Reviews by Real People

This book hits very close to home, everyone’s home. Childhood and adolescent turmoil, doubts, and hidden dreams are all explored with humor and exquisite drawings. right on the edge of scary-true, Aron reveals her own true story in a laugh out loud but tender hearted tone.

From the saga of her uncontrollable giggle fit over her boyfriend’s car accident, to a cringeworthy description of her stodgy relatives, who have trouble wriggling into their girdles, Aron Lee Bowe has wicked fun revisiting her past. She successfully layers her painful childhood, teen and college disasters with a bubbly champagne glaze of hilarity. As Chekhov made clear, the comic-tragic works amazingly well in describing the horrors and joys of life.

Her drawings rock! They’re the perfect counterpoint to her razor-sharp observations. Highly recommended for those folks who love to laugh, and who appreciate super-fun artwork.

This book is indeed laugh out loud funny. The insights and observations were poignant and rang true. The quirky stories struck many similar cords in my own life. Developing our gifts and talents in spite of our upbringing, social, and school experiences is the job of becoming who we truly are. Aron shows us that maintaining good humor is all about enjoying all the daily weirdness in our lives as we go along our own road. I enjoyed every page and will wait impatiently for more from this amazed and elated artist.

The writing is minimal (as befits the graphic novel format) and sets the scene for each of six episodic chapters with loopy candor. The agile graphite and watercolor illustrations complement the text perfectly; goofy to the extreme, they are highly descriptive of time, place, and, most importantly, facial expression. The hand-lettered text gracing every page lends credence to the thought and artistry that went into the making of this book. This reader is looking forward to Aron Lee Bowe’s next installment.

This book is VERY funny. Laugh out loud funny. At the same time it reveals a sadness that so many of us feel (or felt as kids) about not quite belonging in the human race. And it also is an American history lesson. The drawings fit seamlessly with the text.

I loved it. I keep a copy in my guest room. I recommend it. There is nothing quite like it.

This collection of real life moments is sometimes hilarious and sometimes heart breaking. It resonated with me, having grown up in the same era as Lee Bowe, I remember it as a confusing, joyous, awkward, creative and mind blowing time of my life. This graphic novel, with the use of wonderful characters and artwork, manages to capture all of those emotions and makes you laugh at the same time. I am looking forward to more by this author!

The best way to put it is that this illustrated memoir made my life better—Aron Bowe nails the awkwardness of growing up with few clues about how that could possibly be accomplished, and the humor and horror of trying to figure it all out. Her drawings and words are wonderfully entertaining, both hilarious and poignant. I am a fan of graphic novels and stories, and this book is up there with the best.

I’ve been raving to my friends about Aron Lee’s humorous graphic novel and they agree after returning it to me that the artistry amps the situations as described, but in a way that both reflects how I think I’d act, and an appealing strangeness that I’ve not seen in myself–yet.
Emotions drive the drawings, making the artist-as-author’s words match perfectly.
WELL DONE, and WHAT’S NEXT ARON LEE?

I thought I had blocked out most of my childhood until I read Amazed and Elated, then it all came back. From the very first page I was laughing and hooked. It’s a book that anyone who has gone through childhood can relate to. I, too, loved peeling glue from my fingers as a child. And, yes, compulsively eating to avoid boredom just doesn’t work.

Aron Lee Bowe rocks!

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