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Cristy Road is an inspiration to all zine publishers. Well, more accurately, Cristy Road is an inspiration to me. Her stories have heart, humor, and thoughtful content. She is well-known, of course, as an amazing graphic artist, and her drawings in this graphic novel leave nothing wanting. The layout is visually pleasing and tight. Her semi-chronological stories trace her relationships, epiphanies and unique experiences as a queer Latina in Florida and beyond. Buy this book. Then write to her and tell her how awesome she is:

[...]

Reviewed by: Victor Schwartzman. Published courtesy of the ULA Book Review Blog.

Victor has never met Cristy. He found out about her when he received a compliment about this site from Brooklyn Frank. Brooklyn Frank is a person and not a New York hot dog. Victor thanked him for his comment and asked Brooklyn Frank which books should be reviewed on this site. He mentioned Cristy. Victor contacted Cristy. She had never heard of Brooklyn Frank. But Cristy lives in Brooklyn, and Victor grew up in Brooklyn, so it all seems somehow connected, kind of like the circle of life from The Lion King, but without Walt Disney (who probably would not have liked this book).

It ain't easy growing up in Miami as an Cuban overweight adolescent girl who starts out bisexual and eventually grows into being gay, at the same time an outcast in but a member of her high school, community and immediate family. It isn't easy growing up, but Cristy had more than her share of crap to deal with.

This novel (that is not a novel) comes out of the zine world and looks it. The font is typewriter style, the layout cut and paste. The spelling and grammar would occasionally make White and Strunk fidget. The look of the book matches the troubled early life of the narrator, who appears suspiciously similar to the writer/artist, and whose name is, uh, Cristy Road.

The writing style can be awkward. At times the vocabulary does not match an adolescent's--but then again, the story is told in retrospect and the awkwardness provides a realistic edge. Reading it feels like you are in the same room with Cristy as she tells you her early life story. The edge in the writing is matched by her bold black and white drawings--in your face art, using a blunt and somewhat cartoony style that effectively matches the writing style. The combination of words and art works nicely, playing off each other.

If you want a plot you should read another book. The book covers Cristy's high school years, her `coming of age', with that being an operative phrase in so many ways--she is obsessed with sex, along with punk rock, being oppressed, stupid boys and interesting girls. More a collection of memories tied together chronologically than a novel, the book has a genuine narrative power stemming from Cristy's growth.

Cristy's sexual growth mirrors her community situation as an outlaw. She hides who she is from her family, but can not abandon it.

The book concludes with autographs and comments from her fellow students, as in a high school year book.

Cristy has graduated.