graphic memoir review: Special Exits by Joyce Farmer
The backstory: Entertainment Weekly named Special Exits one of the 10 best graphic novels of 2010 . The basics: Special Exits is a memoir of Joyce Farmer's experience caring for her aging parents as they struggle to care themselves in their Los Angeles home, which is in an increasingly run-down neighborhood. My thoughts: I have been having incredible luck with graphic memoirs lately. I was utterly enchanted with Special Exits from the beginning and was sobbing into my coffee as I finished before work one day. Farmer tells the story with immense restraint. Lars and Rachel descend gradually into old age. Initially, they are too shy and proud to ask for the help of Laura ( Special Exits is a memoir, but it's unclear precisely who Joyce is, but I assumed she is Laura). It's a subtle shift of power as Laura realizes how much Lars and Rachel need her. As I read this book, which is as beautifully illustrated as is it hauntingly told with accompanying pr...