PositiveBroken Frontier... highly enjoyable ... Trust Bechdel to write a book about physicality that is almost entirely cerebral ... Arguably the highlights of the book are when it plays whimsically with the conventions of picture books and instructional exercise manuals. Another satisfying motif are whole pages given over to snowy mountain scenes of hiking or skiing. Both are scattered in amongst the straightforward comics approach that the artist has long ago mastered ... Bechdel’s gift is balancing introspection with a potent blend of clarity and irony ... It wouldn’t be right to say reading this book was a slog, it was a pleasure, but it did take me a long time ... If you’ve read Bechdel’s first two graphic novels, or her long running comic strips Dykes to Watch Out For, you won’t be disappointed by this latest instalment in her telling of her own human story. If you are a fitness fanatic, or sportswear enthusiast, you may find much to identify with here (I assume, not being one). If you are new to both the comics and the pursuit of physical perfection, you’ll probably still enjoy this book, but maybe wait for the paperback edition, as this one is too heavy to take on the train if you’re not into weightlifting.
