Bibliographic Information

Pekar, H. (1994). Our cancer year. New York, NY: Four Walls Eight Windows.

ISBN: 1568580118

 

Plot Summary

Our Cancer Year by Harvey Pekar is a graphic novel based on the true story of the author’s battle with cancer. The character Harvey has procrastinated going to the doctor about a lump near his groin. After he finally sees a doctor, he is diagnosed with lymphoma, a type of cancer.  Soon after this discovery Harvey starts receiving chemotherapy and taking a multitude of other cancer related medicines. His hair starts to fall out and he looses a ton of weight. Harvey becomes highly unpredictable and depressed, because he fears for his life. He is ashamed of how he starts to act, look, and feel from the cancer. The emotional stress of having cancer and all that it entails puts stress on his marriage with Joyce. As he gets sicker and weaker from the cancer, Joyce starts to distance herself from him. Amid all of this there are other stories going on in the background that add to the couple’s stress, such as the Golf War, his wife’s work in politics, and the couple’s financial worries.

 

Critical Evaluation

The artwork in this story looked like it was drawn using quick brush strokes. I think this represented the fast pace of everything happening to Harvey when he finds out he has cancer. It was like he was on a rollercoaster that he wanted off, but couldn’t get off. Characters were also drawn with limited detail, which made it feel like you were reading a story about anyone, even yourself. The black and white images made the story feel gritty and dark. You could feel the anxiety and fear coming off the pages from Harvey and his wife. While visually the images told a story on their own, Harvey used text boxes to narrate the story. The text was tiny and had a rigid look to it. The text boxes represented a voice over, but the style of the text felt serious and sad. Text was alternated to every other image, so readers had to find meaning in the images. The dark undertones of the images on their own in the graphic novel furthered feelings of despair, as the Harvey became sicker with each day.

 

Reader’s Annotation

Harvey has cancer and it is changing how he looks and act, but most of all its changing those around him. His cancer is destroying him and his loved ones emotionally and physically.

 

Author Information

The following information was taken from the author’s wiki website, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harvey_Pekar.

 

“Harvey Lawrence Pekar (October 8, 1939 – July 12, 2010) was an American underground comic book writer, music critic, and media personality, best known for his autobiographical American Splendor comic series. In 2003, the series inspired a well-received film adaptation of the same name. Frequently described as the "poet laureate of Cleveland," Pekar "helped change the appreciation for, and perceptions of, the graphic novel, the drawn memoir, the autobiographical comic narrative."

 

Pekar described his work as "autobiography written as it's happening. The theme is about staying alive, getting a job, finding a mate, having a place to live, finding a creative outlet. Life is a war of attrition. You have to stay active on all fronts. It's one thing after another. I've tried to control a chaotic universe. And it's a losing battle. But I can't let go. I've tried, but I can't."

 

Genre

Non-fiction Graphic Novel, Memoir,

 

Curriculum Ties

Could be used for lessons on graphic novels, memoirs, and/or illnesses.

 

Booktalking Ideas

• Visual Rhetoric – How did the images tell a story in the graphic novel?

• How did the images make you feel?

• How did Harvey’s cancer affect himself and those around him?

 

Reading Level/ Interest Age

Grades 11-12

 

Challenge Issues

Mature Content, Death, Illnesses/Cancer

 

Challenge Issue Resources (for usage in a challenge situation)

• Active Listening

• Explanation of why it was chosen for the collection (Rational)

• Awards

• Reader Advisory Reviews (Students, Parents, Educators)

• Positive and Negative Reviews

• National Council of Teachers “Right to Read”

• ALA Strategies and Tips for Dealing with Challenges to Library Materials

• ALA Bill of Rights on Intellectual Freedom

• Library Selection Policy & Library District Reconsideration Form

 

Why I choose it

I choose to read this book because I wanted to include a graphic novel that wasn’t just giving facts about cancer, but rather provided young readers with an un-romanticized story about the affects of cancer.