The Contradictions

[DEBUT] In Yanow’s debut graphic novel, a nervous, thoughtful analog of the author navigates the almost-adult world of college study abroad and finds herself drawn to a bike-riding anarchist named Zena with a penchant for shoplifting that seems at once ideological and compulsive. They form an uneasy bond and embark on a road trip across Europe, with all its expected challenges, good conversations, couch-surfing, drug-trips, and some casual theft. The tension is palpable as Yanow withholds her inner monolog while observing Zena’s justifications of their nominally anarchist escapades. Yanow’s illustrations capture her caution intensely with a few pen strokes, and her cityscapes are equally utilitarian while communicating a sense of place perfectly. Visually, there’s a hint of Tin-Tin-esque continental caper, but Yanow’s narrative also acts as a curious counter to Ulli Lust’s gonzo graphic memoir, How I Tried To Be a Good Person, about rejecting convention while criss-crossing Europe in the 1980s. The narrative emphasizes the squirmy discomfort of attempting to adhere to youthful ideals, finding them flawed, and holding oneself back from a world asking to be embraced in all its messiness.