Skim (Hardcover)

by Mariko Tamaki (Author), Jillian Tamaki (Illustrator)
Key Phrases: Julie Peters, Katie Matthews, Anna Canard

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
This auspicious graphic novel debut by cousins Mariko and Jillian Tamaki tells the story of "Skim," aka Kimberly Keiko Cameron, a goth girl in an all-girls school in Toronto, circa the early '90s. Skim is an articulate, angsty teenager, the classic outsider yearning for some form of acceptance. She begins a fanciful romance with her English teacher, Ms. Archer, while nursing her best friend through a period of mourning. The particulars of the story may not be its strong suit, though. It's Jillian's artwork that sets it apart from the coming-of-age pack. Jillian has a swooping, gorgeous pen line-expressive, vibrant and precise all at once. Her renderings of Skim and her friends, Skim alone or just the teenage environment in which the story is steeped are evocative and wondrous. Like Craig Thompson's Blankets, the inky art lifts the story into a more poetic, elegiac realm. It complements Mariko's fine ear for dialogue and the incidentals and events of adolescent life. Skim is an unusually strong graphic novel-rich in visuals and observations, and rewarding of repeated readings. (Feb.)
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From School Library Journal
Grade 10 Up–Kimberly Keiko Cameron–aka Skim–is a mixed-race high school student struggling with identity, friendships, and romantic yearning. After her parents' divorce, she turns to tarot cards and Wicca to make sense of life but finds herself disappointed with the lack of answers they provide. She finds herself increasingly intrigued by Ms. Archer, her free-spirited English teacher. Her interest becomes obsessive and it begins to drive a wedge between her and her best friend, Lisa. Although Skim originally makes light of the half-hearted suicide attempts of popular Katie, whose ex-boyfriend committed suicide, the two of them begin to open up to one another. Skim soon realizes that perfect Katie is far funnier, more genuine, and more traumatized than she originally thought–particularly when it comes to light that John shot himself due to his homosexuality. Drawn in an expressive, fluid style and with realistic dialogue, this work accurately depicts the confusion of teenage years, with its rejection of previous identity and past relationships and search for a newer and truer identity; additionally, insider/outsider status is a reoccurring theme. Skim's internal monologue is diarylike, with an interesting use of scratched-out words. This is a good but somewhat standard work.–Dave Inabnitt, Brooklyn Public Library, NY
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Hardcover: 140 pages
• Publisher: Groundwood Books (February 28, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0888997531
• ISBN-13: 978-0888997531
• Product Dimensions: 10.4 x 7 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #208,990 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fabulous illustration style and great text, January 19, 2009

By	Geng Wang (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I am both into the illustration as well as the story (admittedly probably more into the former). Jillian Tamaki is a great illustrator and this work shows her well versed skills in brush/ink and how to combine the cinematography/composition with the storytelling. As for the story, it's about high school teenage girls and maybe not 100% targets me as the right audience but the humour and wit makes me smile from time to time while reading. I was hoping there was little bit more into the last half of the story.

4.0 out of 5 stars thought-provoking, for older kids only (teens), June 8, 2009

By	Debra Anderson (NEW BERLIN, WI United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is worth a read, quite sophisticated for a book with a primarily teen audience. Adults who appreciate a good story, good graphics, and teenage angst (non-melodramatic) can appreciate this graphic novel. It will also appeal to many kinds of teens - those struggling with conformity, nonconformity, identity, traditional religion vs nontraditional, body image, sexual identity - well, ok, to all teens, if they have a contemplative side. The author is sympathetic to the needs of teens to rebel and yet doesn't glorify it.

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic!, May 2, 2009

By	Jordan Millner "elitist" (Virginia, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

A fantastic, fantastic graphic novel. Modern Catcher in the Rye if Holden Caulfield were a Goth lesbian.