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Groundwood Books

Skim

Illustrated by Jillian Tamaki • Written by Mariko Tamaki

For kids - 14 years old | Published April 29, 2014 | ISBN 9781554980697
YOUNG ADULT FICTION / Comics & Graphic Novels / General

Cover of Skim

$12.95 CAD

144 pages
Digital Format

Also Available in Print

About this book

Skim

Jillian Tamaki • Mariko Tamaki

Skim is Kimberly Keiko Cameron, a not-slim, would-be Wiccan goth stuck in a private girls' school in Toronto. When a classmate's boyfriend kills himself because he was rumoured to be gay, the school goes into mourning overdrive, each clique trying to find something to hold on to and something to believe in. It's a weird time to fall in love, but that's high school, and that's what happens to Skim when she starts to meet in secret with her neo-hippie English teacher, Ms. Archer. But when Ms. Archer abruptly leaves, Skim struggles to cope with her confusion and isolation, armed with her trusty journal and a desire to shed old friendships while cautiously approaching new ones. Depression, love, sexual identity, crushes, manipulative peers --teen life in all its dramatic complexities is explored in this touching, pitch-perfect, literary graphic masterpiece. Cousins Mariko and Jillian Tamaki collaborate brilliantly in this poignant glimpse into the heartache of being sixteen.

About the Creators

Jillian Tamaki

Jillian Tamaki is a cartoonist and illustrator. Originally from Calgary, Alberta, she now lives in New York City, where she teaches at the School of Visual Arts. She has published two books of personal work and one graphic novel, Skim, with Mariko Tamaki. Visit Jillian Tamaki's website: http://www.jilliantamaki.com/ Visit Jillian Tamaki's blog: http://blog.jilliantamaki.com/ Check out Jillian's webcomic: http://mutantmagic.com/ Follow Jillian on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/dirtbagg

Mariko Tamaki

Mariko Tamaki is a writer and performer. Her work includes the novella Cover Me, creative non-fiction collections True Lies and Fake ID, comics Emiko Superstar (with Steve Rolston) and Skim (with Jillian Tamaki), and the young adult novel (You) Set Me On Fire. Visit Mariko Tamaki's website: http://www.marikotamaki.com Visit Mariko Tamaki's blog: http://www.marikotamaki.com/blog Follow Mariko Tamaki on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/marikotamaki

Awards and Praise
Skim comes out on top...connects in every way...This graphic novel is a winner...a unique creation...Scenes are often hilarious and black-humoured as well as serious...Mariko Tamaki's prose captures an authentic adolescent voice that's dramatic, self-obsessed, funny, earnest, and sometimes glib...Skim is an unforgettable character in the tradition of Holden Caulfield-a clear social commentator on adult and adolescent behaviour whose ironic observations on social hypocrisy ring sharp and true...Illustrator Jillian Tamaki's fine draughtsmanship gives Skim a classic elegance that's missing in many other graphic novels...a powerful sense of mystical eeriness that deepens and enhances the story. Skim is a funny, poignant, memorable drama of navigating adolescence.
  • Winner Ignatz Award - Outstanding Graphic Novel, 2008
  • Commended ALA Top 10 Books for YA, 2009
  • Commended PW Best Books of the Year (Comics), 2008
  • Long-listed Harvey Awards - Best Graphic Album, 2008
  • Long-listed Lulu Awards - Kim Yale Award for Best New Talent (Mariko Tamaki), 2009
  • Long-listed Lulu of the Year Award, 2009
  • Joint winner YALSA Great Graphic Novels List, 2008
  • Short-listed Governor General's Literary Awards: Text, 2008
  • Winner Joe Shuster Award - Writer, 2009
  • Commended Bloomsbury Review's Editor's Favourite Books of 2008, 2008
Skim Skim Skim
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