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Marzi #1-4
Marzi - L'Intégrale - tome 1 - La Pologne vue par les yeux d'une enfant
"Marzi" - période 1984-1987
Les souvenirs de Marzena Sowa sur cette période charnière de la Pologne forment un témoignage unique. Loin de l'aridité d'un documentaire, à l'instar des grands succès du genre, la bande dessinée nous fait partager l'intimité d'une petite fille et de sa famille, dans le contexte si proche et si lointain des pays de l'Est.
Elle avait sept ans quand elle a vécu l'état de siège de la Pologne, la pénurié, la création du syndicat Solidarnosc, le bras de fer entre Jaruszelski et Walesa, l'explosion de la centrale de Tchernobyl. Ses souvenirs sont restés là, n'attendant que le moment où l'auteur Marzena serait prête à retrouver l'enfant Marzi...
"Marzi" est un moment d'Histoire parfaitement raconté en images par Marzena Sowa et Sylvain Savoia. C'est le premier témoignage sensible sur cette période critique de la Pologne.
"Marzi ce sont de petits récits attachants et tendres, très bien faits. Je le recommande chaudement" - La Librairie Francophone (France Inter)
Les souvenirs de Marzena Sowa sur cette période charnière de la Pologne forment un témoignage unique. Loin de l'aridité d'un documentaire, à l'instar des grands succès du genre, la bande dessinée nous fait partager l'intimité d'une petite fille et de sa famille, dans le contexte si proche et si lointain des pays de l'Est.
Elle avait sept ans quand elle a vécu l'état de siège de la Pologne, la pénurié, la création du syndicat Solidarnosc, le bras de fer entre Jaruszelski et Walesa, l'explosion de la centrale de Tchernobyl. Ses souvenirs sont restés là, n'attendant que le moment où l'auteur Marzena serait prête à retrouver l'enfant Marzi...
"Marzi" est un moment d'Histoire parfaitement raconté en images par Marzena Sowa et Sylvain Savoia. C'est le premier témoignage sensible sur cette période critique de la Pologne.
"Marzi ce sont de petits récits attachants et tendres, très bien faits. Je le recommande chaudement" - La Librairie Francophone (France Inter)
264 pages, Paperback
First published September 3, 2008
44 people are currently reading
1611 people want to read
About the author
Marzena Sowa
39 books63 followersMarzena Sowa is a Polish cartoonist. Since 2001, she has been living in France and Brussels. Sowa studied at the Jagiellonian University in Cracow and then at the Michel de Montaigne University in Bordeaux. Sowa is the author of the autobiographical comic Marzi, a series of comics about her childhood in 1980s-era Poland. She writes about life under communism, food shortages, and her childish escapades. The illustrator is Sylvain Savoia, Sowa's life partner. So far, six volumes of Marzi have been published by comic book publisher Dupuis. In Poland, the first three volumes were collected and published by Egmont. Marzi is also translated into Spanish and, in 2011, into English.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 234 reviews
May 4, 2025
IL RE È NUDO
Tenera, dolce, spiritosa, acuta, divertente, Marzi-Marzena mi ha fatto fare un bel viaggio in un tempo e in un luogo che conosco poco.
Mi ha raccontato la sua infanzia in Polonia: mentre nasceva Solidarnosc con i primi scioperi e il regime reagiva dichiarando lo stato di guerra - Chernobyl - papa Wojtyla e il cattolicesimo tra la gente comune (la parte che preferisco) - la fabbrica, le code per comprare qualcosa, qualsiasi cosa, il razionamento, i negozi dove servivano i dollari, il frigorifero vuoto, i barattoli di conserve - l'eco dell'Occidente, l'orto di famiglia, i parenti, il condominio, gli amici, la scuola, la televisione, le gite, i giochi, gli animali domestici, le bambole, i dispetti, i crucci, i dolori, la madre per me insopportabile, il padre adorabile (non solo per me).
Intanto lei cresceva e il suo paese cambiava: si cominciava a sognare.
Tenera, dolce, spiritosa, acuta, divertente, Marzi-Marzena mi ha fatto fare un bel viaggio in un tempo e in un luogo che conosco poco.
Mi ha raccontato la sua infanzia in Polonia: mentre nasceva Solidarnosc con i primi scioperi e il regime reagiva dichiarando lo stato di guerra - Chernobyl - papa Wojtyla e il cattolicesimo tra la gente comune (la parte che preferisco) - la fabbrica, le code per comprare qualcosa, qualsiasi cosa, il razionamento, i negozi dove servivano i dollari, il frigorifero vuoto, i barattoli di conserve - l'eco dell'Occidente, l'orto di famiglia, i parenti, il condominio, gli amici, la scuola, la televisione, le gite, i giochi, gli animali domestici, le bambole, i dispetti, i crucci, i dolori, la madre per me insopportabile, il padre adorabile (non solo per me).
Intanto lei cresceva e il suo paese cambiava: si cominciava a sognare.
January 25, 2012
Let me just say how much I loved little Marzi. Her character is sweet, charming, and vulnerable, with a healthy dose of insecurity brought on by the culture of her environment and a mother who seemed to feel she had to bring Marzi up with an iron first. Marzi was just a normal little girl, watching as her parents stood in line for simple food staples, went to school with friends who had goods her family seemingly couldn't afford, and spent time with her country relatives, learning to store up food for leaner times. Marzi's life is what is not normal. Although she is a little girl who wants to play, to learn new things, and to have her own puppy, the world she lives in is much too oppressive for a little girl to really understand. Through her eyes, we really get to see how scary and challenging it was for the people of Poland to negotiate these last days under communist rule.
Overall, I really did enjoy this graphic novel. The version I had was a little over 200 pages long, and with the vignettes, it made it hard to stick with the novel in one sitting. I found myself coming back to it, to read a few stories at a time. One part of the story that I found especially interesting was the section after the accident in Chernobyl. Although it was far away, the affect of the radioactive cloud that traveled to Marzi's town in Poland was huge! The fears they had over the rain, the food, and even their animals sent a country already suffering for food and work into a greater tailspin. I don't know that I'd ever considered the dramatic affect this event had on other nations, but we really do get a good first-hand account from little Marzi.
On the whole, this was a good graphic novel that I could see being used to help explain more about Poland's modern history and about communism. Honestly, it has made me want to learn more about the author today and her thoughts on these events as an adult. Not a short read, but a good one!
Overall, I really did enjoy this graphic novel. The version I had was a little over 200 pages long, and with the vignettes, it made it hard to stick with the novel in one sitting. I found myself coming back to it, to read a few stories at a time. One part of the story that I found especially interesting was the section after the accident in Chernobyl. Although it was far away, the affect of the radioactive cloud that traveled to Marzi's town in Poland was huge! The fears they had over the rain, the food, and even their animals sent a country already suffering for food and work into a greater tailspin. I don't know that I'd ever considered the dramatic affect this event had on other nations, but we really do get a good first-hand account from little Marzi.
On the whole, this was a good graphic novel that I could see being used to help explain more about Poland's modern history and about communism. Honestly, it has made me want to learn more about the author today and her thoughts on these events as an adult. Not a short read, but a good one!
November 11, 2011
This book was a win from first reads give-away. It was an advanced copy=not for sale.
The story follows the trials and tribulations, as well as the joys, hopes, and drams of a girl growing up in Communist Poland, in the 1970's. I remember being about the same age at this time, and dreading the Red Menace, that plagued my grandparents' homeland. I thought how horrid it would be somewhere, where they decided what you would do, where you lived, and what you do when you grew up. The lines for scare food items boggled my American mind-supermarkets had everything-every day. I felt bad for them and prayed for them often. Hated that the Allies let Russia keep Poland, making it suffer all the more.
Marzi, takes us back to that time, to tell how it was for her and other. How she treasured what tiny possessions she had. Her extended family and friends, and how life was easier in the country for many. Also, how her father striked for working conditions, and eventually the fall of Communism in Poland.
I really enjoyed this book, for I could truly relate to it. I followed the news nightly, at that age. The joys in this book are bittersweet.
The first few pages are in a color palette, that fits the mood of the story so well. Then it goes black and white, I do not know if this is due to it being an advanced. If this book is released completely in color-I will buy it!!
The story follows the trials and tribulations, as well as the joys, hopes, and drams of a girl growing up in Communist Poland, in the 1970's. I remember being about the same age at this time, and dreading the Red Menace, that plagued my grandparents' homeland. I thought how horrid it would be somewhere, where they decided what you would do, where you lived, and what you do when you grew up. The lines for scare food items boggled my American mind-supermarkets had everything-every day. I felt bad for them and prayed for them often. Hated that the Allies let Russia keep Poland, making it suffer all the more.
Marzi, takes us back to that time, to tell how it was for her and other. How she treasured what tiny possessions she had. Her extended family and friends, and how life was easier in the country for many. Also, how her father striked for working conditions, and eventually the fall of Communism in Poland.
I really enjoyed this book, for I could truly relate to it. I followed the news nightly, at that age. The joys in this book are bittersweet.
The first few pages are in a color palette, that fits the mood of the story so well. Then it goes black and white, I do not know if this is due to it being an advanced. If this book is released completely in color-I will buy it!!
February 5, 2012
Yes, I'm biased as can be reviewing this wonderful graphic novel about a girl born at the end of the 1970s to live through the last decade of communism in Poland. Yes, I grew up in the same city of Stalowa Wola and shared so many similar experiences like time spent with relatives in the countryside, and being told that “children and fish don’t have a voice.” Despite this incredibly coincidental bias I will still congratulate Marzi for writing the story of her childhood with such a strong voice. Marzi expresses her innermost feelings of how she felt as a child, while being ignored waiting in line for the last batch of oranges, to then be told there is none left, after a woman cuts in front of her and takes the last few, she cries to herself “my tears form the path of my invisible existence.” The turmoil of the politicized times brings forth many questions which Marzi struggles to find answers to; she’s unable to find someone willing to talk with her and explain the anxiety in the air. She finds solace in her friendships, in nature, her pets and her loving relationship with her father going mushroom-picking or watching him referee a soccer game. Marzi will teach her readers, she will make her readers laugh, cry and remember their own childhood moments.
April 21, 2014
This is another one I find really difficult to rate. I wouldn't describe it as touching, or moving, or exciting, though it can be some of those things at times. I'd most describe it as... interesting. It's delivered very plainly, and most of the vignettes are about everyday life. It's informative, but it's slice-of-life... so by its very nature, it's not super gripping. It's smart - it has a great eye for minor events that make statements, both to childlike Marzi, and on into today - but sometimes it reaches a little too far for meaning. I'm sure there's some that's lost in translation (as there always is), especially since some parts I believe are double-translated (from Polish to French to English). But I think the tone is intentional. It's melancholic and thoughtful, not exciting. The art is very cute, but predominantly operates in washed-out earthy tones, emphasizing the theme of a child's understanding of uncertain times. Overall, I think it accomplishes what it sets out to do, you'll just need to be in the right frame of mind to enjoy it.
February 24, 2019
Som nadsena! Hladam dalsi diel
February 12, 2019
Dall'altra parte
Non sono un'esperta del genere graphic novel piuttosto che del fumetto (tanto è vero che non so nemmeno se siano due modi differenti per definire la stessa cosa!), ma so riconoscere cosa mi piace da cosa non mi piace: Marzi mi è piaciuto moltissimo.
Mi sono piaciuti i disegni (un tratto pulito e un'impaginazione chiara e per niente confusa), mi è piaciuto lo sguardo infantile per descrivere la Polonia degli anni '80 (prima della caduta del muro di Berlino), mi è piaciuta la semplicità con la quale sono state raccontate usanze e abitudini di un popolo vicino ma lontano: noi eravamo liberi, loro no.
Mi piace il fatto che ne siano stati stampati altri tre: non vedo l'ora che li traducano in italiano e che vengano pubblicati!
Marzi ha gli occhi aperti sul mondo che la circonda, noi abbiamo un'ottima occasione per ripassare (o per studiare) un po' di storia.
[24/01/2011]
Ma guarda un po' cosa c'è oggi sul Corriere della Sera online
Chissà cosa ne penserà Marzi! :-)
Non sono un'esperta del genere graphic novel piuttosto che del fumetto (tanto è vero che non so nemmeno se siano due modi differenti per definire la stessa cosa!), ma so riconoscere cosa mi piace da cosa non mi piace: Marzi mi è piaciuto moltissimo.
Mi sono piaciuti i disegni (un tratto pulito e un'impaginazione chiara e per niente confusa), mi è piaciuto lo sguardo infantile per descrivere la Polonia degli anni '80 (prima della caduta del muro di Berlino), mi è piaciuta la semplicità con la quale sono state raccontate usanze e abitudini di un popolo vicino ma lontano: noi eravamo liberi, loro no.
Mi piace il fatto che ne siano stati stampati altri tre: non vedo l'ora che li traducano in italiano e che vengano pubblicati!
Marzi ha gli occhi aperti sul mondo che la circonda, noi abbiamo un'ottima occasione per ripassare (o per studiare) un po' di storia.
[24/01/2011]
Ma guarda un po' cosa c'è oggi sul Corriere della Sera online
Chissà cosa ne penserà Marzi! :-)
February 18, 2023
This might be the best graphic novel I've read. It's so many stories within a story. Marzi is a precocious child who sees her country of Poland changing and wants to understand it. She wants to understand and analyze everything: religion, cultural traditions, social inequalities, the entire world of nature, how place affects politics, and why children have to labor. Her story tells the story of her nation, and it's mesmerizing.
December 27, 2018
This was so good!
I'm pretty startled that it took me so long to discover it.
Marzi grew up in Poland, and is just a few years older than I am (she was born in 1979).
I'm sure a million people have asked her "What was it like to grow up under communism?"*
This book seems to be her answer.
I really liked the approach of the book. Marzi's chapters are extremely episodic. She doesn't vary her panel layout at all - six panels per page, and each chapter is indicated with a heading above the panels on the starting page. The color work is limited as well - just blacks and greys with a touch of orange or red every once in a while. There's a monotony that seems to symbolize the monotony of communism.
The chapter topics range between "games we played in the stairwell" "how school handled kids with the same name" "making our own bubblegum" (which is supergross) to "the protests that overthrew communism."
In some GN-memoirs, I want disparate parts to be brought together in one narrative. Here, that didn't feel necessary. She gets across her life experience, and makes it feel more real, in a way, by letting the everyday clash against the big picture world changing stuff.
For my travelogue tracking - pages 81-87 has a great sequence of her going on a trip with her grandma.
I also appreciated her perspective on how different the fall of communism felt in Poland vs. how it might have felt in a place like Germany where a big physical wall fell.
The big stuff sneaks up on you. I would have been totally satisfied just following her through her life. I loved hearing about the day-to-day in her apartment block. But then, her dad just doesn't show up to work one day - and suddenly, we get an education in polish politics of the 1980s.
In these times, it made my heart ache a little to read a story where ordinary people actually changed the world.
Read with:
Dare to Disappoint
Persepolis
A Game of Swallows
*As insensitive and innappropriate as it is for anyone to ever ask that question of another person. We all live our own normal.
I'm pretty startled that it took me so long to discover it.
Marzi grew up in Poland, and is just a few years older than I am (she was born in 1979).
I'm sure a million people have asked her "What was it like to grow up under communism?"*
This book seems to be her answer.
I really liked the approach of the book. Marzi's chapters are extremely episodic. She doesn't vary her panel layout at all - six panels per page, and each chapter is indicated with a heading above the panels on the starting page. The color work is limited as well - just blacks and greys with a touch of orange or red every once in a while. There's a monotony that seems to symbolize the monotony of communism.
The chapter topics range between "games we played in the stairwell" "how school handled kids with the same name" "making our own bubblegum" (which is supergross) to "the protests that overthrew communism."
In some GN-memoirs, I want disparate parts to be brought together in one narrative. Here, that didn't feel necessary. She gets across her life experience, and makes it feel more real, in a way, by letting the everyday clash against the big picture world changing stuff.
For my travelogue tracking - pages 81-87 has a great sequence of her going on a trip with her grandma.
I also appreciated her perspective on how different the fall of communism felt in Poland vs. how it might have felt in a place like Germany where a big physical wall fell.
The big stuff sneaks up on you. I would have been totally satisfied just following her through her life. I loved hearing about the day-to-day in her apartment block. But then, her dad just doesn't show up to work one day - and suddenly, we get an education in polish politics of the 1980s.
In these times, it made my heart ache a little to read a story where ordinary people actually changed the world.
Read with:
Dare to Disappoint
Persepolis
A Game of Swallows
*As insensitive and innappropriate as it is for anyone to ever ask that question of another person. We all live our own normal.
September 2, 2016
Calling this book "The Polish Persepolis" as many did would not be fair.
What I like, apart from the book, is the story behind its genesis.
Let's take a French illustrator and a Polish woman with some writing skills. Let's call them Sylvain and Marzena. Then let these two fall in love with each other.
Visiting Marzena's country, Sylvain got interested in the childhood of his girlfriend and he asked her to remember those days. Marzena did it beginning with some apparently minor details related with daily life during the communist age. Sylvain found those details inspiring and began drawing some sketches of a carp in a bathtub.
Well, according to Sylvain and Marzena this is how red-haired intrepid "Marzi" was born on paper. And I trust them.
This book collects the very first stories coming out from Marzena's childhood. The drawings are beautiful, the storyboard is pretty good and the whole operation is deserving. Maybe "Marzi" is not a masterpiece but having been in Poland recently I found her 1980s adventures as a good guide for understanding in a better and not pedant way the country nowadays.
What I like, apart from the book, is the story behind its genesis.
Let's take a French illustrator and a Polish woman with some writing skills. Let's call them Sylvain and Marzena. Then let these two fall in love with each other.
Visiting Marzena's country, Sylvain got interested in the childhood of his girlfriend and he asked her to remember those days. Marzena did it beginning with some apparently minor details related with daily life during the communist age. Sylvain found those details inspiring and began drawing some sketches of a carp in a bathtub.
Well, according to Sylvain and Marzena this is how red-haired intrepid "Marzi" was born on paper. And I trust them.
This book collects the very first stories coming out from Marzena's childhood. The drawings are beautiful, the storyboard is pretty good and the whole operation is deserving. Maybe "Marzi" is not a masterpiece but having been in Poland recently I found her 1980s adventures as a good guide for understanding in a better and not pedant way the country nowadays.
November 9, 2011
An autobiography of Marzena Sowa in a graphic novel format- it was a very enjoyable read! This book details memories she had as a child growing up in Poland during the fall of the communist regime. It was very interesting to look from a child's perspective the various issues that plagued her young life- such as financial and political issues, ration cards, worker strikes, and long lines to purchase limited food items. I would definitely recommend this book. The story of young Marzi is fascinating and the artwork is very well done.
I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.
I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.
March 28, 2015
The autobiographical novel "Marzi" written by Marzena Sowa greatly depicts living in Comunist rule. Marzi is the main character in the novel, and through her eyes we can observe political and historical changes that are taking place in the 1980s Poland. Although on the each page of the novel we can notice the same six-panel layout, the story told from Marzi's point of view does not happen to be monotonous. Quite the opposite: the reader does not only get a sense of what are the changes that the society has to accept. More importantly, one can observe the influence of such changes on Marzi's childhood. Małgorzata Sowa allows the reader to enter the world as seen through the eyes of Marzi, hence, many of the panels are drawn from a child's eye-level, and there is also a lot of text in speech bubbles. The young and very sensitive girl very often seems to notice more than the adults around her. In my humble opinion, this graphic novel does not resemble the very traditional European comic books with bright colours. Małgorzata Sowa went one step further and chose more colorful illustrations and, moreover, she decided on very suggestive cover of the novel. I would definitely recommend this novel.
Read
October 11, 2017Marzi è una bambina che vive nella Polonia degli Anni Ottanta: la sua infanzia è raccontata con i disegni da Sylvain Savoia e dettata dalle parole di Marzi stessa, Marzena Sowa. Sylvain e Marzi si sono innamorati da adulti e lei, per cercare di fargli conoscere il suo mondo, gli ha descritto la vita sua e dei suoi famigliari in quegli anni pre-caduta del Muro e pre-Solidarność, in un paese comunista, e lui poi ne ha tratto le strisce. La cosa veramente sorprendente di questa graphic è che dalla scatola dei ricordi della piccola polacca, inevitabilmente salgono, emergono pian piano e poi scoppiano i ricordi del lettore stesso, la piccola italiana in questo caso (!), non tanto per assonanza di situazioni (alcune davvero lontane da quanto accadeva in Italia, qui la fila per prendere la carne o la frutta con i razionamenti non l’ho mai vista), quanto forse per la contemporaneità dei tempi “storici”: il disastro di Černobyl', la tanto desiderata Barbie, la prima televisione a colori…. Oggi a pranzo a casa dei miei genitori ho chiesto di chi si ricordava com’era e quando era arrivata a casa nostra la prima televisione a colori, i miei fratelli la ricordavano benissimo (anche io!) e ricordavano anche i cartoni animati che vedevo io :D poi siamo finiti, non so come, a parlare di polpette e di verdure ripiene che ci si litigava quando li faceva mia mamma… insomma leggere Marzi è stato bello, come avere un’amica lontana che viveva certe solitudini o certe avventure più o meno mentre ne vivevo anche io. Mi ha sorpreso la sua grande vicinanza a Dio (del resto, la cattolicissima Polonia…) e una cosa è certa: sua madre e la mia sono due gemelle separate dalla nascita!
December 22, 2012
My list of graphic novels depicting the horrors of daily life under a Communist regime is growing: after Pyongyang A Journey in North Korea, The Year of the Pioneer, Acum nu e momentul and other Romanian books by Mihai Stanescu, I found the wonderful memoir of Marzena Sowa, Marzi.
Overall, this is one of the best first-hand accounts of a survivor of those times, aided greatly by the visuals. Recommended for anyone interested in life under Communism and for anyone who's lived that nightmare. (I also recommend the classics: Alexandr Solzhenitsyn, Herta Müller, Ismail Kadare, perhaps even George Orwell and Yevgeny Zamyatin.)
The remainder of my review may present a high-level view of what is in this book. However, the real pleasure is in the details, so I do not feel like I am spoiling any fun.
I enjoyed very much the treatment of the topic. There is so much that I recognize and strongly relate to! Growing up in the 1980s. The scarcity of things: toilet paper, meat, gas. The great scare following the atomic explosion at Chernobyl, 1986. Ulker's Turbo as chewing gum and collectible pictures of cars, and the national craze for the TV series Isaura the Slave (Escrava Isaura, Ro: Sclava Isaura). The infinite queues for unknown loot (Heh, maybe that's why I grind through hack-and-slash RPGs). The hard, practical life taught to children since early age ("Eat all there is in your plate!", "Here is what is inside this chicken! Don't be afraid of the entrails!", "Go queue and don't leave until you have bought toilet paper!", "You need to fight for your place in the queue!", "Pluck these feathers and stuff this pillow!", "You need to help with weeding out the legumes!", "The next three days we'll have to harvest strawberries!", etc.). At the same time, the eternal lies and smiles, as parents were trying to avoid involving the children into political life ("When you'll be older, you'll understand this better"). The feeling of the inevitability of the end of Communism. The surprisingly abrupt fall of Communism. The deal made by the new leaders with the Russians, presumably to avoid an invasion (the specter of Hungary). The eternal question: did the new rulers sell us out for their own benefit?
Double-speak and double-life, the main elements of surviving life under Communism, were well represented in this novel. The stages marches of joy accompanying the 1st of May (the international day of Communism) vs the silent resistance (here: turning off tvs, wearing resistors at the sleeve). The empty fridges vs the joyous birthdays staged for the kids. The angry sellers at the department store, more like little dictators of necessary resources than employees providing services. The expectation that Communism will imminently fall vs the surprise and total loss of lucidity when it did. Etc.
There were also parts about the Communism in Marzi's experience that fall far from my own. Being poor, for example; I had the impression that in Romania the problem was not the money, but the lack of actual merchandise to buy and the long waiting lists for anything worthwhile. (In other words, I had the impression that the regime was printing enough money, but there was simply no way they could be spent for daily necessities, as these did not exist in stores; or for vacations or a car or electrical implements, as these had waiting lists that could be bypassed only through connections; or the impossibility to buy or own a house.) Having teachers who would openly discuss how bad things were under Communism or explaining the meaning of the struggle against it. Having teachers replaced because the parents were complaining their children were being abused. Having a big family and access to the country side to compensate scarcity (although many Romanians did have this). Not having to worry at all about speaking openly (or even in the apartment, other than in hushed voices) against the regime (no internal police? Stasi? Securitate?). Religion and the workers population (in Romania, the church was known to collaborate murderously with the internal police, so religion in general and confessions in particular were snubbed by many in the city). The Pope supporting audibly and physically the country. A Solidarnosc and a Lech Walesa; a quiet revolution.
Visually, the book is rather good. The illustrator speaks the language of Understanding Comics The Invisible Art and the variety of topics is really staggering. Color-wise, gray tones and one-two colors (mostly reds) can do wonders. Nothing brilliant, or perhaps my mind was elsewhere.
Overall, this is one of the best first-hand accounts of a survivor of those times, aided greatly by the visuals. Recommended for anyone interested in life under Communism and for anyone who's lived that nightmare. (I also recommend the classics: Alexandr Solzhenitsyn, Herta Müller, Ismail Kadare, perhaps even George Orwell and Yevgeny Zamyatin.)
The remainder of my review may present a high-level view of what is in this book. However, the real pleasure is in the details, so I do not feel like I am spoiling any fun.
I enjoyed very much the treatment of the topic. There is so much that I recognize and strongly relate to! Growing up in the 1980s. The scarcity of things: toilet paper, meat, gas. The great scare following the atomic explosion at Chernobyl, 1986. Ulker's Turbo as chewing gum and collectible pictures of cars, and the national craze for the TV series Isaura the Slave (Escrava Isaura, Ro: Sclava Isaura). The infinite queues for unknown loot (Heh, maybe that's why I grind through hack-and-slash RPGs). The hard, practical life taught to children since early age ("Eat all there is in your plate!", "Here is what is inside this chicken! Don't be afraid of the entrails!", "Go queue and don't leave until you have bought toilet paper!", "You need to fight for your place in the queue!", "Pluck these feathers and stuff this pillow!", "You need to help with weeding out the legumes!", "The next three days we'll have to harvest strawberries!", etc.). At the same time, the eternal lies and smiles, as parents were trying to avoid involving the children into political life ("When you'll be older, you'll understand this better"). The feeling of the inevitability of the end of Communism. The surprisingly abrupt fall of Communism. The deal made by the new leaders with the Russians, presumably to avoid an invasion (the specter of Hungary). The eternal question: did the new rulers sell us out for their own benefit?
Double-speak and double-life, the main elements of surviving life under Communism, were well represented in this novel. The stages marches of joy accompanying the 1st of May (the international day of Communism) vs the silent resistance (here: turning off tvs, wearing resistors at the sleeve). The empty fridges vs the joyous birthdays staged for the kids. The angry sellers at the department store, more like little dictators of necessary resources than employees providing services. The expectation that Communism will imminently fall vs the surprise and total loss of lucidity when it did. Etc.
There were also parts about the Communism in Marzi's experience that fall far from my own. Being poor, for example; I had the impression that in Romania the problem was not the money, but the lack of actual merchandise to buy and the long waiting lists for anything worthwhile. (In other words, I had the impression that the regime was printing enough money, but there was simply no way they could be spent for daily necessities, as these did not exist in stores; or for vacations or a car or electrical implements, as these had waiting lists that could be bypassed only through connections; or the impossibility to buy or own a house.) Having teachers who would openly discuss how bad things were under Communism or explaining the meaning of the struggle against it. Having teachers replaced because the parents were complaining their children were being abused. Having a big family and access to the country side to compensate scarcity (although many Romanians did have this). Not having to worry at all about speaking openly (or even in the apartment, other than in hushed voices) against the regime (no internal police? Stasi? Securitate?). Religion and the workers population (in Romania, the church was known to collaborate murderously with the internal police, so religion in general and confessions in particular were snubbed by many in the city). The Pope supporting audibly and physically the country. A Solidarnosc and a Lech Walesa; a quiet revolution.
Visually, the book is rather good. The illustrator speaks the language of Understanding Comics The Invisible Art and the variety of topics is really staggering. Color-wise, gray tones and one-two colors (mostly reds) can do wonders. Nothing brilliant, or perhaps my mind was elsewhere.
November 1, 2020
Marzi is a memoir of growing up in communist Poland, with its hardships and political unrest. It's also the story of a little girl's family and friends, and the bright spots that keep them going. It's not overtly focused on the political, but Marzi grows into understanding what's going on around her. Especially when her father becomes active in the struggle for liberation. Even if you're not interested in history, though, this is an excellent memoir. Sowa was willing to lay many things bare, such as her mother's dysfunction and cruelty. It's not sensationalistic, but it's sobering. But in many ways her family was one of the lucky ones, finding ways to survive and enjoy parts of their lives even during hardship. This one stayed with me for a long while after I turned the last page.
December 22, 2024
Dawno się tak nie męczyłem. Popularność tego komiksu tłumaczę jedynie egzotyką, jaką była dla zachodniego czytelnika opowieść o dorastaniu w PRL-u. To właściwie bardziej obrazki z podpisami, niż komiks. Dialogi zredukowano do minimum, tekstu jest zdecydowanie za dużo, a całości brak jakiejkolwiek dramaturgii. Szczegółowo opisywana rzeczywistość z masą redundantnych informacji, które powtarzają to co widać w kadrach. Mam wrażenie, że zabrakło redaktora z prawdziwego zdarzenia.
February 12, 2012
Dobře napsaný a skvěle ilustrovaný autobiografický grafický román nebo spíš sled samostatných příběhů o dětství v komunistickém Polsku v druhé polovině 80. let. Fronty v obchodech, povinné lékařské prohlídky, Černobyl, polská obdoba Tuzexu, dlouhé velikonoční mše, stávky dělníků, Solidarność - to všechno líčené očima a jazykem malé a zvědavé Marzi s velkýma modrýma očima.
Kdo tehdejší dobu zažil, připomene si, kolik nenormálních věcí byli dospělí tak dlouho ochotní snášet a kolik z nich dodnes přetrvává v životě a myšlení lidí kolem nás. Ostatním bych knížku doporučila jako místy smutný, ale hlavně upřímný a osvěžující pohled do doby nedávno minulé - kdyby někdy vyšla v češtině, mohly by ji číst i děti ve věku Marzi.
Dětský jazyk dobře vystihuje i anglický překlad, který zachovává polské názvy reálií (pozorný čtenář se naučí i pár polských nadávek) - knížka je tedy vhodná i pro ty, kdo v angličtině číst teprve začínají.
Kdo tehdejší dobu zažil, připomene si, kolik nenormálních věcí byli dospělí tak dlouho ochotní snášet a kolik z nich dodnes přetrvává v životě a myšlení lidí kolem nás. Ostatním bych knížku doporučila jako místy smutný, ale hlavně upřímný a osvěžující pohled do doby nedávno minulé - kdyby někdy vyšla v češtině, mohly by ji číst i děti ve věku Marzi.
Dětský jazyk dobře vystihuje i anglický překlad, který zachovává polské názvy reálií (pozorný čtenář se naučí i pár polských nadávek) - knížka je tedy vhodná i pro ty, kdo v angličtině číst teprve začínají.
January 2, 2015
I was born just months before the Berlin Wall fell in Spain from foreign parents, so all the stories about life under a state of war, communism, civil war, dictatorship... come to me from books, articles, TV and cinema and, sometimes, from friends whose relatives lived such years.
Thus, my knowledge about what happened in Eastern Europe is reduced to school books and such. As a fan of graphic novel memoirs, I find 'Marzi' a really good one, tender, bitter, innocent... but so easy to relate to too when it comes to common childhood issues, such as being ignored by the adults or criticized by the use of our imaginations.
Totally recommendable. A joy to read, while learning a bit more about how life in Poland was not so long ago.
Thus, my knowledge about what happened in Eastern Europe is reduced to school books and such. As a fan of graphic novel memoirs, I find 'Marzi' a really good one, tender, bitter, innocent... but so easy to relate to too when it comes to common childhood issues, such as being ignored by the adults or criticized by the use of our imaginations.
Totally recommendable. A joy to read, while learning a bit more about how life in Poland was not so long ago.
September 28, 2014
Yes, it's slow and "vignettes" is definitely the right term for this storytelling... but it was charming and true to the child's perspective. I enjoyed it very much.
Currently reading
October 27, 2024I've been thru tome 1 for well over a year and want to get back to it so I'm using my 'currently-reading' for inspiration. Maybe it is the depressing nature compounded over many more pages that's keeping her shelved "at bay"- but it's told in such a vivaciously adorable way.
September 3, 2017
The world of graphic novels is not one I turn to often these days. When i was younger I read them a lot. As a dyslexic I was encouraged to do so as they figured few words would help with my learning to read. However I have long since given up the world of cape crusaders and men of Steele. For the most part it takes a lot o get my attention in this form of reading. The last being Mouse the tale of surviving the holocaust. So it was with only idle curiosity I happen to be flick through this section on my favorite review site and saw Marzi listed.
Marzena brings you into her story slowly with a tale of carp a Christmas. For the most part the story's she tells you of herself are of care free days spent playing with her many assorted friends. That is not to say politics don't get pushed to the forefront. Although most of this is towards the second half of the book. I have some basic knowledge of the Solidarność movement that brought an end to communist rule in Poland. The author gives an insight in to what it was like for the family's of those caught up in it. I would point out that at no point is this an in depth account of every thing that happened during the massive upheaval. Just a bit of everyday life in communist 80's Poland.
The story's she tell come across as very informative. As the author says hers self it never occurred to her that her family was poor. Because every one she knew was to. For the most part she seems to have enjoyed her childhood. One of my favorites of these story's is when the children in her block of flats play the pope. Much to the adults dismay and shouts of blasphemy. There are also dark moments from Poland declaring a state of marshal law to the explosion at Chernobyl nuclear power plant. The illustration for this book are by Sylvain Savoia who seem to capture the mood of the book well. He never uses overly bright tones. The pallet of muted colours fill each page breathing life in to each of these story's. The only colours that stream from the page are white and red. These being the colours of the polish flag and those used by the Solidarność movement.
Overall I would suggest giving this a peace of your time. As memoirs go it's light and doesn't take all that long to get through. I spent an afternoon with it and am glad I did. For the most part it the tale of adolescent but also that of the start of change to the eastern block countries. This is the story of a small girls growing up in uncertain times.
Marzena brings you into her story slowly with a tale of carp a Christmas. For the most part the story's she tells you of herself are of care free days spent playing with her many assorted friends. That is not to say politics don't get pushed to the forefront. Although most of this is towards the second half of the book. I have some basic knowledge of the Solidarność movement that brought an end to communist rule in Poland. The author gives an insight in to what it was like for the family's of those caught up in it. I would point out that at no point is this an in depth account of every thing that happened during the massive upheaval. Just a bit of everyday life in communist 80's Poland.
The story's she tell come across as very informative. As the author says hers self it never occurred to her that her family was poor. Because every one she knew was to. For the most part she seems to have enjoyed her childhood. One of my favorites of these story's is when the children in her block of flats play the pope. Much to the adults dismay and shouts of blasphemy. There are also dark moments from Poland declaring a state of marshal law to the explosion at Chernobyl nuclear power plant. The illustration for this book are by Sylvain Savoia who seem to capture the mood of the book well. He never uses overly bright tones. The pallet of muted colours fill each page breathing life in to each of these story's. The only colours that stream from the page are white and red. These being the colours of the polish flag and those used by the Solidarność movement.
Overall I would suggest giving this a peace of your time. As memoirs go it's light and doesn't take all that long to get through. I spent an afternoon with it and am glad I did. For the most part it the tale of adolescent but also that of the start of change to the eastern block countries. This is the story of a small girls growing up in uncertain times.
May 23, 2015
Dětskou perspektivu v komiksech mám ráda. Přijde mi, že komiks se dobře hodí k vyprávění dětských vzpomínek, protože člověku z těch dob často utkví spíš útržky zážitků, pocity a obrazy, a je snazší takové fragmenty zrekonstruovat prostřednictvím komiksové zkratky, než v próze, kde je potřeba verbálně simulovat dětský způsob myšlení, čehož je asi schopný jenom málokdo. Ale co já vím. Marzi se mi každopádně líbila podobně jako Persepolis, Pod dekou nebo Rodinný ústav.
Zaujalo mě:
Chudoba. Prázdné obchody, fronty na maso, ve kterých je potřeba stát celou noc, žádná čokoláda, nic. Při čtení knihy jsem dospěla k závěru, že rozdíl mezi životní úrovní ve východním Polsku 80. let a ČSSR byl dost velký. Sama si na tu dobu skoro nepamatuju, tak jsem se musela zeptat mámy a ta mi můj předpoklad potvrdila. (Čokoláda byla běžně, mandarinky na Vánoce, banány vozila jakási teta. Hraček jsme měli spoustu, ty si ostatně vybavuju.)
Ideologie. Řekla bych, že kdyby podobné vzpomínky sepsal někdo z bývalého Československa, asi by v nich bylo mnohem víc ideologie, hesel, pionýrů, průvodů, nástěnek a tak. Marzi si dobře všímá podivné atmosféry kolem sebe, ale vnějšková ideologická fasáda pozdního socialismu se v jejích vzpomínkách nezdá být tak mohutná, hodně prostoru je ostatně věnováno katolické výchově (i s různými vlastneneckými akcenty). Režim se taky jeví o něco benevolentnější (což samozřejmě neplatí pro období stanného práva), např. v kapitole o Černobylu, kde všichni sledují televizi a hrozně vyvádějí – mám dojem, že Československá televize tolik informací ani zdaleka nepustila.
Marziina rodina. Zatímco tatínka chová Marzi v oblibě, protože je laskavý a zábavný, maminka je vykreslená jako „vepřové monstrum“ (srov. s. 11), které se zajímá jen o jídlo, práci a kostel a nemá špetku nadhledu.
Zaujalo mě:
Chudoba. Prázdné obchody, fronty na maso, ve kterých je potřeba stát celou noc, žádná čokoláda, nic. Při čtení knihy jsem dospěla k závěru, že rozdíl mezi životní úrovní ve východním Polsku 80. let a ČSSR byl dost velký. Sama si na tu dobu skoro nepamatuju, tak jsem se musela zeptat mámy a ta mi můj předpoklad potvrdila. (Čokoláda byla běžně, mandarinky na Vánoce, banány vozila jakási teta. Hraček jsme měli spoustu, ty si ostatně vybavuju.)
Ideologie. Řekla bych, že kdyby podobné vzpomínky sepsal někdo z bývalého Československa, asi by v nich bylo mnohem víc ideologie, hesel, pionýrů, průvodů, nástěnek a tak. Marzi si dobře všímá podivné atmosféry kolem sebe, ale vnějšková ideologická fasáda pozdního socialismu se v jejích vzpomínkách nezdá být tak mohutná, hodně prostoru je ostatně věnováno katolické výchově (i s různými vlastneneckými akcenty). Režim se taky jeví o něco benevolentnější (což samozřejmě neplatí pro období stanného práva), např. v kapitole o Černobylu, kde všichni sledují televizi a hrozně vyvádějí – mám dojem, že Československá televize tolik informací ani zdaleka nepustila.
Marziina rodina. Zatímco tatínka chová Marzi v oblibě, protože je laskavý a zábavný, maminka je vykreslená jako „vepřové monstrum“ (srov. s. 11), které se zajímá jen o jídlo, práci a kostel a nemá špetku nadhledu.
February 8, 2018
Possibly aimed at the same audience (age-wise) as Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood, Marzi is an autobiographical recollection of Marzena Sowa's life growing up in communist Poland during the 80s. Her life is reflected in the dull, muted, grey colouring, full of queues and whispered angsts amongst adults against the state. Throughout, the young Marzi is desperate to find out the truth of the story behind their country but when she eventually does so, a part of her wish she had not known and with this knowledge comes that sobering realisation that she has 'grown up.'
I found the same six-panel approach a little tiresome at times and there is a lot of text throughout. Although this may have frustrated at the start, I began to see how Marzi's written story, told from the perspective of a young child at the time, was of great importance and almost might have been better written as a novel itself. The graphic novel is made up of various stories of different lengths - such relating to family, play, politics, hopes and fears and Marzi herself is as flawed as any real person - which I thought was brave and quite beautiful.
I have tagged this as KS2/KS3 but it is probably for older readers than that. There is a part of me though, that thinks some of her stories would be worth sharing with children in these categories so that they get a broader picture of life in a different country of someone similar to their age.
I found the same six-panel approach a little tiresome at times and there is a lot of text throughout. Although this may have frustrated at the start, I began to see how Marzi's written story, told from the perspective of a young child at the time, was of great importance and almost might have been better written as a novel itself. The graphic novel is made up of various stories of different lengths - such relating to family, play, politics, hopes and fears and Marzi herself is as flawed as any real person - which I thought was brave and quite beautiful.
I have tagged this as KS2/KS3 but it is probably for older readers than that. There is a part of me though, that thinks some of her stories would be worth sharing with children in these categories so that they get a broader picture of life in a different country of someone similar to their age.
December 13, 2011
Originally posted at http://littleapplebookworm.blogspot.c...
This simply but beautifully illustrated graphic novel tells the story of Marzi, a young girl coming of age behind the Iron Curtain. Marzena Sowa was born in 1979 in Stalowa Wola, Poland. The majority of this graphic novel, written as a series of vignettes, takes place in the years leading up to the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. Ms. Sowa manages to demonstrate both the uncertainty of the time and the joys and wonder any child can find in the world. She and her friends often act out the visit the Pope made to Poland. She talks about her anxiety when her father is away from home for days at a time when he and his fellow factory workers go on strike. She also describes carefree summer days visiting her grandmother and playing with her cousins in the country. Presenting this story as a series of vignettes is very powerful. These snippets of a childhood spent in a country with stores filled with empty shelves and celebrations where people only show up and cheer because that's what's expected provide a unique perspective of a country that was shrouded in secrecy for decades.
Some other wonderful memoirs told in graphic novel form are Persepolis and Vietnamerica.
This simply but beautifully illustrated graphic novel tells the story of Marzi, a young girl coming of age behind the Iron Curtain. Marzena Sowa was born in 1979 in Stalowa Wola, Poland. The majority of this graphic novel, written as a series of vignettes, takes place in the years leading up to the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. Ms. Sowa manages to demonstrate both the uncertainty of the time and the joys and wonder any child can find in the world. She and her friends often act out the visit the Pope made to Poland. She talks about her anxiety when her father is away from home for days at a time when he and his fellow factory workers go on strike. She also describes carefree summer days visiting her grandmother and playing with her cousins in the country. Presenting this story as a series of vignettes is very powerful. These snippets of a childhood spent in a country with stores filled with empty shelves and celebrations where people only show up and cheer because that's what's expected provide a unique perspective of a country that was shrouded in secrecy for decades.
Some other wonderful memoirs told in graphic novel form are Persepolis and Vietnamerica.
January 6, 2019
Bol raz jeden deň a Paulinko sa opäť a zas nachádzal v Martinuse a čo tam našiel, čo tam vyňuchal?
Okrem inakvejšich komiksov aj tento, nepoznaný a jemu neznámy: Marzi. Keď som domov kráčal s touto knihou pod pazuchou, brnelo mi v hlave, oči mi blúdili po jej chrbte, neodolal som, nakukol, no nechcel som si nič z nej prečítať - veď tak sa komiksy nečítajú, ručal som sám sebe v hlave.
Nejaký čas sedela v mojej knižnici, keď jedno ráno som ju schmatol a lačne sa do nej pustil: excelentná a totálna!
Autorka (rozprávačka) a autor (kreslič) ohromne zachytili život v Poľsku v osemdesiatych rokoch. Sú to krátke skeče, ale tak trefné, že som sa milo uchechtával, bo si ešte pamätám onakvejšie veci a skúsenosti (koberec v roku ako veno a pod... hehe), slovom plejáda situácii zabŕda do každodenného života v socíku. Netaktne a priamo zameriavajú ich fokus na to, na čo teraz ľudia tak radi "spomínajú" a dúfajú, že sa daný režim vráti, lebo to bolo super a mega!
Komiks je chutne nakreslený, akoby zakonzervoval dobu a atmosféru; kresby prenikajú do hlavy a predstáv tak ladne a lahodne, že som sa v každej stránke kúpal s radostným pocitom decka skákajúceho z hojdačky do jazera.
Milujem takéto žurnalistické komiksy.
Okrem inakvejšich komiksov aj tento, nepoznaný a jemu neznámy: Marzi. Keď som domov kráčal s touto knihou pod pazuchou, brnelo mi v hlave, oči mi blúdili po jej chrbte, neodolal som, nakukol, no nechcel som si nič z nej prečítať - veď tak sa komiksy nečítajú, ručal som sám sebe v hlave.
Nejaký čas sedela v mojej knižnici, keď jedno ráno som ju schmatol a lačne sa do nej pustil: excelentná a totálna!
Autorka (rozprávačka) a autor (kreslič) ohromne zachytili život v Poľsku v osemdesiatych rokoch. Sú to krátke skeče, ale tak trefné, že som sa milo uchechtával, bo si ešte pamätám onakvejšie veci a skúsenosti (koberec v roku ako veno a pod... hehe), slovom plejáda situácii zabŕda do každodenného života v socíku. Netaktne a priamo zameriavajú ich fokus na to, na čo teraz ľudia tak radi "spomínajú" a dúfajú, že sa daný režim vráti, lebo to bolo super a mega!
Komiks je chutne nakreslený, akoby zakonzervoval dobu a atmosféru; kresby prenikajú do hlavy a predstáv tak ladne a lahodne, že som sa v každej stránke kúpal s radostným pocitom decka skákajúceho z hojdačky do jazera.
Milujem takéto žurnalistické komiksy.
May 5, 2014
This is a memoir about a young girl living in Communist Poland in the 1980s. I would give this book 5 stars for authenticity. The author captured her childhood experiences in vignettes of 2-4 pages, each one a little comic strip of daily life. I read the book in "bits and bites" over a month. Marzi (the character) was a three-dimensional person. I found myself irritated with her at times, just like I would be with a real child! I found the book had too much content about the minutiae of everyday life. If it had been serialized in a weekly newspaper, it would have been just right. It's a good thing I'm not an editor. I would have cut the book by half and put the rest online as a web comic! Later I found out its original publication had been in 5 volumes. I learned a tremendous amount about her time and place. Marzi's trying to understand politics by listening to grown-ups reminded me of when I was a child trying to understand the FLQ and Watergate!
June 22, 2016
Marzena Sowa è nata un anno dopo di me, ma in Polonia. I suoi ricordi, messi su carta dal fidanzato, hanno un piacevolissimo senso di vicinanza. Entrambe passavamo le vacanze in campagna dai nonni, ma io non ho mai dovuto fare ore di coda davanti a un negozio con le tessere del razionamento per comprare degli alimentari. Entrambe abbiamo osservato, senza capire bene, le preoccupazioni degli adulti per Černobyl' (data la vicinanza geografica le preoccupazioni dei suoi adulti erano molto più concrete), ma non ho vissuto un paese in rivolta guidato da Solidarność. E men che meno ho tenuto una carpa nella vasca da bagno, mia madre ne avrebbe avuto orrore :)
I disegni sono curati, tendenti a un seppia/grigio che si sposa bene con l'idea della rigidità del regime comunista, e per quanto le vicende siano quotidiane sono ben scritte, hanno una loro poesia. Bellissima la gita a cracovia, che anche io sono riuscita a visitare lo scorso aprile.
I disegni sono curati, tendenti a un seppia/grigio che si sposa bene con l'idea della rigidità del regime comunista, e per quanto le vicende siano quotidiane sono ben scritte, hanno una loro poesia. Bellissima la gita a cracovia, che anche io sono riuscita a visitare lo scorso aprile.
August 17, 2019
That was intense.
Marzi is an extremely heavytext biography of Marzena Sowa, born in 1979, in a factory city in Poland.
Enter Cold War in its last ten years. Life in Poland is harsh, as in any other Eastern Bloc's country. People go to buy things only with coupons and stay at queues for hours freezing hoping to buy something, from a sausage to new shoes. Because USSR used these countries as cheap labor.
In Marzi's town, the factory makes weapons and one day the workers start a strike. Among them, her dad. Nothing would be the same again for little Marzi.
Marzi manages to open the eyes of the whole world to the harsh life in Poland, while keeping a very sweet, humane and optimistic approach. And deserves to be read.
[image error]
Marzi is an extremely heavytext biography of Marzena Sowa, born in 1979, in a factory city in Poland.
Enter Cold War in its last ten years. Life in Poland is harsh, as in any other Eastern Bloc's country. People go to buy things only with coupons and stay at queues for hours freezing hoping to buy something, from a sausage to new shoes. Because USSR used these countries as cheap labor.
In Marzi's town, the factory makes weapons and one day the workers start a strike. Among them, her dad. Nothing would be the same again for little Marzi.
Marzi manages to open the eyes of the whole world to the harsh life in Poland, while keeping a very sweet, humane and optimistic approach. And deserves to be read.
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May 29, 2012
Marzi's got a bit of a slow burn, because it's a series of vignettes only loosely tied together with narrative. What's nice about that is that it's easy to pick up and put down again if you only have small blocks of time to read. It does, however, reward he patient reader with a sense of time and place not necessarily connected to narrative, a sense of how one's own childhood connects with Marzi's--because so much of our own childhoods follow that nonlinear path. Sowa doesn't try to tie these events together with a grownup's story of what it all means; rather, she speaks from the perspective of a child who doesn't have the benefit of history or future knowledge and by default encourages the reader to experience her story that way.
January 8, 2012
If you're expecting a story Maus or Barefoot Gen you'll be disappointed. Based off the book's pre-publishing publicity I was expecting something more like those two. A story of the writer's growing up during the beginnings and success of the Poland's Solidarity movement. Well, Solidarity appears around the halfway point, and becomes more of a focus towards the end as Marzi's father is one of Solidarity early supporters.
You do get a good view of young girl growing up in Poland during food and clothing shortages, and how she and her family manage to find ways to get through. In addition, you see how families and neighborhoods bonded to deal with these issues.
You do get a good view of young girl growing up in Poland during food and clothing shortages, and how she and her family manage to find ways to get through. In addition, you see how families and neighborhoods bonded to deal with these issues.
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