SUBSCRIBE
SUBSCRIBE
SLJ Blog Network +
  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal: A Mock Newbery Blog
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About/Contact
  • Previews
  • Reviews
  • Manga
  • All Ages
  • Young Adult
  • Interviews
  • News

May 14, 2019 by Johanna

Review: ‘Bloom’

May 14, 2019 by Johanna   3 comments

Bloom header

Bloom
Written by Kevin Panetta, artwork by Savanna Ganucheau
First Second, $24.99 (hardcover), $17.99 (paperback)
Ages 14-18

This quiet romance/coming-of-age story uses a leisurely pace to tell a familiar tale, made distinctive by the bakery setting and activity of bread making.

Ari works in the family bakery located in a coastal town. He wants to move to a bigger city with his band of friends, but his father needs his help to keep the struggling business going. Then Hector comes to town to clean out his grandmother’s house and winds up working at the bakery.

Many readers will relate to Ari’s loose vision and aimlessness. He has a goal, but it’s more of a dream than a possibility. As pointed out by other characters, he doesn’t work to make it happen, using the family business and other’s expectations of him as an excuse to avoid making scary steps on his own. He wants to have something meaningful, something his own, but he doesn’t yet know what that might be. He’s full of yearning but not direction.

SCROLL TO KEEP READING THIS POST

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

When it’s pointed out to him that having family, friends, and a job isn’t so bad a life, Ari understands that, but it’s still not what he wants, even though he doesn’t always know what he wants. Hector’s perspective balances out Ari, helping him grow up and understand other points of view.

This is a book to devote a good amount of time to, as incidents develop slowly. The authors seem more interested in showing a realistic wander through life events than following one succinct storyline through tight editing.

The story often pauses for double-page montages, capturing moments in time wordlessly with overlapping slivers of observation. Particularly when it comes to the baking, this helps capture the feel of the process, the time spent assembling and creating, or the emotional effect of a moment. The character work is lovely and expressive, building up the cast members beyond the explicit text.

A late, overly dramatic event is the most artificial element. It feels forced to create a decision point, and that story manipulation isn’t in keeping with the slow development, as with dough rising, that permeates the rest. Given the similarities in setting, season, and mood, this might be a good followup to This One Summer.

Filed under: Graphic Novels, Reviews, Young Adult

SHARE:

Read or Leave Comments
bakeryFirst Second BooksKevin PanettaromanceSavanna Ganucheau

About Johanna

Johanna Draper Carlson has been reviewing comics for over 20 years. She manages ComicsWorthReading.com, the longest-running independent review site online that covers all genres of comic books, graphic novels, and manga. She has an MA in popular culture, studying online fandom, and was previously, among many other things, webmaster for DC Comics. She lives in Madison, Wisconsin.

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

March 2022

The Dire Days of Willowweep Manor | Review

by Johanna

March 2022

Science Comics: Birds of Prey | Review

by Johanna

March 2022

All My Friends | Review

by Johanna

December 2021

Cold War Correspondent (Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales) | Review

by Johanna

December 2021

Queer as All Get Out | Review

by Johanna

ADVERTISEMENT

SLJ Blog Network

100 Scope Notes

Oh the Real Estate You’ll Buy!

by Travis Jonker

A Fuse #8 Production

Review of the Day: Seen and Unseen by Elizabeth Partridge, ill. Lauren Tamaki

by Betsy Bird

Good Comics for Kids

Dewdrop | This Week’s Comics

by Lori Henderson

Heavy Medal

And now there are 70 Heavy Medal Mock Newbery Suggestions

by Emily Mroczek-Bayci

Teen Librarian Toolbox

In the Haunted Glen: Finding the Middle Grade in “Goblin Market,” a guest post by Diane Zahler

by Amanda MacGregor

The Classroom Bookshelf

The Classroom Bookshelf is Moving

by Erika Thulin Dawes

The Yarn

What’s New? (Part 2) with Meg Medina and Christina Soontornvat

by Travis Jonker

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Articles on SLJ

From 'Gender Queer' to ‘New Kid', Graphic Novels Are Targeted by Censors

A Starter Manga Set: 15 Titles for Children and Tweens

Marvel, Scholastic To Launch New Line of Graphic Novels for Young Readers

Graphic Novels Extend Their Frontiers

SPONSORED

10 Manga Titles for Teens Who Watch Anime

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Erin S Billings says

    April 8, 2020 at 1:49 pm

    Did you forget to mention it is a gay love story? Considering you are suggesting this as a school read, I think you should mention this very pertinent fact.

    • Johanna says

      April 8, 2020 at 2:03 pm

      I said it was a romance. The only two characters I talk about are Ari and Hector, both of whom I refer to as “he”. I would think that is sufficient information for reading comprehension.

      Unless you also think that I explicitly need to say “This is a heterosexual love story” when I talk about graphic novels that have those in them?

Trackbacks

  1. Bloom – Comics Worth Reading says:
    November 30, 2019 at 12:35 pm

    […] I liked this book better the more I read it. While the first time through left me feeling “eh”, followups put me more in sync with what it was trying to do. It was a reading similar to letting dough rise. (Review originally posted at Good Comics for Kids.) […]

ADVERTISEMENT

Archives

Follow This Blog

Enter your email address below to receive notifications of new blog posts by email.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

Primary Sidebar

  • News & Features
  • Reviews+
  • Technology
  • School Libraries
  • Public Libraries
  • Age Level
  • Ideas
  • Blogs
  • Classroom
  • Diversity
  • People
  • Job Zone

Reviews+

  • Book Lists
  • Best Books
  • Media
  • Reference
  • Series Made Simple
  • Tech
  • Review for SLJ
  • Review Submissions

SLJ Blog Network

  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal
  • Neverending Search
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn

Resources

  • 2022 Youth Media Awards
  • The Newbery at 100: SLJ Celebrates the 100th Anniversary of the Award
  • Special Report | School Libraries 2021
  • Summer Reading 2021
  • Series Made Simple Spring 2021
  • SLJ Diverse Books Survey
  • Summer Programming Survey
  • Research
  • White Papers / Case Studies
  • School Librarian of the Year
  • Mathical Book Prize Collection Development Awards
  • Librarian/Teacher Collaboration Award

Events & PD

  • In-Person Events
  • Online Courses
  • Virtual Events
  • Webcasts
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
  • Media Inquiries
  • Newsletter Sign Up
  • Content Submissions
  • Data Privacy
  • Terms of Use
  • Terms of Sale
  • FAQs
  • Diversity Policy
  • Careers at MSI


COPYRIGHT © 2022


COPYRIGHT © 2022