Member Reviews
Thank you to NetGalley and 23rd St publishing for letting me read this early. I really enjoyed it as a Polish-American and found it very interesting. With that, I would agree that the timeline is hard to follow at times and know what is happening in the story. Dzięki Kasia for sharing your story!
I enjoyed the artwork but this memoir was impossible to follow. I'm so confused about what I just read. Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC
I love when I'm happy I picked up and read a certain book. This was one of those books. I am not usually a graphic novel reader (on occasion), but this one felt personal and raw, and I'm thankful to NetGalley and First Second Books for the ARC. The messages and stories laced together in this graphic novel and the art with splashes of red to highlight a moment or emotion were beautiful, and I'm so glad this author put her story into words. I think it was a bit choppy in structure, but necessary to give a background history on why Poland had such groups / decisions / laws in place. I'm forever moved by what I've learned about post-soviet Poland, and think this is an excellent "quick education" for anyone wanting to learn more on the subject (with the personal pieces sewn between).
I had a lot of favorite quotes throughout, especially one with regard to men's anger (and how it always seems to take her by surprise), and generational trauma and how we hope future generations can do better. Here is one more:
p.20: "I still can't get over how much we normalized the practice of forcing children to share their most intimate secrets with a stranger in the confession booth."
I am a huge fan of graphic memoirs, but I had trouble connecting with Breadcrumbs. The author Kasia Babis gives background information interspersed with the events of the people throughout her life. However, I kept confusing the people--maybe due to the black and white sketching, relying on other characteristics to tell them apart? Or maybe it was the time order and pacing that was confusing? I did learn a lot about Poland and topics affecting the people and country historically and today. I appreciate her attempt and think there's a good audience for this book, but it may be better suited to someone who has a little background in the topic already. Thank you to the publishers and Net Galley for the ARC.
By and large, did not like the art. Really made me disconnect with the story as a whole, which is a shame.
Graphic novels are a good way to present biographical and historical information. I know very little about this time period in Poland, but found it interesting. The moody illustrations fit the story just right.