Awkward and Definition

By Ariel Schrag

Book Overview

Ariel Schrag captures the American high school experience in all its awkward, questioning glory in Awkward and Definition, the first of three amazingly honest autobiographical graphic novels about her teenage years. During the summer following each year at Berkeley High School in California, Ariel wrote a comic book about her experiences, which she would then photocopy and sell around school. Some friends thrilled to see themselves in the comic, others not so much, but everyone was interested. Awkward chronicles Ariel's freshman year, and Definition, her sophomore year. With anxiety in excess and frustration to the fullest, Ariel dives in -- meeting new people, going to concerts, crushing out, loving chemistry, drawing comics, and obsessing over everything from glitter-laden girls to ionic charges and the constant pursuit of the number-one score. Totally true and achingly honest, with every cringe-inducing encounter and exhilarating first moment documented -- Awkward and Definition is an unflinching look at what it's like being a teenage girl in America.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1416552316
• ISBN13: 9781416552314
• Release Date: April 2008
• Publisher: Touchstone Books
• Length: 144 Pages
• Weight: 0.92 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 8.3" x 10.8"

Customer Reviews

Mature Content

Not appropriate for middle School classroom library. No knock on the book; just wish I knew before purchasing.

Beautiful, rough, brutal, honest, awkward

I happened upon this book by chance, and I'm glad I did. I felt almost like a voyeur while reading it -- it's basically the diary of a high school girl in comic book form. But I also felt a connection to the author. Though I went to high school thousands of miles away and a few years earlier than Schrag, her stories reminded me of my own experiences during that time. And these stories are brutally honest. One of the things that surprised me most was just how open the author is. In my personal experience most people that age are, as I was, rather guarded and self-conscious. But Schrag lays everything on the table for all to see. Her lack of shame or fear in telling her stories makes them incredibly real, and I found her attitude towards life inspiring. But don't expect a polished book. This work is rough around the edges, as you would expect from a young author. That said, Schrag's storytelling ability and maturity are evident, and beyond what I would normally expect from someone her age. I highly recommend this book. It's dramatic, it's poignant, it's funny, and it's completely, utterly real.

Love love love these books

I'd already read Ariel Schrag's POTENTIAL, so I knew how astoundingly talented she is -- how painfully honest and beautifully hilarious her work is. When I was finally able to get my hands on a copy of her first two graphic novels, I tore through them in an afternoon, then slumped over on my couch, dazed, dazzled, and wanting more. Heartbreakingly great!