Paul Has A Summer Job (Paperback)

by Michel Rabagliati (Author), Michel Rabagliati (Author) "IN THE SUMMER OF '79 I WAS WORKING AS AN APPRENTICE IN A DOWNTOWN PRINT SHOP..." (more)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal
Adult/High School-In 1979, Paul, 18, lands an unexpected job at a camp for underprivileged children. Accustomed neither to roughing it nor to youngsters, he knows that he is unprepared but falls to with a will and an open heart. Over the course of the summer on a Quebec lake, he learns about his own strengths, discovers the unaffected charms of 9- to 14-year-olds, and falls in love with a co-counselor. Subplots involve overcoming physical and emotional fears and the reality of shepherding a blind child through camp experiences. The ending brings the protagonist back to the site of the camp 20 years later. Paul and his fellow teens act responsibly with the children but are prone to partying between sessions; they are able to cope with emergencies, and they experience the death of one counselor's parent. The story unfolds with quirky black-ink drawings and natural-sounding dialogue. The images bounce with physical energy and depict the brightness and darkness of the teen's moods. Endnotes offer readers in the U.S. helpful information for interpreting Quebecois swearing and references to pop idols of the place and time. Anyone who has gone to camp, or taken on a job with the knowledge that it seems unworkable, will recognize Paul's plight and the sense of achievement he gets to taste.
Francisca Goldsmith, Berkeley Public Library, CA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
Gr. 9-12. It's the summer of 1979, and Paul, a recent high-school dropout and an apprentice at a local print shop, is broke, unhappy and living with his parents in Canada. A phone call from a friend who is running a summer camp for underprivileged kids allows Paul to escape into a job as a replacement counselor. Paul is apprehensive at first as he's not great with kids and doesn't know the first thing about braving the wilderness, but after a rocky start, he bonds with his fellow counselors, the kids begin to grow on him, and he falls in love with his partner, Annie.

Rabagliati's simple black-and-white line drawings and classic comics format are well-suited to this slacker-goes-to-summer camp tale, which has plenty teens can relate to--whether it's Paul's dissatisfaction with the authority figures at his school or a first love. The final act will ring true for older readers nostalgic about their own first overnight camp. The book was originally published in French, and this English translation includes a glossary of terms and places. Some explicit sexual content will limit this to mature teens. Carlos Orellana
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Drawn and Quarterly (August 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1896597548
• ISBN-13: 978-1896597546
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 7.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #498,794 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a wonderful graphic novel (ie comic) for a wide age range, June 3, 2003

By	Bob Cronin (Belmont, MA United States) - See all my reviews

The character of Paul has appeared in a comic book and an anthology by the quality comics publisher from Canada, Drawn and Quarterly. Michel Rabagliati's full-length graphic novel, translated from the French, is funny, poignant, and a joy to read. This is an example of the exciting potential of comics- many types of readers will enjoy it on it's own merits.

Paul, our hero, has dropped out of high school and is working a routine and boring day job at a print shop. When his charasmatic pal Gus calls with an offer of counsleor work at a summer camp, Paul jumps at the opportunity. Both Paul and the reader will be very glad he took this opportunity. With a deceptively simple, almost retro-50's style, Rabagliati sketches and fleshes out the dozen or so characters Paul meets in this story. The camp and the characters are effectively developed to the point where the reader is deeply touched by their struggles, laughs at their jokes, and is just as regretful and sad as Paul when the summer finally ends.

The story resonates with major turning points for Paul, the kinds of moments we all experience, sometimes treasure, and remember for the rest of our lives. One gets the sense that these are personal moments of the author, special and shared with complete trust. We experience his first love, the growing confidence of Paul as he matures, and the rewards he gains working closely with a group of underpriveledged kids, particularly a charming blind girl named Marie. His return to the spot years later, when he shares some of these gems with his own infant daughter, is quite touching and feels real.

I'm very grateful that Rabagliati shared these feelings and experiences with me and his other readers, even if they are fictional. I look forward to more Paul books.

3.0 out of 5 stars An edited version is needed, April 14, 2009

By	C. Felix "Repent and believe the Gospel" - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book is one of Michel Rabagliati's autobiographical, graphic novels in which he reminisces about various times throughout his teenage to adult life. In all fairness he's done a good job of taking readers into his memories with vivid clarity and thoughtful detail.

As the book description states, set in the backdrop of the late 70's, this book is about Paul's dropping out from school, his brief work at a Print Shop and his encounters with underprivileged children at a camp.

Plot-wise, since this is a slice-of-life type story telling, read this expecting it to be an epic adventure. It more reads like a memoir of a sort. The story starts, then stops. It doesn't have much of a climax, but rather documents a series of that take place at a particular period of time in the life of the main character.

The artwork though simple, is well proportioned and definitely outstanding; reminiscent of cartoons from the 50's and 60's. The art style is well suited to the subject matter presented and fits in well with the overall theme of the book. Michel Rabagliati has done a great job with the presentation in making it visually palatable, to those who have a knack for simple design.

Overall, I thought this was a well written story in all honesty. However my biggest complaint about this book is the numerous instances of swearing and profanity that graced its pages. I strongly caution Christians and the morally sensitive who would buy this book. This is not a book for children, mostly because of the language used in many instances.

As an alternative, if you don't mind defacing your copy, you can take the time to blot out all the profanity in the book - its worth it. The story is not bad at all. Its more of the the kind that has you wanting to read more of Rabagliati's work.

4.0 out of 5 stars good read, lots of heart, for adults, July 17, 2008

By	Paul A. Spangler - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The author throws in some adult stuff but I really enjoyed the rest of this book.