A nice exploration of familial relationships, the pressures leveled by parents both real and imagined., not to mention the universality of certain kinds of pain. It's very well translated and generally easily understood. A niche read, certainly, but a nice one.

Thanks to NetGalley and Diamond Book Distributors. This was an odd read for me which I did not find real enjoyable to read and a bit confusing. I almost did not finish reading it and it was suppose to be read a few years ago and I forgot to submit the review.

I meant to review this three years ago, and then didn't. Oops.

I didn't totally love this, but I didn't hate it either!

A young man is stuck in a rut after breaking up with his ex-boyfriend and has to reckon with his own identity, how he fits into his family (and all of their drama) and find where he belongs. I did find it a little preachy at times. I thought the black and white illustrations really suited when the main character was dealing with depression, but I do wish we could've had some colour appear in the later pages as kind of a celebration of life (as the graphic novel sets out to do).

It was pretty emotional, even angsty, which I didn't mind. The parts that I didn't enjoy were the parts where the main character would turn to a character in the story and be like 'here's all I am learning and here's all I have to learn.' It didn't really feel like a conversation and more felt like the author reaching through to insert themselves into the story.

A little awkward, a little angsty, a little sweet, I've finally read this book at last lol.

I had no idea what the overall purpose of this book was but it had a few moments of nice artwork. It just needed a few tweaks to make the narrative clearer for me.

In the tradition of pensive, personal LGBT comic stories, Generations is nothing earth-shaking. Apart from the fact that it is the story of a gay man that isn't ONLY about his being gay, but also abou his growing up and finding a place for himself in the world. It's about his connecting with his family and community and about his becoming enough of himself to really be a partner.

It isn't a tragedy or a coming out story. It's just a story about a man who has gotten past that first flush of adulthood to wonder what comes next and regret a bit of his actions. And that in itself is really more than worthy of a story these days.

This graphic novel was a DNF for me. I just did not feel engaged in the story and found it felt very slow paced for how quickly I'm usually able to get through a graphic novel.

Flavia Biondi's graphic novel Generations is a beautiful portrayal of family and accepting yourself even when others don't. The art style is so clean and detailed and adds so much to the narrative.

The reason I gave it four stars instead of five is that although I enjoyed the story, it felt a bit too slow for my taste and there was no character I could directly relate to. However, it is definitely a book I would recommend to those looking for a quick read.

Some of the content is heavy because the main character, Matteo is kicked out by his father for being gay and goes to live with his extended family after ending a long-term relationship that wasn't so healthy. Although they are each dealing with personal struggles of their own, Matteo's grandmother, three aunts, and cousin help bring him out of a depression. As he begins to accept himself and view life with a more positive outlook, he also reconnects with his family and moves on from what he cannot change. Generations is a great graphic novel for those still trying to find themselves.

I'm very sorry to say that I didn't have the time to read this after I downloaded it, and being a protected PDF, I only had a limited time to do so instead of having the document forever like on Kindle. Because of this I won't be able to write a proper review about its content.

Book 62 of my 2017 Reading Challenge
read from October 11 - 13

**I received an electronic copy of this book via NetGalley and would like to thank the author and/or publisher for the opportunity to read and honestly review it**

Generations by Flavia Biondi

Summary (via Goodreads)
After three years in Milan, Matteo returns home to the provincial country town where he was born and from which he had fled. Coming out as a young gay man in a provincial country town had led to ugly clashes with his conservative father, and the urban metropolis of Milan had been a welcome change from the stifling small town life of his childhood and the anger and bewilderment of some members of his family. But now, Matteo finds himself with little choice but to return home, with no money, no job, and an uncertain future, like so many other young people of his millennial generation. Afraid of encountering his estranged father, he instead takes refuge with his extended family, at a house shared by his grandmother, three aunts, and his very pregnant cousin. As he tries to rebuild his life, reconnecting with the women of his family and old hometown friends, he warily confronts a few truths about the other generations of his family-from their bigotry to their love, and tolerance, and acceptance-and a few truths about himself, including his fears of confrontation and commitment.

My Opinion
5 star read. Again, I struggle reviewing a graphic novel because it's a full experience and I can't boil it down. But like adults that avoid YA, anyone that automatically dismisses graphic novels is missing out. The genre is growing and I recommend this read.

Generations: We all forget our roots

Greater than half of my life (so far) has passed since I was a teenager. Some days I cannot even fathom the decisions I made and the sense of ambiguity I felt.

I lose the feeling associated with being both Invincible and Powerless. Everything I thought I could do seemed to have arbitrary corrals blocking the path.

Well crafted Graphic Novels like Generations help remind me if those feelings, insulating the generation after me from my history hazed misconceptions.

For reference, this Graphic novel was written by Flavia Biondi.. Many websites are misspelling her name as Bondi (no 1st i) .. I am looking at you Barnes and Nobel, and other bloggers!

Generations (Flavia Biondi)
144 pages
Lion Forge
ISBN-10: 1941302505
ISBN-13: 978-1941302507
ASIN: B076HCV9Z2

Everyone is running from something. It is rarely as romantic as being slotted into a hidey hole sitting quiet till the police die down. More typically it is emotional. You cannot deal with your mothers death; you are afraid of strangers on the street; you think people will hate you if you ever show a modicum of true honesty.

Generations poetically tackles this tendency to run, and the post teen languishing angst that can stifle a person from reaching adulthood. It focuses on the blinders and self-absorbed perspectives we carry, never realizing that we are not the first to come, nor the last to be here.

In the story, Matteo returns from a three year self imposed exile to Milan. When Matteo's father learned that he was in love with a man and they had a falling out. But Matteo is in a cycle. When he and his boyfriend break up, he runs back home and hides for a month at his grandmothers house.

Three generations under one roof, each of them tells a story he has never bothered to ask. The family tree is strong and has wide roots, even if you never look for them. When the apples fall from the tree, they feed the roots and we are all stronger.

Generations, by Italian author Flavia Biondi, was released fall 2017 by Lion Forge and puts on a great showing. Unlike other Italian imports the Forge released in ‘17, this one proves to be an amazing addition to their catalogue and is highly suggested for audiences 13 and older.

Not sure why every person in this region of Italy are depicted as having cheetah level freckles. Anyone have insight into this?

—
Disclosure: This graphic novel was provided by the author or publisher for review purposes. Unlike the Depeche Mode song ‘Policy of Truth’’ which teaches to hide facts, I always encourage people to speak their mind. Whether positive or negative, the truth matters. This review, while positive, is fact from my perspective.

It was adorable, with a great cast of characters- I just had the greatest time reading this! Loved it.

Good content but not something that I could easily get into.

Generations is the first graphic novel by Flavia Biondi translated from Italian to English, and it’s a strong debut.

Matteo ran away from home three years ago to Milan, but now he’s slinking back to his small country town to live with his grandmother and his three aunts. He’s embarrassed that his life hasn’t been working out as planned, he feels like a failure, and he hasn’t spoken to his father because Matteo doesn’t believe dad accepts his coming out as gay.

The art is European, which means to me detailed, with a focus on character expression and unspoken feelings. Yet it’s unique in style, without too many fiddly bits, focusing only on what’s important to tell this story and establish these people as substantial and relatable in a fully realized environment.

The conflict between the mores of a new generation and the hidebound expectations of older people is a timeless one to portray, but Biondi deepens her story by also making Generations the story of Matteo learning a lot about himself, including finding a purpose. He’s been escaping from difficult situations, running away from struggle. Learning to care for his grandmother, a diabetic wheelchair user, has given him new appreciation for life skills. He also comes to understand giving people the benefit of the doubt and being willing to fight for what he believes in.

This is a particularly good read for the teen/young adult market. Matteo’s internal monologue is clear and straightforward about his feelings and how he changes, without being patronizing or sledgehammer-heavy. Although he starts out aimless (and I tend to agree with his self-assessment), I was rooting for him by the end, particularly once he started looking outside himself. Generations is an easy read that sneaks in empathy for Matteo and those like him. (The publisher provided a digital review copy.)

Generations by Flavia Biondi is a story that starts with Mateo coming home after three years of living in Milian. Mateo was estranged from his family, especially his father, after coming out as gay when he was 19. With no money or job, Mateo is lost and finds himself living with his Nan, pregnant cousin and his three aunties.

I loved this story, Flavia's art style, and narrative voice compliment each other. Generations is a beautifully important story about family, love, and self-discovery.

Starting this graphic novel I wasn't quite sure what to expect. I was initially wary because I knew it had been translated from Italian. I always worry I'm going to miss key elements in translated works but Carla Roncalli De Montorio has done a wonderful job.

Beginning with Matteo's train trip to his home town after three years in Milan with his boyfriend, he is certain he will not be welcomed into his father's home. Returning with no money, job or relationship, he lands on his Nan's doorstep, greeted by his pregnant cousin Sara. Matteo is surprised to see his aunts A, B and C are now living with his Nan. He also meets Odina, his Nan's caregiver and Francesco, his Nan's nurse.

Through interactions with his family, Odina and Francesco, Matteo begins to learn to deal with his problems rather than running away from them. His individual family members, some more accepting of him than others, teach him about love, support, strength and what the generations can learn from one another.

I certainly didn't expect to cry while reading something with so few words. I guess that tells you something about how powerful this story is. Flavia Biondi, who incidentally has done a brilliant job conveying the story both in words and images, created a cast of complex characters who I came to love more because of their flaws, not despite them.

The analogy of people being apples and our family being a tree was just beautiful. Exploring themes of love, loss, grief, sexuality, homophobia and acceptance, this graphic novel's depth pleasantly surprised me.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley (thank you so much to NetGalley, Lion Forge and Diamond Book Distributors for the opportunity) in exchange for honest feedback.

An interesting look at the relationships between different generations. Matteo moves back in with his family and there are 3 different generations under one room and it looks at the different and similar issue they all face.

This was an important comic book covering the hardship of coming of age, especially being gay in a conservative family. The illustrations are point on perfect and the writing is almost poetical. This book made me laugh, smile and cry.

This was beautiful and made me cry more often than it should. The story was wonderful and the relationships had a lot of meaning, and although I wasn't a huge fan of the art style it did convey the different characters' personalities very well. Also the funny bits were hilarious and I loved the family's little inside jokes.

I became interested this through netgalley after strong reccomendations from a friend, and recieved it through netgalley. Sure to say, I was not disappointed.

Generations tells the story of Matteo, a man in his early twenties who left his hometown and his family after an argument with his father. Now, three years later, the man he moved to be with has broken up with him, he has no job, and no plans. Rather than face his father, he moves in with his extended family; grandmother, three aunts, and cousin, all in one house. We follow them all through Matteo’s eyes, as he discovers and re-discovers his family, their history, and what they mean to each other, and to him.

The book covers several topics, including family, both the complications family can bring, and the support they can give. However, it also brilliantly illustrates the feeling of emptiness one can so often feel in one’s early twenties; especially combined with one’s queer early twenties, when there usually are very few examples to follow. The feeling of not knowing what to do in life, when there is no pre-planned heteronormative life to settle into.

The story feels a little slow paced, but not enough to make it a problem, and overall it fits well with the feeling of early adulthood, when you’re struggling to figure your life, and time just doesn’t seem to matter.

It tells of apathy, of plans, and surprises. Of disgust and accept both. Of a delayed coming off age. And of lack of communication and understanding on both parts of a conflict. Overall it holds a lot of heart, and a lot of good thoughts.

I would say the art style took a while to get used to, though once I had it down, it was nothing but pleasant. The greyscale makes for a calm, mellow read, which rather compliments the story.

A pretty a good read.
3/5 stars, and once again, would recommend.

*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Matteo returns home after spending three years milling about with his boyfriend in Milan. With no job, no money, and little prospects, Matteo has no choice but to live in the same house as his grandmother, three aunts, and his very pregnant cousin. After fleeing this town feeling it was too small, especially after coming out, Matteo slowly rebuilds his connections to his family and discovers there is so much more to be appreciated about where he came from and where he could go in the future.

Watching Matteo reconnect with his family - for good or ill - is a bittersweet and beautifully drawn and written story. The strong lines of the art style make every page pop and the range of characters gives a wide breadth of experience; from the aimless wanderer to the estranged father trying to reconnect. You really get a sense of Matteo coming to terms not only with his family but with growing up in general. This book is a good tug at the heartstrings and I give this book a 4 out of 5.