, moving out of the dorm into an apartment, summer hook-ups. A combination of non-stop clever dialogue (Allison) about relatable, largely unsurprising everyday college events, and lots of smiling (me and other readers).

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another wonderful volume of Giant Days has come to an end.

Why five stars? Well, my friends, it's like this: I was feeling really rather arsed off with life, suffering from a nasty cellulitis infection with accompanying fever and nausea, the pending results of my bone density scan and MRI scan weighing heavily on my soul. Surely all but the most arseholish of arseholes would grant that this is enough to put a frown on most anybody's visage.

BUT THEN!

Then I read this little book and the exploits of our plucky yet somewhat clueless trio of heroines washed all my cares away and planted a great, big smile on my fuzzy, little face!

THIS, my darlings, is damned fine comics as damned fine comics should be done! Kudos to Mr. Allison and his fabulous team of art pixies! Long may you run!

Now I'd better read a mainstream superhero comic to counterbalance all this joy... It's just not British to be this happy...

[Magdalena Miękińska (getbooky) · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5

[Bookishrealm · Rating 4 out of 5]

Update: This was great! It’s the end of the first year of uni and we get to see the gang have a really great adventure at the musical festival. It was just as hilarious as the first time that I read it. They also move into their first off campus housing and the previous tenants ruin it so they have to travel to IKEA to get new supplies. I think that this one ends on a lighter and more fun note than how it begins. The first part of it focuses on Susan having to cope with moving on from McGraw as he gets a new girlfriend. It’s sad in a lot of ways but I’m still holding out hope that they’ll get back together before it’s all said and done. Artwork is always going to be on point for me! On to volume 6!

This was another great addition to the series. I absolutely loved the fact that we're getting the opportunity to see these characters grow and change. I thought the music festival scene was hilarious! And I'm really interested in seeing how their whole situation turns out. October can't come soon enough for me to get my hands on volume 6.

[Marpapad · Rating 4 out of 5]

[3.5]

[destiny ♡ howling libraries · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vol 1: ★★★★☆
Vol. 2: ★★★★★
Vol. 3: ★★★★★
Vol. 4: ★★★★★
Vol. 5: ★★★★★
Vol. 6: ★★★★★
Vol. 7: ★★★★★
Vol. 8: ★★★★★
Vol. 9: ★★★★★
Vol. 10: ★★★★★

It always feels so good to get back into Giant Days with another volume, but OHMYGOD if a certain someone doesn't get back together with a certain someone else soon I'm going to spontaneously combust. 😭

[rachel, x · Rating 5 out of 5]

#1) Giant Days, Vol. 1 ★★★★★
#2) Giant Days, Vol. 2 ★★★★★
#3) Giant Days, Vol. 3 ★★★★★
#4) Giant Days, Vol. 4 ★★★★★
#6) Giant Days, Vol. 6 ★★★★★
#7) Giant Days, Vol. 7 ★★★★☆
#8) Giant Days, Vol. 8 ★★★★☆
#9) Giant Days, Vol. 9 ★★★★★
#10) Giant Days, Vol. 10 ★★★★☆
#11) Giant Days, Vol. 11 ★★★★☆
#12) Giant Days, Vol. 12 ★★★★★
#13) Giant Days, Vol. 13 ★★★★☆
#14) Giant Days, Vol. 14 ★★★★☆

➸ Trigger warnings for alcohol consumption, recreational drug use, and nonconsensual drugging.

▷ Representation: Daisy (mc) is a lesbian.

Blog • Trigger Warning Database • StoryGraph

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mwahahahaha! How I love Giant Days! My God, this series is brilliant and always knows how to put a smile on my face.

This volume follows Esther, Susan and Daisy as they move out of their student lodgings after completing the first year of uni. There are lots of hilarious happenings along the way (namely Esther and Ed hiring a cheap lawyer to get them out of a less than ideal situation, madcap mayhem at a particularly muddy festival and a fum outing at Ikea).

There's also a little chemistry between Esther and Ed while Susan continues to stalk McGraw and his new Spanish girlfriend. I really hope Susan and McGraw do get back together - they make such a good couple.

I love the three girls and can see bits of myself in all of them but I think Susan epitomises me the most :)

Overall, another solid five star read. I look forward to reading Vols 6 and 7!

[Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

The art was great as ever but the story... somehow it lacks the uniqueness pf the first couple of chapters. The freshness. The unexpectedness.

It's still fun so i'll continue reading it, but i'm a bit disappointed.

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another cute installment of this wonderful comic book series! It was nice to see the girls say goodbye to their first year and start their life in the home they now share, I cannot wait to see what adventures this new house brings, but knowing these characters they will probably be a lot of fun! Also, it was very nice to see their friendship at the music festival, outside of the university setting, I hope the next volumes are going to include more of that.

[Rachel (Kalanadi) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the IKEA issue!

[Ivan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bit of letdown.Still fun but not really as fun as rest of the series.

[Ashley Daviau · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is by far my favourite volume out of the series yet! Mind you, I’m probably going to say this about every single volume in this series if it continues being this great. I just love these characters so much and they really bring me back to my college days and all the uncertainty you constantly feel. And the part with the festival is just too damn perfect, it made me reminisce about my times at festivals. It’s definitely the funniest one by far, I actually laughed out loud multiple times and that rarely happens to me when I’m reading!

[Kayla Charisse · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you haven't read Giant Days yet, you're doing comics wrong.

[Maggie · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite character right now is Susan.
I love Daisy and Esther too.
This graphic novel has me hooked. Love the art, the story, and characters.

[Filip · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reread in September 2022 - as funny the second time as it was the first. New visual jokes noticed, old ones appreciated anew.

This review originally appeared on my blog, The Grimoire Reliquary!



My, but it has been a while since last I spoke about John Allison and Max Sarin’s exceptional Giant Days series, hasn’t it? Has a more charming slice-of-life tale ever been penned and drawn with such effortless skill? I’ve certainly never seen anything of the kind, though if you have, please let me know in the comments!

The fifth volume of THIS LEGENDARY PIECE OF ART is nothing short of 𝓟𝓡𝓞���𝓘𝓖𝓘𝓞𝓤𝓢𝓛𝓨 🅓🅡🅞🅛🅛 𝖋𝖚𝖓.

It also 𝖕𝖔𝖘𝖘𝖊𝖘𝖘𝖊𝖘 all the important things I can find in my own life, such as the following:

First, as someone on the cusp of getting his English Literature degree–and someone who likes getting beautiful things–this is preternaturally funny and accurate:



Esther de Groot, legendary lady of taste, melodrama, and whales, is looking for a way to make a quick buck to buy things. Does it end well? Phahaha, good one, of course not, it’s Esther we’re talking about here, she gets in seventeen kinds of trouble before lunch. Her partner in crime this time around is no one but Ed-Edd-Eddie-boy, former near-paramour and altogether great lad. We love Ed, he’s a good boy, best we protect him as long as possible.
But we mustn’t dilly-dally; the second element of my present life that this book discloses in its secretive, prescient ways is–you’ve guessed it–the national meat of my country of residence, Sᵛᵉⁿˢᵏᵃ!



Allison is good, but he can’t be this good! Oh look, it’s Daisy and Susan hanging out with my girl Esther – wonder what they are up to. Let’s see, shall we?



Ah. Team time indeed, Daisy, you mephistophelian figure of delight and brimstone. Daisy is on an archaeological dig, dontcher know, and she’s having the time of her life with a rather problematic professor. It might not end too well for anyone involved, but like all archaeological digs, but isn’t it in the purview of archaeology to air up some dirtbags?

👌🐧 𝐁𝓪Đ ｊ๏𝐊𝓔 ☠🐯

And Susan? Poor, phenomenal Susan, is dealing with post-break-up awkwardness with McGraw.



All of this, while the girls are moving into a brand new home, making new friends, and new mistakes, such as:



Nothing like a good murder van in front of an Ikea, is there?

ℕ𝕠 𝕞𝕦𝕣𝕕𝕖𝕣 𝕧𝕒𝕟𝕤 𝕙𝕒𝕧𝕖 𝕓𝕖𝕖𝕟 𝕙𝕒𝕣𝕞𝕖𝕕 𝕚𝕟 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕨𝕣𝕚𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕠𝕗 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕤 𝕣𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨.

Look, folks–Giant Days is good. Hells, it’s the finest, funniest slice-of-lifeliest graphic novel out there; HOW COME YOU’VE NEVER READ IT? You should. Really! And while you’re at it, do follow the old blog, maybe subscribe to my YouTube channel, too? And don’t forget…



Right you are, Daisy, death *IS* one gift that keeps on giving–but so is John Allison’s whole bloody series!

[Melissa Chung · Rating 5 out of 5]

As you can see this is volume 5. I don't want to give much away since this is an ongoing series. However, it's not like a plot driven storyline where there is a point to reach at the end. It's more of a sitcom about 3 girls in college. I thought the girls had already reached their second year in volume's 3 and 4, but I was wrong. Halfway through Vol. 5 that finished off their first year of college and got summer jobs. Then end of the volume is the girls coming back together after summer in a new housing area and being the "older kids" on campus. Giving this series as always 5 stars because it's just so fun to read. I love that the girls are always getting into mischief. That they always have each other's back and they are all different and wonderful. I hope this series lasts forever lol or atleast until they graduate college. If it took 5 volumes to finish one year of college, maybe we can see 20 volumes and a spin off getting a career afterwards.

[Anete · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5 Trīs draudzenes turpina savu piedzīvojumu, ko sauc dzīve. Šī daļa skar daudz tēmas, kas liek kavēties atmiņās par paša piedzīvojumiem pat tad, ja nēesi studējis: 1. kursa pabeigšana, vasaras darbi naudas pelnīšanai, pārākuma sajūta pret pirmkursniekiem, atgriežoties kā sertificētiem veterāniem uz 2. kursu, 1. IKEA apmklējums un mēbeļu konstruktora salikšana, vainas izjūtas Damokla zobens, nedraudzīgi kaimiņi, sapņu darba piedzīvošana realitātē neattaisno cerības, 1. mūzikas festivāls un daudzi citi.
Un jauki zīmējumi nebeidz priecēt sirdi.

"It's interesting how one person's lifelong dream can co-exist with another's most appalling nightmare."

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, first, I love this series. I love the characters. I love the university setting. I love how weird it is.

But as a whole, this wasn't a super great trade paperback. It covers several events that don't really form a cohesive story arc, even if the individual components were highly amusing. This volume is basically split into three: the end of their first year at university, an incident over their summer break where the girls attend a music festival, and the beginning of their second year.

As always, Allison takes actual, everyday things that undergrads have to deal with, and then just amps them up slightly on the absurdity scale. Moving out of their dorms at the end of the first is accompanied by the literal bulldozing of the dorm building. A plagiarism scandal escalates into Esther and Ed utilizing the services of a scummy 24-hour lawyer. The incident at the music festival ends with a river of mud attacking everyone. And the girls new house comes with furniture that was previously destroyed by the boys who lived in the house previously, which leads to Esther's first trip to IKEA. There is role-playing involved.

It gets harder and harder to actually write reviews for this series, FYI, because I've reached the place where the characters are real people. Objectivity is nearly gone. RIP objectivity.

[Wing Kee · Rating 4 out of 5]

So good!

World: The art has always been good for the series, it's beautiful, simple and emotive. The characters display so much emotion and bring the every day slice of life story to life. The world building is simple and serves the story, we have a music festival, college living and Ikea it's simple but fun.

Story: The stories here are hilarious and fun, they are beautiful little slice of life stories that ooze character and that's pretty much what Giant Days is. This is the issue where it ends the first year and it does end on some wonderful notes and also brings new things into the series. Good stuff.

Characters: The trio of gals is the best thing about the series and slowly their characters have developed into something special. I can't really get into the characters, but this is the fifth volume, if you don't love this cast of characters by now you should not be reading this series. There is more growth, more life lessons and funny situations here that are all character based. Wonderful.

I love this series, it's such a beautiful change of pace from what I read.

Onward to the next book!

[Paz R.M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars
Giant Days is my happy place!

The girls are finally done with their first year at Sheffield, but the end of school year doesn't happen without its problems: heartbreak, a grumpy professor and plagiarism? It really doesn't matter what messes the girls get into, with a bit of humour and friendship they find the solution.

The last two issues, about a music festival and building ikea furniture were great and funny too. Been there, done that.
I do love how even when Esther, Daisy and Susan are so different they always give a different perspective to the issues they are facing, they're each other's rock and support no matter what!

[Stewart Tame · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is something of an interim volume. We're between first and second year at university, though, so that's to be expected.

It takes a great deal to do it, but do not get Daisy angry. Ever.

High points for me this time around were probably the music festival and the move-in issue, complete with Daisy, Esther, and Susan shopping at Ikea. Particularly love the cover for this one. Highly recommended!

[ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This collection was a little hit and miss for me. Still hilarious, but not QUITE as amazing as the previous 4. However, this series is amazing and I will without a doubt pick up the rest!

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this series, the characters are great and the friendship between them is even better!