Pénélope Bagieu

I absolutely loved this graphic novel that showcased 29 rebel women from around the globe (+ the final story of the author, Penelope Bagieu. Their stories cover a wide range of time and cover many women, both famous and lesser-known. The stories are not connected, other than the fact that they are all strong women who inspire the reader in one way or another.

Brazen includes stories of the more famous-- Josephine Baker and Temple Grandin-- and less famous-- Agnodice and Margaret Hamilton. Each story starts at the person's birth and follows their story throughout their life, sharing their contributions and accomplishments--sometimes big and sometimes small.

The book begins with Clementine Delait, the bearded lady, who lived between 1865-1939. It's a quick, but detailed story that draws the reader in with colorful and clever drawings. It ends with Peggy Guggenheim, modern lover of art, with so many concise details including things like, the fact that when she died, she was buried in garden of her museum along with her 14 dogs and under a tree planted by her friend Yoko Ono (p.291)! The author drops so much information in such a fun way and the drawings throughout are so fun, colorful, and unique.… (more)

Autobiographical short stories from the French author's childhood and teen years about cats, sisters, grandparents, sexual assault, molestation, crushes, grief, and an apartment with a coin-operated heating system. So yeah, it's a little all over the place in tone, though staying humorous more often than not. The episodic short story approach makes for satisfying chapters, but left me wondering about the gaps between.

This single page story is one of my favorite moments in the book:
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https://i.imgur.com/4xlX97K.jpg

FOR REFERENCE:

Contents: Why Don't You Have a Cat? You Love Cats! -- A Story about My Seduction Abilities -- Last Summer before the Year 2000 -- Florence -- The Teddy Bear Effect -- Déjà Vu -- A Story about My Fingers -- Validation -- Three Days -- -- A Story about My Grandparents -- Cold Feet -- A Story about a Wishbone -- Déjà Vu 2 -- The Kid -- Music Day -- The Comfort Blanket… (more)

I hate rating memoirs. How can you say whether someone's life deserves 5 stars or less? So I try to focus on the execution instead.

This memoir isn't linear, so Penelope's life is shown through episodic comics. I liked the cartoony art style, and there's a mixture of lighthearted to darker moments. Like, most people's lives. Some of the moments of sexual assault and harassment aren't shown in a visually triggering manner, but it's all the same heartwrenching. Her Deja Vu comics and the one about her love of heat were the highlights.

I think I would've rated this higher if there was a more cohesive thread. This felt like blog posts packaged into a book, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.

2.5 or 3 * may update rating… (more)