Mike Dawson (![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} mikedawsoncomic) wrote,@ 2008-03-19 11:30:00 |
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Booklist review
I’m not sure if Booklist reviews are posted online without one having to subscribe, so I’ll reprint the review here:
Freddie & Me: A Coming-of-Age (Bohemian) Rhapsody.
Dawson, Mike (Author)
Jun 2008. 304 p. Bloomsbury, paperback, $19.95. (9781596914766). 741.5.
Graphic novels rarely come more deeply personal than Dawson’s autobiographical chronicle. Departing from the dot-com slacker humor of his comic book Gabagool!, he explores his lifelong obsession with the UK rock band Queen. His Proustlike moment of remembrance arrived after seeing a performance by a Queen tribute band and realizing that “When I think of Queen, I can remember my whole life.” As a child living in Bedfordshire, England, he caught the Queen bug early, cadging music tapes, converting friends, and even performing “Bohemian Rhapsody” at a summer talent show. During the 1980s, when Queen’s popularity waned as that of grunge rose, a teenaged Dawson moved to New Jersey and endured the painful ribbing of classmates after Queen’s lead singer, Freddy Mercury, died of AIDS. Dawson’s skillfully drawn panels follow him through girlfriends, adolescent angst, and career highlights, with Queen providing background music at every milestone. Anyone who has ever obsessed over a music icon, be it rock group or charismatic crooner, should identify with Dawson in this poignant, charming memoir.
— Carl Hays
In related news, I understand the book will be listed in the April issue of PREVIEWS, coming out next week.
I’m not sure if Booklist reviews are posted online without one having to subscribe, so I’ll reprint the review here:
Freddie & Me: A Coming-of-Age (Bohemian) Rhapsody.
Dawson, Mike (Author)
Jun 2008. 304 p. Bloomsbury, paperback, $19.95. (9781596914766). 741.5.
Graphic novels rarely come more deeply personal than Dawson’s autobiographical chronicle. Departing from the dot-com slacker humor of his comic book Gabagool!, he explores his lifelong obsession with the UK rock band Queen. His Proustlike moment of remembrance arrived after seeing a performance by a Queen tribute band and realizing that “When I think of Queen, I can remember my whole life.” As a child living in Bedfordshire, England, he caught the Queen bug early, cadging music tapes, converting friends, and even performing “Bohemian Rhapsody” at a summer talent show. During the 1980s, when Queen’s popularity waned as that of grunge rose, a teenaged Dawson moved to New Jersey and endured the painful ribbing of classmates after Queen’s lead singer, Freddy Mercury, died of AIDS. Dawson’s skillfully drawn panels follow him through girlfriends, adolescent angst, and career highlights, with Queen providing background music at every milestone. Anyone who has ever obsessed over a music icon, be it rock group or charismatic crooner, should identify with Dawson in this poignant, charming memoir.
— Carl Hays
In related news, I understand the book will be listed in the April issue of PREVIEWS, coming out next week.
