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Sisters
197 pages
A funny, deeply relatable ride through the cramped quarters of a family road trip and the even tighter confines of sisterhood.
What it feels like
Reading this graphic memoir feels like being crammed into the backseat of a minivan on a long summer drive, complete with all the bickering, boredom, and sudden moments of unexpected connection. The pacing is brisk and energetic, driven by expressive artwork that perfectly captures the eye-rolls and exasperation of childhood. It balances a chaotic, humorous mood with an undercurrent of genuine emotional vulnerability as the shifting dynamics of the adult world begin to crack the family's foundation. The narrative captures the messy, prickly reality of sibling rivalry without ever losing its fundamental warmth. It is a delight for middle-grade readers and nostalgic adults alike, offering a deeply relatable exploration of how the people who annoy us the most are often the only ones who truly understand us.
- Mood
- nostalgic
- chaotic
- cozy
- claustrophobic
- Tone
- humorous
- honest
- exasperated
- warm
- relatable
- Pace
- brisk
- Themes
- sibling rivalry · shifting family dynamics · childhood road trips · finding common ground
- The writing
- Relies on highly expressive, energetic visual storytelling paired with snappy, authentic dialogue that perfectly captures the cadence of bickering kids.
- The arc
- Moves from the prickly frustration of mismatched expectations to a quiet, hard-won solidarity.
- Who it's for
- Middle-grade readers navigating their own messy family dynamics and anyone who remembers the cramped, chaotic reality of a childhood road trip.
Content notes
- parental marital tension
- sibling conflict
- pet death
About the book
Raina Telgemeier’s, Eisner Award-winning companion to Smile! Raina can't wait to be a big sister. But once Amara is born, things aren't quite how she expected them to be. Amara is cute, but she's also a cranky, grouchy baby, and mostly prefers to play by herself. Their relationship doesn't improve much over the years, but when a baby brother enters the picture and later, something doesn't seem right between their parents, they realize they must figure out how to get along. They are sisters, after all.Raina uses her signature humor and charm in both present-day narrative and perfectly placed flashbacks to tell the story of her relationship with her sister, which unfolds during the course of a road trip from their home in San Francisco to a family reunion in Colorado.
Description from Open Library.
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