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Cockeyed: A Memoir
by Ryan Knighton

This is the best memoir I have read since J.R. Moeringer’s The Tender Bar. Knighton is a writer by profession and so this is just as much a beautifully crafted story as it is a story of a guy going blind. But even if it weren’t so masterfully written, this would still be a great book because of the material. Knighton began going blind in his teens due to retinitis pigmentosa. Now, at age 33, he has only 1% of his vision remaining. Cockeyed is the story of his life so far and it is at times hilarious, at times heartbreaking, but a page-turner from beginning to end.

I heard Knighton being interviewed on NPR a while back just after the book was published and immediately requested the book because his story was so compelling and he was so entertaining to listen to. The book follows suit beautifully. He describes his initial unawareness that he had a problem, moving towards denial that he had a problem, to eventually getting a cane, and so on. Some of Knighton’s stories are laugh out loud funny. Trying to find out where a bathroom is and being told “over there” he asks, “where is there?” He is told “at the back of the restaurant.” He asks, “where is the back?” “That way.” That’s not the exact dialogue, that’s just what I remember but you get an idea of how he is able to make fun of the way sighted people use language vaguely and often overuse phrases and metaphors related to vision. “Out of sight!” “See you around!”

At times, Knighton’s story is incredibly sad. His struggles to accept blindness are moving. His adventure teaching English in South Korea while faking vision is at first funny but increasingly sad as it negatively affects his relationship with his girlfriend and his own independence and confidence. The sudden, shocking death of his brother is a crucial moment in the book and it had me in tears.

Near the end of the book, Knighton tells the story of his visit to “blind camp” and this had me laughing so hard I was crying. He describes in detail the fire drill on the first day of camp - need I say more? He wonders why blind people aren’t better at communicating with each other. He describes a meal with blind people as similar to a scene from Taxi Driver with one person after another asking, “You talkin’ to me?” Knighton reflects that they should know better but then realizes that none of them are used to being around blind people. And then there is the scene where he helps his new blind camp buddy find his dentures. Just priceless.

Cockeyed is not only funny and moving, it is also philosophical at times and Knighton’s skill as a creative writer shines throughout the book. A wonderful book in every way, go get it from your library or bookstore today.

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Night Fisher
by R. Kikuo Johnson

I had heard a lot of good buzz about this one and was really looking forward to it which perhaps set my expectations a bit high. The illustrations are beautiful and done in black and white. The Maui setting was fascinating for me having recently been there on vacation. Nuggets of local history are interspersed throughout the book quite effectively. Another great thing about this book is that it felt like a realistic high school coming of age story, as opposed to so much of the sugar-coated crud that is floating around these days. But somehow the ending felt unresolved to me. I know it is probably meant to feel this way, meant to be a metaphor to real life which isn’t ever resolved in neat little packages like mainstream pop culture would have us believe. But still, at the end of this book, I wanted more. And I guess that is a good thing in a way, but also quite frustrating in another. In any case, the book is definitely worth a read for any graphic novel fan and I look forward to seeing what Johnson does next.

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Vampire Loves
by Joann Sfar

I reluctantly gave up on this one finally. It sat on the table and I’d read a few pages here and there and I think I got about halfway through and renewed it about five times from the library. I hate to give up on a book halfway through it but there are so many books piled up around the house and this one just wasn’t doing it for me.

I was surprised that I didn’t get into this book because I have loved other works by Sfar that I’ve read, notably The Rabbi’s Cat, and his two Little Vampire books. Ferdinand, our hero in Vampire Loves is not Little Vampire grown older if you were wondering. In fact, Little Vampire is Ferdinand grown younger. You’ll have to read it to find out how that works but it was one of my favorite snippets of what I read. Which is really why this book didn’t hook me, I think, it is a lot of snippets instead of a continuous story line. I realize that a lot of comics and graphic novels are written this way, but I prefer the ones that have one basic plot and story that carries throughout the book. Vampire Loves has more of a theme (Ferdinand and his romantic woes) than an actual plot and that just wasn’t enough for me to be anxious to pick it back up again.

A lot of people will like this book, the artwork is vivid and beautiful, as Sfar’s artwork always is and the characters are enchanting and indescribably unique. If you’re a graphic novel reader who likes episodic books, this is for you. Maybe I’ll pick it up again someday, who know. On a side note, this is another one from the First Second Books publishing imprint that also published Deogratias.

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Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic
by Alison Bechdel

I read this one a few weeks ago and it took some time to sort of sink in and digest. Not sure why, some books just are like that for me. But this was a really brilliant graphic novel/memoir that sticks with you so you find yourself still thinking about it a few weeks later. The author, Alison Bechdel, moves back and forth in time as she tells the tale of her childhood, her realization that she is gay, and following her coming out to her parents, the realization that her father is also gay. Shortly after, her father is killed when he is hit by a truck near a house he was working on (no, I’m not giving away the ending, this is revealed early in the book) but Alison is convinced that it was no accident but was in fact a suicide.

So obviously it’s not exactly light reading. In the end, it is a beautifully told, surprisingly literary graphic novel. In graphic novels, the author usually seems to rely on the artwork for the main impact and uses words sparingly. Bechdel, however, gives you impact anywhere and everywhere that she can squeeze it in. The text of the book is chock full of literary references and parallels with classic works such as Ulysses. It’s not heavy handed at all, though, it all flows right along with the story she is telling. And there are so many brilliant sub-stories along with it. Her father’s family operates a funeral home (which she and her brothers simply call the “fun home” hence the title) which by definition means there is good storytelling material there. Bechdel also tells the story of her obsessive compulsive disorder and how she slowly broke herself of her habits. She also is an archivist by nature, a journaler from her earliest days who saved every thing she ever wrote, along with every thing anyone in her family ever wrote to her. Clips of these text are included in the book and are recreated to appear as they must have originally.

This may seem like a lot to fit into one book but Bechdel moves easily from one story to the next, from the past to the present, from her life to her father’s life, from literary tales to modern reality. Her writing is in many ways reminiscent of that of another favorite author of mine, David Sedaris. I almost hesitate to say that because it invites the speculation, “what, because they’re both gay?” Well, yes that is true but that’s not what is so similar about the writing. It is because they both tell the stories of their lives without sparing any details. Because they unapologetically portray their families as both wonderful and flawed. Because they can move so quickly between the funniest moments and the darkest moments that it is at times startling.

The artwork is clean and distinct. It is done in black, white, and shades of tealish-blue. The drawings of the Victorian home she grew up in have beautiful detail that say as much about her own archival tendencies as they do about her father’s decorating habits. Bechdel’s choice to limit herself to three colors is interesting: it makes the look of the book distinctive and almost stark, but the many shades and hues of blue also give the drawings enormous depth.

All in all, a great read, a fascinating family story, a brilliant piece of art. I recommend it highly.

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