Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic in Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge

Nov 09, 2023 Melissa rated it liked it · review of another edition

I saw the musical of Fun Home a while back and enjoyed it. So I was curious to read the graphic novel that inspired it. My son happened to be reading it for school, so I picked up his copy when he was done.

I'm glad I saw the musical first because if I had read the book first, I would not have wanted to see it. It was just really confusing and used words that made no sense to me. I want to clarify that I have no problem with the premise of the book, as I am very much pro-LGBTQ+. I just didn't li ...more

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Jul 24, 2018 Christina rated it really liked it

Shelves: popsugar-2018-reading-challenge

Popsugar 2018 Reading Challenge: A book that's also a stage play or musical.

Life advice: don't read this book all in one sitting. You may be tempted to do so, because it moves quickly in that graphic novel kind of way, but trust me and don't. I did, and I felt so depressed afterwards I wanted to curl up in a ball and cry. You get a real sense of how stifling the home was, how trapped the family members were, to the extent that taking in too much at once is seriously going to leave you feeling qu ...more

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Jan 24, 2017 Sarah rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: american-nonfiction, graphic-form, lgbtqia

Though this book, and Alison Bechdel herself, have both gotten a lot of praise, I wasn't so familiar with the particulars of her life. This book, written in comic form, presents a very brave look at her own home life as a child and young adult. That home life was filled with a cold sadness and secrecy, even though the family, prima facie, may have seemed very privileged, and probably was by most measures. I wasn't sure I could be moved by a memoir comic - I thought the form might erode any sense ...more

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Jun 03, 2012 Hannah added it

Shelves: memoir-biography, comics-narrative, for-class-masters

This is an absolutely phenomenal memoir. I knew of Bechdel by reputation and eponymous film test, as a writer, comics artist, feminist, and hotshot in media, queer, and women's studies. But now I'm also just a big fan of her literature, and I can't wait to read more.

The organization of this book feels uncanny, and also too complicated and perfect to have actually been done by a human. The prose is fab, and I don't think I've ever seen a better example of what memoir really is--a "true" story of ...more

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Sep 19, 2015 Nadine in NY Jones rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: graphic-novels-and-comics, memoir-and-autobiographical-essays, non-fiction, non-fiction-graphic-novel

Was Daedalus really stricken with grief when Icarus fell into the sea? Or just disappointed by the design failure?

/ Sometimes, when things were going well, I think my father actually enjoyed having a family. / Or at least, the air of authenticity we lent to his exhibit. A sort of still life with children.

/ And of course, my brothers and I were free labor. Dad considered us extensions of his own body, like precision robot arms. / In this regard, it was like being raised not by Jimmy but by M

Was Daedalus really stricken with grief when Icarus fell into the sea? Or just disappointed by the design failure?

/ Sometimes, when things were going well, I think my father actually enjoyed having a family. / Or at least, the air of authenticity we lent to his exhibit. A sort of still life with children.

/ And of course, my brothers and I were free labor. Dad considered us extensions of his own body, like precision robot arms. / In this regard, it was like being raised not by Jimmy but by Martha Stewart.

I didn't mean to start reading this book right away - I was in the middle of several other books, and this was #3 on my TBR list (right after Saga, Volume 3) ... but I had just gotten it from the library, and my daughter wanted to play on the library iPad so I had time ... and before I knew it I was halfway through. It is quite engrossing; we ended up staying at the library for much longer than I had originally intended that day.

Back in the early 90s, I used to buy the "Dykes to Watch Out For" (Dykes to Watch Out For) books whenever I saw them. I really enjoyed Bechdel's dry humor and her skill at capturing small but important moments in life. I don't know if she stopped writing that strip or if I just stopped going to bookstores as much (I'm a LIBRARY girl these days!) but lately the only time I hear her name is in reference to the "Bechdel Test" of movies. So, all that is to say ... I was delighted to find that she is still just as witty, just as spot-on, just as wonderful as she always was! And it's good to have her back in my life. So, that's really all about me rather than about this book!

How you feel about this book will depend on how you feel about the quote I included above. I thought it was funny - funny enough that I stopped what I was doing and transcribed it into Goodreads immediately. I LOVE Bechdel's humor. I don't mind all the literary references (no, I haven't read most of the books, but I didn't find it distracting - I mean, a lot of this book is about her parents, and her parents are English teachers, and they own a lot of books, and they read a lot; literary references make sense here). I don't mind a book that doesn't include a lot of action or plot twists - this is a very quiet book. Really, it's about Bechdel discovering the truth - the truth about herself, the truth about her family, the truth about life itself; it's about growing up and reaching that introspective age where you achieve a new perspective on your own self.

One thing I didn't care for was the disorderliness of the presentation - I wished it was more chronological. Instead, it moves from childhood to college, back to childhood and then to college, and keeps jumping back and forth between innocence and awakening. I think she was trying to show her own deepening understanding as she grew and reflected back on that time, but I found it a bit confusing.

I'll admit it, the reason I went and picked this up at the library is the recent scandal about it. https://www.washingtonpost.com/postev... I knew I wouldn't be offended, but I wanted to see just how completely ridiculous it was to call this "pornographic" or "immoral" - but, hey, that's me. Maybe I'm immoral too. So judge for yourself.

Slightly controversial topics that are mentioned in passing in this book:(view spoiler) (I put them in spoiler tags, because I preferred to discover all these things as they are revealed, and I think being told in advance might have taken away from the impact a bit. But if you're worried, read my list.) That's a long list of slightly controversial topics! Why is all the focus on lesbian sex (which BY THE WAY is NOT pornographically depicted)? Why is it so awful that women might be happy and have fun while rejecting societal conventions of what women should look like and act like?? Our society needs to get over itself.

Would I give this book to my 9 & 12 year old daughters? No. Would I take it away from them if I saw them reading it? No. Is reading this book an immoral act? No! But this is not a kid's book. It deals with very mature themes involving secret selves, shame, depression, and discovery. A kid needs to be old enough to handle the idea that his or her parents are not what they appear to be, because that is what I think is most unsettling to a kid. And, really, some teens aren't read for that, but I would think all college students are. So, Duke student, get over it!

In all, this took me about 3.5 hours to read; I read comics slowly, because I always pause to look at the art. ...more

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Mar 31, 2007 SGK rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites

Fucking love this book. I have been reading Allison Bechdel's comics "Dykes to Watch out for" for years. This graphic novel memoir is a completely different undertaking. Bechdel details her childhood, coming out to her parent's, her father's suicide, and her discovery of his internalized homophobia. It is beautifully drawn and so moving. I met her at a book signing and almost died I am so fucking in love with this woman. She is not only intelligent, quirky, and neurotic...she is HOT AS WELL. ...more

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