Jonas reviewed The Deep Dark by Molly Knox Ostertag
Dark, complex, beautiful
5 stars
The Deep Dark is graphic novel about secrets, suffering, fear, and a path to healing. Or maybe it's about family, love, art, and becoming who you are. About living, and joy. Or about queerness, acceptance, and generational trauma. It's moving, grounded, complex. It's fantastic.
Mild spoilers follow: Magdalena "Mags" Herrera is a butch girl living in Joshua Tree, South California. Her mother is often staying with her new boyfriend, so Mags is the main caregiver for her grandmother, while also working part-time. Her secret girlfriend has a boyfriend in public. But the bigger secret is the creature in the basement which is tied to Mags life, and needs to be fed with her blood every night. It's the reason Mags barely goes out apart from highschool and her job. Into this life bursts Mags' childhood friend, Nessa. They reconnect, and Mags is torn between wanting more and keeping Nessa at …
The Deep Dark is graphic novel about secrets, suffering, fear, and a path to healing. Or maybe it's about family, love, art, and becoming who you are. About living, and joy. Or about queerness, acceptance, and generational trauma. It's moving, grounded, complex. It's fantastic.
Mild spoilers follow: Magdalena "Mags" Herrera is a butch girl living in Joshua Tree, South California. Her mother is often staying with her new boyfriend, so Mags is the main caregiver for her grandmother, while also working part-time. Her secret girlfriend has a boyfriend in public. But the bigger secret is the creature in the basement which is tied to Mags life, and needs to be fed with her blood every night. It's the reason Mags barely goes out apart from highschool and her job. Into this life bursts Mags' childhood friend, Nessa. They reconnect, and Mags is torn between wanting more and keeping Nessa at a distance so she can't be hurt by her secret.
The story is well-told, weaving its complexities masterfully into a simple, moving tale. The characters are are wonderfully expressive, and the use of color is phenomenal. The book drew me in. I read it in one sitting even though I hadn't planned to. The next day, it still tugged at my heart as I was in a supermarket doing everyday stuff. The queerness of the characters (lesbian, bi, trans) comes with eae and without grand gestures. They are never reduced to it even as it is part of their core. Likewise, the blood-sucking monster in the basement is never reduced to a simple metaphor. Instead, it becomes more, defying explanations as much as expectations.
A small hole letting light enter the dark, turning things upside down. It's not magic. But it's a path.