Mini-review and #BlogTour – Crushing by Sophie Burrows

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Title: Crushing

Author: Sophie Burrows

Published: 11th of January 2022 – Algonquin Young Readers

Format: Digital – 160 pages

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Hello Hello! How are you?

Reviving the blog today to talk to you about a lovely graphic novel that I read this past week, for the Blog Tour organised by Algonquin Young Readers. When I got the email for Crushing by Sophie Burrows, I was really intrigued as I have wanted to read more graphic novels in the past year or two, and the blurb sounded really unique and interesting.

I’m so glad that I got the chance to read this book because I really enjoyed it, so thank you so much to Kelly and the team at Algonquin Young Readers, as well as the author for letting me take part in this tour and for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

GOODREADS SYNOPSIS

She’s lonely and searching for connection. He’s lonely and afraid to reach out.

Life in the big city means being surrounded by connections—making them, missing them, and longing for them. But is finding someone else really the answer to their problems?

Crushing, the stunning debut graphic novel from Sophie Burrows, is a story told in silence; a story without words but bursting with meaning; a story about loneliness and love.

Achingly beautiful, quietly defiant, and full of subtle wit and wisdom, Crushing is a unique meditation on the human condition in the twenty-first century, and a timely examination of young adult life in an age of isolation.

MY REVIEW

Crushing by Sophie Burrows is a romance graphic novel that has barely any words or written text, but all the story is brought to the reader by the stunning illustrations. It is an art style that I don’t usually fancy, but honestly, it worked so well here and I found it just beautiful.

A lot of the illustrations are in black and white, with some grey, and there are lots of little touches of red from and representing the two main characters. I loved these little touches of red, like those you can see on the book cover above, and I thought it just gave life to this story.

I did not need any text to understand this story, understand what the author was trying to say and the message she was trying to bring to people. The illustrations with the red touches, the way the whole setting was drawn and the expressions we see on the characters’ faces are enough to perfectly show the main theme of this graphic novel: being alone, feeling isolated and sad in a town that never stops moving.

This was a really important, well-executed, intelligent and needed book that I thoroughly enjoyed from start to finish and devoured in only a few minutes. I loved the illustrations and it was a very nice experience to read a book with hardly any words, and where the story is told through graphic means.

Sophie Burrows is an author that I will keep looking out for in the future and I am sure that many people will love this book.

MY THOUGHTS AND RATING

Overall, as you can tell, I really liked this book. It was original and insightful, intelligent and timeless and it was a thoroughly enjoyable reading experience.

I gave this graphic novel 4 stars and I highly recommend it to any graphic novel fan, or any other reader looking for a bit of a different story. It is a beautiful story with beautiful illustrations, so you definitely need to check it out!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR – SOPHIE BURROWS

Sophie Burrows is an award-winning British writer, illustrator and comics creator. Inspired by the everyday, she loves to tell stories which explore themes of human behaviour, mental health and relationships. In 2019 she graduated from the MA in Children’s Book Illustration course at Cambridge School of Art, and subsequently won Student Illustrator of the Year 2019 at the V&A Illustration Awards.

Her first picture book as writer/illustrator, Ig Pig and Og Frog! was released in 2020, and her debut graphic novel, Crushing, publishes in 2021. Alongside her illustration, Sophie is also an associate lecturer and teaches on the MA in Children’s Book Illustration at Cambridge School of Art.

Sophie lives and works in London with her partner Daniel. Besides drawing, she also loves to cook, and enjoys being creative in the kitchen. She is an avid music lover and often spends her spare time watching live music and going to festivals.

Sophie’s Links: Website – Twitter – Facebook – Instagram

That’s all for now, I hope you enjoyed reading this post and will want to check out this book as soon as it is published on the 11th of January.

See you soon, stay safe,

Ellie xx