First Reads: The Contradictions

Review
This is a difficult review to have. I guess I was a bit let down by the reviews for this book. The Contradictions is my first fiction book in a while, and the first fiction book I am covering here on first reads, and I think my review of it shows that it is the first one I am covering. The description of the book, at some of its reviewers praised the writing for being emotional. I did not really feel that. What I read was a short, relatively low stakes adventure though Europe, with the most I have come to having a greater emotion was at the end. Even then, the emotion was more muted than I expected. I guess I was expecting more conflict, more analysis/dissection of radical politics then what I read. I sort of was, taken somewhere, and that's about it. To that end, I think I am disadvantaged. Other reviews seem to have connected with parts of the book that I haven't, or noticed details that I have not. Perhaps this is not a review, but moreso a reflection of how deeply ingrained I am in reading non-fiction.

I will give the book this. It is treat to be reading a comic. Its short length is made up for by the book being 100% comic format with a unique art-style to boot. Given that I read the 99% Invisible City beforehand, I do wish the green palette bled to the book contents as well, but that is not something that is missed while reading. For what I "criticized" the book above for, mainly shows my inexperience reading fiction books, and I have to thank the book for now pushing me into reading more fiction titles.

Overall Recommendation: A visual delight to break up to monotony of text-dominant literature. If you want a nice, low stakes read, then The Contradictions is for you. Then again, perhaps you can get something more out of it than I did. Probably with more than one read (a flaw of this series of impressions).

Buy it or Borrow It?: Hard to say given how mixed I am on the book. I guess borrow it to see if its for you, then perhaps buy it on rereads.