A visually stunning and beautifully written debut graphic novel of love, life and art
A visually stunning and beautifully written debut graphic novel of love, life and art
'Alison is a haunting book, complex and intimate. Lizzy Stewart has written and drawn the aches and confusions of love and growing up with immense skill' Posy Simmonds
Alison is newly married, barely twenty and struggling to find her place in the world.
A chance encounter with an older artist upturns her life and she forsakes convention and her working-class Dorset roots for the thrumming art scene of London in the late seventies.
As the thrill of bohemian romance leads inevitably to disappointment, Alison begins to find her own path - through art, friendship and love.
Lizzy Stewart is an illustrator and author from Plymouth who lives and works in London. She has written and illustrated three picture books for children alongside Walking Distance, an illustrated essay, and It's Not What You Thought It Would Be a graphic short-story collection. Her debut picture-book There's a Tiger in the Garden won the Waterstones Children's book prize for picture books in 2017 as well as a World Illustration Award. She teaches illustration at Goldsmith's college.
This book is a testament to the right to choose your own life. It is a tender, heartbreaking meditation on the bonds between women, the dazzle of the city, the struggle to become a female artist within the bounds of patriarchy, and the desire to make a mark on the world. It made me long for my friends; the dreams we have shared over the years and the ways in which they make the world feel possible. I want to give a copy to everyone I love.
