Precious Rubbish [Hardcover]

A landmark graphic novel debut and groundbreaking work of trauma recollection told in the style of post-war childrens comics. Kayla E. uses her medium to striking effect: her wry portrait reveals a fresh eye, at once vulnerable and undaunted. This four-color atomic bomb of a comic signals the arrival of a formidable talent. Kayla E.s uniquely unconventional, hauntingly shocking debut graphic memoir is reminiscent of a complicated mosaic thats missing pieces but has been filled in with unexpected replacements to create a disturbing collage both horrific and beautiful. FIVE STARS STUNNING! Several times before I could finish it, I had to put Kayla E.s? A landmark comics achievement... joins a lineage of classic memoirs about unbelievably difficult childhoods. What clearly sets it apart is the way it uses comics storytelling in unique ways that Ive never seen before and am not sure Ill ever see again. Kayla E.s comics remind me of the orphan-in-jeopardy genre. She is cast as a plucky heroine you root for and yet wonder, How can she possibly escape? The answer is through the authors courage, wit, and originality. If one persons trash is another's treasure, A staggering achievement. This is the scariest book I have ever read. Precious Rubbish is a book about processing personal trauma through obsessive art practice. There is no substitute for the hard work necessary to produce the images in this book. Nothing here was cast off in a moment. The visual conceit is fully formed on every page, every fake advertisement and Archie pin-up transformed into excoriating personal testimony. I experience another intentional wall when it comes to the pages of puzzles, recipes, and fake advertisements that are interspersed throughout the book. Designed with gold type and images on a yellow background, they at first appear to be a cheeky, cheerful break. But the pages arent breathers; they arent fun. The monochromatic color-on-color means one has to expend extra eló+