Keywords: graphic novel, anthology, feminism, non-fiction
I was quite intrigued to read about those nine different women and their experience of life. And overall, it was quite interesting but not as striking as I thought it would be.
I think each story is a bit too short for me to remember them after a few weeks, it didn’t have any lasting impact on me at least. I don’t have much to say because, after a few weeks, I don’t remember it well enough unfortunately. But I think it can be an amazing read for some other people. Also the themes were really interesting.
I recommend to people looking for a short feminist anthology
3/5

Exploration is a key theme in art specifically the written art form and art as comic. Though I loved some stories more than others I cannot but be excited for students to see the various takes and observations made by women around societal expectations and commentary on patriarchy. Though these are sometimes only abstract concepts I believe the anthology helps make these concepts more relatable to adults and teens alike.

An interesting read! As with a lot of anthologies, some portions were stronger than others. On the whole, they presented a thoughtful and complex picture of Spanish feminism and womanhood today.

One comic, following a woman who traveled to Uganda and facilitated women's involvement in sports there, felt under-edited, at best. Portions of how the author talked about Ugandan people and culture, and her role in the community, seemed to uncritically replicate white savior/neocolonialist narratives. This left a bad taste in my mouth as a reader, particular as this comic was the final entry in the anthology.

Thank you so much to IDW Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC; it is greatly appreciated.

As a woman I am pleased to see anything that gives us a voice, and discusses our experiences. In particular there is quite a hard hitting story in here called The Bug. I was hoping there would be more stories like this one that really go in depth, and show the nitty gritty, but unfortunately most of the comics were surface level.

Considering how short this anthology this, I would have loved to have seen some longer comics. Some are simply too short, and don't leave much of an impact. I would have liked to have seen a few more comics with more diversity, as it felt like there was only one "type" of woman really being represented.

I do hope more graphic novels like this are released in the future, and I look forward to seeing how they evolve.

This is an anthology of short comics that celebrate women. There were a variety of stories, some were illustrated short stories, some poems, and more traditional comics. I like that the stories are things I connected with, but don't always see in books. There were ten stories.

3.5 stars! Voices that Count is an interesting look into the state of feminism in Spain today. The stories here address a variety of themes and topics, from body image to sports to loneliness to cultural pressures on women to political/educational changes in Spain over the years that have impacted women. I only wish there were something more concrete tying these stories together than the fact that they are stories by women about being women. I could definitely see this being taught in college Women's Studies classes or Art/English classes in general. Definitely a more introductory look into feminism but well worth the read; some of these would be great, thought-provoking conversation starters.

This was a very interesting read. This anthology carries a mix of comics, some of which are poems, some of which don't have any words, some of which read more like essays with pictures. I find the messages in this anthology important and in most cases very clearly communicated, and the medium of comics is such a great one to spread them and reach a broader audience.

I would have liked for each story to be longer, and for the audience to know each of the writer a bit more, maybe throughout the comics instead of in the final credit index, as that would have given a bit more context to the various stories as well, but that is mostly just me nitpicking.

Overall, the messages shared are great for audiences first coming into contact with them. This is a great entry-level anthology for both younger children and teens, and people first acquainting themselves with feminist ideas.

Voices That Count is a fantastic, vibrant and engaging anthology from Spanish women in the format of a graphic novel. The book as a whole looks at the broad topic of feminism while each individual section highlights certain aspects such as gender roles, body image, sexual harassment and the role of the woman in various scenarios. While the book discussed quite heavy topics at times, it was balanced with a sense of hope and possibility.

As with any anthology, some will resonate more than others and my favourites included 24 Hours, The Bug, Loneliness and Sexier. The graphics were fantastic through out but The Bug was the absolute standout one for me. The drawings added so much meaning to storyline, even down to the contrasting colours signifying different emotions and states of the character.

My only reason for not rating higher was a lack of diversity within the stories. More inclusivity for communities within LGTBQ+ community and people with disabilities etc. would be great to see.

A thought-provoking yet fun graphic novel which gives the reader an insight into the issues faced by women without feeling overly heavy. Maybe a good starting point for teens curious about feminism and it's related challenges?

This anthology is definitely worth reading.
Every story is very different and the different artworks made the book easy to read.

Voices that Count is a graphic novel anthology about the view of women in our world. This was a very quick but insightful read! There were stories of anorexia, bullying, women's job and expectations and even a poem. The art was beautiful and unlike anything I've seen!

Voices that Count offers a variety of artistic styles that address the facets of womanhood from body image to workplaces in the style of short fiction. I enjoyed all of the stories and styles, and I appreciated getting to know these artists whose work had previously been published in Spanish.

More conservative areas or librarians facing book challenges in the US should note that the book does technically contain minor nudity.

I recommend this book for the variety of artistic styles and could easily see it used in women's' studies courses or art courses. I do not see this as being one to put in the hands of secondary school students, purely because I believe many will not have the life experiences or maturity to appreciate it.

Thank you NetGalley and IDW Publishing for this ARC in exchange for my review.

Voices That Count highlighted an interesting blend of styles (both in illustration and writing), and I liked seeing the Spanish perspective. As always with an anthology, some of the selections appealed to me more than others. I feel that the anthology could have been more diverse as a whole - there is only one queer story, and no disability representation.

Long story short: Some hit, some didn't

My favorite was the third comic. I could write essays on the meaning behind the colors used in the comic and how pink meant she was happy and green/blue meant she was sad, diseased, depressed, struggling... The art in this book is variable and enjoyable. It talks about eating disorders, impressing your parents, and push-up bras (and more of course). A book for girls growing up and finding their space in the world and adjusting to the world's expectations for us. Good message!

I picked this up purely for the concept of being comics about women - as I couldn't remember seeing something like that before. A unique, heartwarming take on so many topics all women can relate to.

Tales of women and girls and the world around them in graphic form.

We have supportive fathers, dreams of an alternate reality, body image struggles, being brave enough to use your voice, a peek at the progress of generations of women.

The artwork for each story pulls you in and adds to the feeling..

The struggles of women is often universal and these stories make you feel less alone with them.

This anthology is definitely worth reading. Even though I didn't love all the stories, I appreciated the effort and the meaning in them. All the different artworks made the book even easier to read and the stories themselves were pretty quickly read.

Themes like feminism, gender roles, humanity, sexism and such is made room for and I like the voices we hear. Voices that should count and should have counted ages ago.

/ Denise

I wasn't sure what to expect going into this book of comics. Some were good and I understood them others I couldn't grasp the meaning of. I think this would be a good group read where they can be talked through but reading on my own was hard.

This was a very good anthology of voices of women. I loved the stories and the artwork of the graphic novel.

This comic book anthology really did have potential to be great but I just didn’t enjoy it. Most stories were too short and I didn’t like the artwork of others.

I do think other people may enjoy this one better than I did but it just wasn’t for me.

The anthology 'Voices That Count' by Spanish female storytellers and illustrators was not what I expected. To be honest, I found it lacking. The art was beautiful and the highlight of the book for me. The stories, however, did not meet my expectations.

Mainly, they lacked inclusion and diversity, highlighting only white women's voices, perspectives, and experiences. When the stories did include women of colour, like the tales 'Mzungu' and 'Over A Banana Skirt', I found them problematic and stereotypical. In 'Over A Banana Skirt', which describes how the author's grandmother attended a Josephine Baker performance in Spain, Baker is described as "an incredibly young and cute café au lait model" and "her terse, shiny skin glowed like hot chocolate". In 'Mzungu', which tells the tale of a white Spanish woman who travels to Uganda to drive social development through sports, white saviour ideals are perpetuated, and stereotypical descriptions of life in the country are emphasized. For instance, the author writes, "In Uganda, women are not human beings. First, there's men, then boys (forget girls), then cattle, and finally women. Over there, women and girls do not have a dignified life, nor any hope to have one". These types of narratives are harmful.

My favourite story was 'The Bug', which describes a teenager's experience with anorexia. As an eating disorder survivor, I related to the issues in the story and how the disease was illustrated by a vermin eating away at the author's mental and physical health. I have rarely seen such a truthful description of eating disorders particularly, and I found the story to be not only educational but somewhat cathartic. I also liked the ending, which highlights the healing journey as an ongoing process, and not a 'finish line' one crosses and then never looks back again. There should be trigger warnings in the book.

In short, 'Voices That Count', other than the tale 'The Bug', did not impress me.