10 years have passed since Pascal was a ‘winner’ in high school. 50+ pounds heavier and a switch of careers have made him nervous about going to his reunion. An email from his crush asking to go together sends him spinning even more. Reunion is a graphic novel that tells the story of the ramp up to the big event and the party itself.
The pages are filled with simple yet, effective drawings that evoke the necessary range of emotions, his anxiety, slight determination, and almost hope. And the characters produce some good memories for me of my own youth.
Girard’s semi-autobiographical story is funny and at times, heartfelt, but it doesn’t cover any new ground in regards to reunions and Facebook creeping (checking out what those classmates look like now). The author may have been bound by actual events, but way too much self-depreciation and angst creates a rather flat tone throughout. There’s no real arc to the story or the main character.
Paul's Picks 
People who can’t leave highschool behind aren’t people I want much to do with. I wonder how much of the “reunion” phenom is more from movies than reality?
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I think the concept of a reunion is great, but I think you’re right, in that media portrayal and people’s own yardsticks don’t allow them to enjoy themselves. This book focused a lot on this and was hard to take.
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Really interesting premise, but the lack of an arc sort of takes away any appeal for this. 😦 Nice review!
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Yeah, the character arc just seemed a flat line. Ugh.
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