My New York Diary by Julie Doucet

This graphic novel I do not care for. I was not able to get through the entire novel for its sexually explicit aspect does not sit well with me. I even felt uncomfortable when she first began the novel with just being with some guys she doesn't really know talking with her. How she is okay with stealing, one of the first things she writes about, and falling into bed with a stranger. Even the illustrations make me uncomfortable. The text is crammed into spaces while the rest of the panel is overflowing with items given the same amount of detail as everything else. If this diary was suppose to make one uneasy, she accomplished her goal. But, one thing I do find interesting about this work is how Doucet goes from a white background to a black background periodically. Sometimes it turns black because of the time of day, sometimes to add to the fact that she is dreaming, and sometimes just to emphasize that the lights are off or not visible. For example, when she says they should read under the covers, the scene automatically turns into white on black. It is also interesting to note that this is called "My New York Diary" but she only begins to mentions dates after half the book has been read. She actually has more stories before she gets to the diary section which I did not realize until I got to what I would call a title page for it. Anyway, I don't have much else to say about this book but that I am no fan of underground comics written by men or women.