Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for an early E-ARC of the graphic novel.

I thought this was a great graphic novel. I loved how this was based on the author's own family. It was very heartbreaking and heartwarming coming of age story going through different generations. I highly recommend it.

This was an impactful read about intergenerational trauma. I love the different color schemes for each character/timeline:
Rosalind; Toronto in 2000
Her Mom, Lydia; Hong Kong in 1972
Her Por Por (Grandma), Mei Laan; Guangdong in 1954

What the story did well was show how trauma is passed down from generation to generation. I also love the nostalgia aspects of Rosalind’s story because I also grew up in the 2000’s.

Age is a relatable and touching story of women throughout the generations. The illustrations were lovely: simple in style and color, but very expressive and touching. Highly recommend!

Powerful multi-generational coming-of-age YA selection—looking forward to adding to a graphic novel lit circle.

This is quite the powerful and impactful graphic novel! Deeply personal, this graphic novel follows three generations of women and daughters who have experienced different struggles in their own way. Each generation feels that their own mother doesn’t understand them, yet all are going through their own journeys. A must for young adult readers, this is at heart a book about mothers and daughters and the internalized trauma that often gets passed down generation to generation. A beautifully illustrated graphic novel that truly touched me.

Fung deftly tackles an exploration of body image issues that are deeply rooted in intergenerational trauma and complex mother-daughter relationships. She does so in an age-appropriate manner, and impresses by doing this in a deceptively simple graphic novel set in three different historical time periods while maintaining relevance to today. At first, I was unimpressed with the monocolor visuals, but once I realized each time period was established with its own color, I adjusted. As Fung brought the past into the future, and the monocolors began to bleed into the others, I realized the brilliance of this design element. With few words and often austere drawings, the author linked history, culture, and psychology in a way that will speak to teens looking for acceptance from their own selves, their peers, and their female elders' whose observations and comments are all too often sources of pain despite the fact that they often come from a place of love.

Thank you to Annick Press Ltd, Netgalley, and the author for early access to this important and accessible graphic novel.

A novel of three generations of women who are “body shamed” and estranged from each other. Rosalind worries about making friends due to being overweight. In the 1970’s, Rosalind’s mother flashbacks to her passion for dancing and her mother tells her to find a husband instead of dancing In 1954 Rosalind’s grandmother, Poo Poo has an arranged marriage which causes consequences that all three generations must confront. When grandmother visits then in Toronto, her cutting remarks cause tension. The three women contends with secrets, beauty standards and even their own self worth.

In this graphic novel, there are monochromatic panels use shifting colors to cue each era. The illustrator did an excellent job. It helped show what the author was portraying in the story. It is a coming-of-age graphic novel. It made me wonder if this doesn’t happen to all women — how they influence each other.

This graphic novel packs an emotional punch telling the generational story of a grandmother/mother/daughter and highlighting their lives at age 16. We see how fatphobia can be internalized and become a cycle, but how we also have the power to change that.

This was a phenomenal read about finding self-acceptance amidst managing eating disorders and how problems can be passed down intergeneration ally. The story begins with Roz, age 16, in 2000s Toronto as she navigates challenges surrounding her size, family pressure, prom, and how her interests are viewed by the people around her. Throughout the book, we also see chapters from the perspective of Roz's mother and grandmother, also at the age of 16, which detail their own personal struggles as they grew up (in 1972 and 1954, respectively). Fung puts together a book that is beautiful, charming, and incredibly heartfelt. I was rooting for each of these characters the whole way through. One artistic decision she makes that I felt was especially impactful was how she assigned a specific color to each character. I don't want to spoil too much, but this decision led to a particularly touching visual towards the end. I would recommend this book to everyone!

A beautifully-done graphic novel about three generations of women struggling to find self-love and acceptance across time in Toronto, Hong Kong, and Guandong. Framed through a Toronto teen's story of trying to fit in as a nerdy, plus-sized Chinese-Canadian in 2000, we're also brought back to her mother and grandmother's experiences as 16-year-olds in worlds that constantly told them they were less-than. I think it handles intergenerational trauma and love very realistically (I cried), and has a depth that would make it equally suitable for adult readers.

This honestly reminded me a lot of Limbo, it's a coming of age story that is moving, touching and incredibly relatable.

Love this graphic novel by Rosena Fung! It took me a bit of time to sort out the three storylines, which are delineated through different colour palettes, but it was well worth the effort. The concept of telling the stories of three generations of women in one family, each at age 16, is brilliant. Their differences and similarities echo through time, and the way the three come together in the present day is so satisfying.

Age 16 is a lovely mix of culturally specific details and universal themes around mother-daughter relationships and identity. Even girls who don't struggle with their weight will be able to relate to the anxiety around body image, the societal messaging they receive is so relentless. The book's ultimate message about self acceptance is one every girl needs to read and hear.

I received an ARC from Annick Press Ltd. via NetGalley. Guangdong in 1954 to Hong Kong in 1972, and Toronto in 2000 - grandma, mom and Roz all depicted in their adolescence at age 16. The colors in this YA graphic novel really assist the story and alternating between each ladies story. We see the trials each woman goes through from their own perspective. I related to Roz’s weight issues and her family involvement in that struggle. I liked how this is a story about generations. It seamlessly a multigenerational immigration story and yet a nerdy, coming-of-age story.

Note: I was also 16 in 2000 and while I remember the derogatory language used in high schools during that time period, I wish this story corrected those affronts in the illustrated story. It allows for them to exist as normal.

Age 16 is a multigenerational story inspired by the life of the author, her mother, and her grandmother. Roz is a high school student navigating relationships with family and friends, wanting to be liked romantically, and dealing with negative body image. This graphic novel also deals with generational trauma as it shows Roz’s mother’s teen years in Hong Kong, as well as Roz’s grandmother’s youth in China to powerfully show how even with the best intentions, mothers may wound daughters in the same way their own mother’s hurt them. This novel can be hard hitting at times, but it is also filled with love, acceptance, and enjoyment. While Roz is struggling with her size, especially with the enormous pressure of prom coming up, she is also confident in who she is, what her interests are, and what kind of friend she is.

Coming of age graphic novels are so important because they can be mirrors that reflect the young people who read them. Age 16 is a great exploration of family, history, body image, and more. The art is bright and charming. I’d recommend this to almost anyone, but especially to young people who are still figuring out who they are. This graphic novel is full of great representation and has many important things to say!

I was fairly recently talking with some friends about the body issue trauma we inherited from our moms, and how we're all doing our best to not pass it on to our kids. Our grandmothers all had help in the form of prescription amphetamines, so when their daughters didn't and weren't as thin, they shamed them for their bodies, and our moms did the same to us. I look back at pictures of myself before the disordered eating started, and I don't understand how my mom ever thought it was okay to make the comments she did about my body, and it's no wonder I forced myself to be underweight for so long (at which point, she still said I would never be skinny bc my hips were too wide).

Anyway, this is primarily what Age 16 is about and it made me cry more than once.

This graphic novel did a great hob of tackling very real issues that students face on a daily basis in this coming-of-age tale of cultural identity and self-discovery.

I was very excited to read Age 16 by Rosena Fung because I loved her middle-grade graphic novel Living with Viola and I am happy to say that I was not disappointed!

Fung seems to effortlessly weave together of three generations of women - Por Por (the grandmother) from Guangdong, Lydia (the mom) from Hong Kong, and Roz, the youngest, in Toronto. All three generations are staying together after Por Por makes a surprise visit to their home in Toronto. The main story (in which Roz prepares to go to a dance at school) is interrupted with vignettes of the elder two women's life stories - showing key elements of what their life was like at her age. Their stories shed light on the way they interact with Roz and with each other.

There is a lot to love about this book - the multigenerational immigration story, sharing family trauma, bittersweet coming-of-age feel, and of course the art. I simply loved the artwork - it has the same delightful and thoughtful style as the drawings in Living with Viola and I love the way Fung uses color. The time periods of each of the three women are represented in different colors to help illustrate that we've moved from character-to-character / backwards or forwards in time.

I really enjoyed this book and will add it to our library's collection. I'd recommend this to folks who are interested in family history, immigration, coming-of-age stories, stories about self-image, stories about trauma, and of course, to my graphic novel fans.

Thank you to NetGalley for an Advanced Reading Copy of this title!

I thoroughly enjoyed Age 16. The different color schemes for each generation's story was a beautiful narrative choice, and I loved how each eventually blended into the present. Roz is a fantastic protagonist, and the fact that she is a plus sized person who is fighting with disordered eating is not shown enough.

Rosena Fung’s Age 16 is a multigenerational story that spans decades and continents. It tells a story that covers three generations taking place in 1950s GuangDong, China, 1970s Hong Kong, and in 2000s Toronto. In the 2000s, we see the youngest member of this family preparing for prom when her por por arrives. From there, the two mother-daughter relationships are explored independently and in how they impact each other. Age 16 is a moving, relatable story that’s hard to put down once you’ve started.

I don’t read graphic novels often, but this was fantastic. For those who don’t typically read graphic novels, I would still recommend this book. The stories of the daughter, mother, and grandmother are told beautifully. The use of color as markers for each family members’ story is a helpful visual cue so this novel is never confusing despite multiple stories being told.

I DNF'd this around 60%.

I was drawn to the concept -- three generations of women, seeing how the parenting of one generation is reflected on the next, passing down of traumas -- but I wasn't drawn in by the illustrations. Unfortunately, with a graphic novel, the art really matters. I couldn't be bothered to return to this book after putting it down at 60%.