KnitAFett reviewed Aya: Life in Yop City by Marguerite Abouet (Aya, #1-3)
Left wanting more.
3 stars
I really appreciated the decision to keep a lot of the native slang words in the book and have a dictionary for you to be able to see what it meant if you weren't able to tell. It helped a bit with the immersion of remembering that you're in Yop City in Africa. I also enjoyed the detailing at the end where they explained the choices in clothes and patterns that they wear and how the community of women work together. Not all the characters are likable which also adds a little dose of reality.
My biggest complaint is just that there are sudden abrupt changes from one page to another, so I had to frequently go back to the previous page to see if I missed something, and that added some confusion and difficulty to the reading. Overall, I did enjoy this, and would recommend it if you're …
I really appreciated the decision to keep a lot of the native slang words in the book and have a dictionary for you to be able to see what it meant if you weren't able to tell. It helped a bit with the immersion of remembering that you're in Yop City in Africa. I also enjoyed the detailing at the end where they explained the choices in clothes and patterns that they wear and how the community of women work together. Not all the characters are likable which also adds a little dose of reality.
My biggest complaint is just that there are sudden abrupt changes from one page to another, so I had to frequently go back to the previous page to see if I missed something, and that added some confusion and difficulty to the reading. Overall, I did enjoy this, and would recommend it if you're interested in reading a slice-of-life graphic novel from another country.