Written and Illustrated by Raina Telgemeier
240 pages, color
Published by GRAPHIX
I first heard about Raina Telgemeier on the Comics Are Great! podcast with Jerzy Drozd (which is one of my favorite podcasts). She’s often brought up in their talks, so I knew that I would need to read some of her work eventually, and now was the time!
The first thing you notice about Drama by Raina Telgemeier is that it’s pink. The second thing you notice is that it’s thick. At 240 pages, it’s quite the tome for a graphic novel. Luckily, the book is an inviting story about a quite lovable character named Callie.
To be honest, I knew in the first page that I was going to enjoy Drama. My wife loves the theater and was deep in the theater in high school while we were dating. So, I’ve had my fair share of run-ins with the drama crowd. This book was a whole lot of fun and brought back a lot of great memories of those times.
I think they would call this a character-driven story. Unlike the past few graphic novels I’ve read, this one doesn’t have a “plot” in the same sense. The characters grow and change, but in the end, there’s nothing huge or cataclysmic that happens. But don’t read that as I don’t like it. On the contrary, I had a huge smile on my face the entire time.
The story follows Callie, a middle school girl who loves theater. She’s no actor, but instead enjoys being a part of the crew. She loves all of the romance, the challenge, and everything of putting on a play/musical. She’s got some feelings for her friend’s brother, but he pulls a Danny Zuko on her and she’s crushed. Later, she meets some new friends two twin boys. As she gets to know them, she learns that one of them is gay and a fantastic performer. She ropes the other brother into helping her with the set and they all just get along so well. The whole thing is lighthearted and a lot of fun. The bits of drama within the story are built around the plight of a middle school girl, but Telgemeier has done a fantastic job making you enjoy the minor twists and turns in Callie’s story. And the following along with her small victories as she tries to make the musical the best she possibly can is too much fun.
Telgemeier’s style reminds me quite fondly of Peanuts. There were a few times that even the mouth shapes seemed like Callie was channeling her inner Lucy. It’s great to see a modern story in that classic style. It gave the whole story a slice-of-life feel that was remarkable. I very much enjoyed it.
I can’t wait to get some more books by Raina Telgemeier!
Next week’s review: I Kill Giants!