A poignant little book that captures beauty in everyday (and sometimes mundane) moments, the ones we tend to take for granted. I love the reflective vibe and tone. It's a quick read, but one that says a lot without saying much at all.

This comic is an interesting examination on life, loss, perspective, and growth. It's very easy to pick up and read, but it will leave you thinking about it long after you put it down.

Bolton's unusual comics take slices of ordinary, everyday life - shopping, eating, riding in cars or on public transportation - and make you notice the importance of these events. Memories are tricky things. It IS the little things that pop into our minds: we can't remember what we had for dinner last night, but we'll never forget that one special Christmas gift - the one we didn't ask for, but the giver seemed to know it was exactly what we needed, or the way the sky looked the day a loved one died.

Reading these comics was a warm reminder that life, for all its sadness, can also be good.

Publishing date: 12.11.2024
Thank you to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for the ARC. My opinions are my own.

This is another entry in possibly my new favorite genre of poems: pictures, illustrations, and backgrounds with poems on top of it. They just feel so atmospheric and "extra" in a way that makes my brain tingle. This collection got my brain tingling in several ways.

This collection follows every day events, routines, and people doing their thing. There is something so beautiful and comforting about it. This collection was a nice snug blanket reminding me that just surviving another day is okay.

While it was comforting, I was also met with such a profound sense of dread. One of the collections speaks about our existence and how it and the universe will meet its end one day. This is such a bone deep fear in me that just that section alone got me spiraling. So be aware my fellow "existential dreaders".

Final ranking and star rating?
5 stars, S tier. This was a great collection. It got me feeling things, and it was such a unique little book that I am wildly tempted to buy a physical copy and put it on my coffee table. I probably will.
Highly recommend as a palate cleanser and a reminder of the beauties of our everyday life.

Lovers give each other the silent treatment in the furniture store, people grasp 'me time' when the cinema film's run its course through the projector, and someone waits impatiently for word from beyond. All these and many more are here in this spread of very quickly-read short form comic fictions. Practically without fail they're presented as images in a 2x2 grid, somewhat stagey freeze frames from life, with no speech bubbles – just a yellow font with black border for clarity providing the voice-over kind of accompaniment. I didn't completely intentionally say it, but it stands true – these seem from life, as opposed from the mind of a creator, even if they show how contrived life can sometimes be with the tale of two people who scratch cars against each other's, or the vignette of how masking booze on your breath with peppermint chewing gum runs through the family.

Not all of them work brilliantly, but they do give a reflective spin on the modern world and how we're either happy to talk and are doing so, or unhappy about talking yet doing so, or happy to talk and can't, and so on. They certainly don't take too much time in the reading, and unless you really take against all the top-down images and the static nature of much of this – how if it were animated it would be one frame per second at most, and not at least 24 – this is an easy four stars.

This book was very beautifully illustrated and read almost like an album cover. Sometimes I wish we were given more time to sit with these books to give better reviews of them.

I really enjoyed this book. The illustrations were very nice, and I thought each small story was nice and complete, and told an overall message throughout the book.

I loved how this blended comics with poetry. A couple of things were a bit reductive, but overall it's good.

This is an simple 4 by 4 grid collections of short stories, but it's from the author's ideas for cinematic shorts. Oddly, there are few faces shown. It's all interior monologues. The art style is simple, but the stories are monotonous about connection to others, but no faces shown.

Thanks to the publisher Andrews McMeel Publishing and Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest book review.

Jordon Bolton has assembled a collection of beautifully drawn and designed bittersweet vignettes resembling voiceover montage sections of an indie film. Many of these stories were first posted on Instagram and they make great use of the square frame, but the montage feel, and square framing also recall Wes Anderson. They successfully capture a certain low-key feeling of understated but powerful emotional revelation, and while the tone does not vary much, it doesn’t become repetitious.

The contents of this book are divided into 3 different sections – "In Public"; "In Transit" and "At Home". The stories that were highlights for me were "The Driver"; "Ghosts"; "Range Life"; "Long Train Journeys" and "Routines".

I would recommend this to readers that enjoy graphic novels, and those who enjoy storylines particularly with a melancholy, wistful bent.

Thanks to Jordan Bolton, Andrews McMeel Publishing, and NetGalley for this eARC. The anthology presents an interesting collection of narrated short stories with minimal dialogue (and no bubbles!) The text, I believe, would be more legible in white rather than yellow when placed over the images. Occasionally, the text overlays crucial elements of the image composition, which can be distracting. Given that all images are square, but the pages are not, positioning the text below the images might enhance the readability of both the text and the images.

The simplicity of Bolton's comics do nothing to diminish the depth of the feeling reached on every page of this book.

A simple yet deep collection of comics that examine the simple moments in life, whether it is staying in a theatre after the credits roll, riding the train, or small acts of love.

Was an interesting read but I do personally think there are some parts where the story could've been a bit more detailed but I also fully understand that this is just a series of mini comics which is amazing. The art style is pretty good too, the way the art also tells the same story. I'm not sure though if I'd ever read this book again but I'm grateful for the opportunity to read it and review it for the author.
I'll definitely post about this book on my instagram for other readers to view too!

Lovely as a tabletop, read it in your spare moments sort of way. Captures those small moments, calming art.

I loved knowing the reason why the title of this book exists and I felt highly identified... Blue Sky Through the Window of a Moving Car is one of those comics that you can read whenever you want and you will always find something cool for it. think, or that it will simply make you laugh a little in certain situations because of how crazy (or not) it could be.

A pleasant, light and very nice read to give as a gift.

Thank you very much Andrews McMeel Publishing for the ARC I read through NetGalley, a change from an honest review.

A beautifully emotional graphic novel about all of the mundane moments in a person's life. I thought this was expertly written and was a wonderful journey. I sat with this book for a little while and really took my time with it and I feel like I got a lot out of it. If you're looking for an insightful graphic novel, this is it!

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I read this courtesy NetGalley and Andrews McMeel. I came into this work by recommendation, but nothing else, so when I actually read this graphic novel, I was amazed. The images tell a series of cohesive stories and the wording is so pure, its poetry. It had me thinking of the quiet moments of life and how it is simple, yet stirring.
#BlueSkyThroughtheWindowofaMovingCar #NetGalley

Reading this book made me realize that I've seen a good handful of the author's comics online and enjoyed them! It's great to see them all in one place! I like the cinematic style that these use and the endings of a good number of them really hit.

Jordan Bolton’s debut comic collection, *Blue Sky Through the Window of a Moving Car,* is a vibrant mosaic of everyday life that captures the beauty and messiness of human experiences. Through his art and poetic language, Bolton brings seemingly small moments into sharp focus, revealing the shared, universal emotions that make up the essence of our daily lives. This collection is a warm, relatable reminder to savor those fleeting moments and to notice the quiet, unassuming magic in our lives.

Bolton divides the collection into three sections—In Public, In Transit, and At Home—which collectively cover the spaces where we spend most of our lives. Each section is packed with scenes that are likely familiar to anyone who has navigated through crowded city streets, traveled on a bus or train, or cherished quiet evenings at home. The situations he chooses to depict are often mundane: waiting for a bus, sharing a fleeting glance with a stranger, or witnessing a couple’s argument. But it’s in these ordinary scenes that Bolton finds the extraordinary, revealing the threads of connection, vulnerability, and emotion that bind us all.

The comics themselves are minimalistic yet impactful, with Bolton’s art style conveying a deep emotional resonance. His drawings pair perfectly with short, introspective lines of poetry, striking a balance between heart-wrenching and heart-warming. Through simple yet poignant phrases, he captures a range of emotions—love, heartbreak, shame, hope, and everything in between. Each page draws readers into a world that is achingly familiar, like catching snippets of our own memories.

What makes this collection especially compelling is how it encourages readers to be present in their own lives. Bolton reminds us that, while life often seems fleeting, each moment is worth noticing. The passing sky through a car window, a smile exchanged with a stranger, the comfort of solitude at home—all are invitations to slow down and appreciate the world around us. His comics serve as both a reflection and a gentle nudge to find joy and meaning in the small details of our daily existence.

With previously unreleased comics included, *Blue Sky Through the Window of a Moving Car* is a refreshing, heartfelt look at what it means to be human. Bolton’s work speaks directly to the heart, evoking laughter, sadness, and nostalgia. Readers will likely come away from this collection with a renewed appreciation for the beauty in the mundane and a reminder that, in our shared experiences, we are never truly alone. This is a perfect read for anyone who enjoys reflective, slice-of-life stories told through the unique medium of comics.