This graphic novel first came onto my radar after I saw a glowing review by Patrick Rothfuss on Goodreads. I love graphic novels, but I haven’t been reading so many lately (always so many books competing for my attention) so I didn’t rush out and buy a copy. However, it was some months later, on a recent trip to one of my favourite bookstores, “Daytripper” jumped out at me. Remembering the positive reviews and very much liking the look of the artwork (a must with graphic novels), I bought it then and there.
“Daytripper” by twin Brazilian brothers Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá is a graphic novel about the life of a man called Brás de Oliva Domingos. Though he dreams of being an author, Brás’ job is writing obituaries, and he wonders whether this is going to be his life forever.The graphic novel is a series of flashbacks and flashforwards into the most important moments in Brás’ life. I actually don’t really want to explain this graphic novel any more, because you can’t really explain art.
“Daytripper” is beautiful. There is no other way about it. It is a sophisticated and intricate journey through a man’s life, and asks all the questions that we all ask ourselves, such as: if I died now, was it worth it? The artwork is exquisite and the storyboarding is absolutely on point. Reading this is like stepping into another person’s life, and finding it eerily similar to your own. We all have the same hopes, the same dreams, the same fears. We’re all human.
If you haven’t yet dipped your toe into the infinite pool that is graphic novels, I think that “Daytripper” would be an excellent place to start. Both heartbreaking and uplifting, it perfectly encapsulates the beauty, complexity and depth that is contained within a single human life.
Tinted Edges 