Una posibilidad

Una posibilidad #1-2

by Cristina Durán, Miguel Ángel Giner Bou

Reconstruirse y reinventarse es lo que hacen Cristina y Miguel cuando, nada más nacer su primera hija, les toca enfrentarse al mundo de la parálisis cerebral infantil. Años más tarde, deciden emprender, con la misma valentía y determinación, el arduo proceso de la adopción de su segunda hija. Un camino familiar empedrado, lleno de incertidumbres, pero que recorren los cuatro con una fuerza y un optimismo fuera de lo común.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Memoir, Biography

320 pages, Hardcover

First published February 1, 2017

About the author

Cristina Durán Costell es Licenciada en Historia y diplomada en Criminología por la Universidad de Santiago de Compostela.

Reviews

[Rod Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

The authors tell of the arrival of their two daughters in this collection of works originally published in Spain.

The first half is the agonizing tale of their newborn Laia, born with cerebral palsy and suffering from hemorrhages and seizures in her early days. We follow the couple as they cope with the initial news and the months of physical therapy and other challenges presented by Laia's needs. As a parent I could feel my stomach twist at every bit of bad news and my heart thump in elation anytime someone reached out to them to help.

The second half covers the adoption of three-year-old Selamawit from Ethiopia. It has fewer emotional highs and lows as it settles into the continuous frustration and stress of dealing with the regulations and red tape of bureaucracy in two different countries. I was mostly interested in seeing the dynamic this new child would bring to their family, but that just gets a quick gloss at the end of their Ethiopian journey.

The art is pretty chunky, blocky, and angular with its heavy line and I'm not sure it really suited the story. The children looked cute, but the adults all come off as squat, wide Lego figures.

[Guzzo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Si la maternidad/paternidad es un viaje a un universo sin vuelta atrás, la discapacidad y la adopción son dos saltos al vacío con el corazón como único paracaídas.

Muy recomendable.

[Fernando Garcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Me ha gustado mucho más Una posibilidad entre mil que La máquina de Efrén. De todas maneras, conmovedores los dos.

[Alberto Garcia Ariza · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una lectura que conmueve y con la que es imposible no simpatizar. El comic nos invita a acompañar a Cristina y a Miguel a lo largo de todo e proceso en el que les ha cambiado la vida, y no deja de darnos muchas lecciones, sobre el problema de su hija, sobre la respuesta de la administración y de la sociedad en general, pero sobre todo, del gran optimismo de los autores. Temáticamente es inevitable compararlo con "María y yo" de Gallardo. Sin embargo, y a sabiendas de que son palabras mayores, en mi estantería va a estar más cerca de Maus. Totalmente recomendable.

[Irene León · Rating 5 out of 5]

Necesito asimilar tantísima belleza para poder escribir una reseña sobre esta novela gráfica.

[Critter · Rating 5 out of 5]

The copy of this that I received is of a translation of this book and my review is based on the translation. I absolutely loved the art style in this book. The artwork was stunning and I loved how the characters expressed their emotions in this art style. Both books in this translation were very emotional reads. I loved both of them, but the first book really stood out. I loved that these books discussed some really emotional and complex topics that were central to the narrative. Overall, these books were very beautiful and touching.

I would like to thank the publisher for providing me with an ARC.

[Javier · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aquí interviene mucho mi contexto personal: hace ya unos años que evito el sufrimiento en mi consumo de cultura. Este comic es puro desasosiego, sufres con los protagonistas (y más aún sabiendo es real).

Transmiten bien su odisea y la verdad, lo primero que he pensado al acabar es “¿qué será ahora de ellos?”
Sufres y te alegras, sufres y sufres. Es lo que hay, es su historia y así la han contado. Y el hecho de que haya tenido este mal rollo durante la mayoría del comic supongo que indica que lo han hecho bien.

Si algún día leen esto los autores: amigos, vaya liada habéis tenido. Deseo de todo corazón que os vaya fantástico.

[Jorge Regueira · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cómic integral que se compone de 2 libros: Una posibilidad entre mil, que narra de forma maravillosa y dura el proceso y emociones que tiene que vivir la pareja autora del cómic cuando nade su hija con diversos problemas de salud. Duro y recomendable.
El segundo libro, La máquina de Efrén, narra todo el proceso que lleva la adopción de un niño, en este caso de la misma pareja protagonista del primer libro, así como muestra la evolución de crecimiento de la otra hija, así como la aceptación entre las dos hermanas
Muy recomendables

[Juan José · Rating 5 out of 5]

Muy muy bonito, aunque acaba como muy de golpe, no?

[Ika Willis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was nicely drawn - I loved the chunky black-and-white style - and well-told, and I like hearing stories about families. I felt it was designed to present a really positive picture of international adoption and caring for a child with cerebral palsy - difficulties are acknowledged, but they are always externalised (the nurses who don't support Cris's attempts at relactation, the bureaucratic requirements around adopting from Ethiopia), and everyone's feelings are always appropriate and proportional. Nothing ever seems to be too much for anyone: Cris and Migue are shown successfully managing to be high-achieving professionals who love their daughter, are highly involved in her schooling and medical care (including the physical rehab exercises she needs four times a day), eat delicious home-cooked food, stay in contact with friends and family, go on date nights, and lovingly negotiate every aspect of their parenting as well as their professional relationship. Everyone in the family is consistently supportive and nice and never takes their feelings out on each other (except for a single page in the epilogue on the gradual process by which Laia overcomes her jealousy of her new adoptive sister).

It was a very nice place to spend a couple of hours in - the understated positivity made it an easy and fun read. The book definitely puts a bit more weight in the scale of "there are lots of ways to be a person and lots of ways to be a family", but ultimately I don't think it will stay in my mind very long.

(I've said more about the first book, about Laia, because I just don't really know what to make of the second book - I have uninformed "ick" feelings about international adoptions, and this account didn't do much to make me any more informed. Everyone in the story seemed very nice, as above, but there was literally no attempt to address the bigger structures of power involved, and the story of the Spanish woman who wept as she hugged the birth mother whose child she was taking away freaked me out more than a little.)

[Theresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a digital ARC from Graphic Mundi an imprint of Penn State University Press. This non-fiction graphic novel has been translated to English for US publication. The story follows two married illustrators as they dramatically become parents. Cristina has just given birth and she and Miguel have a baby in ICU. Several doctors are working to give baby Laia the best outlook as they hurdle through different issues. From breastfeeding to follow-up appointments, to family support, to physical therapy – this is an emotional process. Then as Laia becomes a toddler and enters school, Cristina and Miguel take on a new endeavor to adopt a 2nd child from Ethiopia – a process that takes years. Their family story is beautifully illustrated, well-detailed, and page by page the reader is immersed in their journey. I was so moved by their strength, determination and love. Highly recommended.

[Ellen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Family story, special needs child, medical issues, heartwrenching, adoption, hopeful, white and single color (sometimes blue, sometimes yellow), multiple narrators

Cristina and Miguel give birth to their daughter Laia, who is diagnosed with a rare abnormality which causes cerebral palsy and developmental disabilities. The first half of the story focuses on their struggles with Laia in infancy and early childhood. Then they decide to adopt a child from Ethiopia, and the second half focuses on the adoption process. The books was collaboratively created and the shifting POV can be confusing at times.

[Sydney · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful autobiography written by parents doing their best to raise a child with cerebral palsy, as well as adopt a child from Ethiopia. I can only imagine how gut-wrenchingly difficult yet rewarding they feel raising both of their lovely children. This book was tender, emotional, and upsetting, but overall very rewarding. It was so sweet how they ended the story, and included a real-life photo after the Epilogue. A sweet and beautifully illustrated graphic novel.

[Andréa]

Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss.

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellently told story of the authors and their journey through parenthood of a special needs daughter and the adoption of another child.