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Mid-Life

Drawn & Quarterly. 2011. c.172p. ISBN 9781770460287. pap. $19.95. F
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"This is largely a work of fiction except where it isn't," warns Ollmann. It just so happens that alter ego John also has a young second wife, two grown daughters from marriage number one, a toddler son, and a massive midlife crisis. Spilling all via voice-over, John starts with sh*t: three cats and a baby make lots of it. And he has to watch that &**%!! because of little Sam within hearing. Further, as a seemingly certified Adult older than his family and most coworkers, John's stuck with handling complications poured on by his job and his two daughters. What's the harm in emailing that pretty children's performer, Sherri Smalls, as a stress-buster? As for Sherri, she's confronting her own crapola, including an unstable partner and parched love life, so a mature man looks really inviting.
VERDICT This could go tragic or funny, but Ollmann—having gone angsty for his award-winning This Will All End in Tears—opts for the comic. Quite funny indeed for most of us over 40, Mid-Life makes a good pick for adults new to graphic novels. With angular black-and-white drawings; recommended for public libraries.
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