When freelance writer Brian Fies’ mother was diagnosed with both lung cancer and a brain tumor, he started to document her struggles and what such an event does to a family as a whole. The result is the amazing little Eisner Award-winning graphic novel Mom’s Cancer. It’s done in comic book style and it’s just phenomenal.
The storytelling is brutally honest, yet humorous and insightful. Each member of the family is pulled into the struggle against incredible odds. Cancer, like most crises, brings out both the best and the worst in a family.
Mom’s Cancer isn’t some overly sentimental cancer story. I was a bit hesitant to read it, thinking it was going to be a tear-jerking, sentimental story meant for a movie of the week. I was more than surprised at how personal the story was, at how it was gentle, honest, and true without being sloppy.
Fies doesn’t glorify his mother, as would be the tendency of some. He keeps her honest. She smoked, she had trouble understanding what she was going through, and she frustrated the hell out of him sometimes.
He also portrays the family in humorous and interesting ways. There’s a Kid Sis and Nurse Sis and each have their strengths and faults. There are very vivid, visual metaphors for things in the book I found especially compelling.
The artwork is clean and simple, yet detailed and emotive. The storyboard look and feel of the book really helps one to understand the scientific aspects of what is going on with the cancer cells. Very educational! I really enjoyed that part of the book as well.
With the graphic format, Fies manages to get me to understand medical jargon, which would normally be too boring for me to be interested in. Instead of being bored, I was fascinated, which is saying a lot for me.
If someone you know has cancer, this is a book for them. It’s educational, hopeful and humorous. I highly recommend it.
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