So much for love : how I survived a toxic relationship

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Title:

So much for love : how I survived a toxic relationship

Alternate title:

How I survived a toxic relationship

Author:

Lambda, Sophie, author, illustrator.

Kane, Montana, translator.

Summary:

"Part memoir, part self-help book, So Much For Love offers hilarious and empathetic advice on how to survive a relationship with a master manipulator. Sophie had always been cynical about love--until she meets Marcus. His affection and doting praise melt away her defenses. The beginning of their relationship was a whirlwind romance, but over time she finds herself on uneven footing. Marcus lies. He's violently angry and bewilderingly inconsistent. Yet somehow he always manages to explain away his behavior and to convince Sophie that it's all in her head. The whiplash of this toxic relationship has Sophie's head spinning. When she hits rock bottom, she fights her way out with fierce honesty, irreverent humor, and the help of Chocolat, a wisecracking, booze-drinking bear."-- Publisher's website.

General Note:

Chiefly illustrations.

Edition:

First American edition.

Physical Description:

297 pages : illustrations (some color) ; 23 cm

Genre:

Autobiographical comics.

Nonfiction comics.

Comics (Graphic works)

Personal Subject:

Lambda, Sophie-Comic books, strips, etc.

Subject Term:

Man-woman relationships -- Comic books, strips, etc.

Psychological abuse -- Comic books, strips, etc.

Manipulative behavior -- Comic books, strips, etc.

Psychological abuse victims -- Biography -- Comic books, strips, etc.

Psychological abuse victims -- Rehabilitation -- Comic books, strips, etc.

Interpersonal conflict -- Comic books, strips, etc.

Interpersonal relations -- Comic books, strips, etc.

Author(s):

Kane, Montana,

Publisher:

First Second,

Publication Date:

2022

ISBN:

9781250785992

Publication Information:

New York, NY : First Second, 2022.

Call Number:

741.5 LAMBDA

Holds: Copies:

Available:*

Item Barcode	Collection	Call Number	Status	Item Holds
33607003603043	Adult Nonfiction	741.5 LAMBDA	Searching... Unknown	Searching... Unavailable

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

A 2023 Eisner Award Nominee for Best Graphic Memoir
A 2023 YALSA Great Graphic Novels for Teens Selection

Part memoir, part self-help book, So Much For Love offers hilarious and empathetic advice on how to survive a relationship with a master manipulator.

Sophie had always been cynical about love--until she meets Marcus. His affection and doting praise melt away her defenses. The beginning of their relationship was a whirlwind romance, but over time she finds herself on uneven footing. Marcus lies. He's violently angry and bewilderingly inconsistent. Yet somehow he always manages to explain away his behavior and to convince Sophie that it's all in her head.

The whiplash of this toxic relationship has Sophie's head spinning. When she hits rock bottom, she fights her way out with fierce honesty, irreverent humor, and the help of Chocolat, a wisecracking, booze-drinking bear.

Author Notes

Sophie Lambda is a French illustrator and comic artist. She studied foreign languages, has made web comics since 2013, and released her first book, Tant Pis Pour L'amour , in French. Her favorite drink is soy cappuccino with extra vanilla and cinnamon.

Reviews (1)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Lambda's winning debut is an achingly direct, darkly funny memoir about surviving a nightmare relationship and an accessible guide to recognizing and dealing with predators. On the outside, Lambda's whirlwind relationship with Marcus, a charming actor, is picture-perfect: the two meet in Paris, instantly click, and spin a cocoon of affection that leaves Lambda feeling that "the world was superfluous." Privately, though, the red flags abound. Marcus undermines Lambda's confidence and flies into jealous snits, then escalates to drunken rages, lies, cheating, and threats of self-harm whenever she stands up to his abuse. "I can't tell if I'm crazy or not," she worries. Moving to be near her increasingly erratic boyfriend only leaves her more isolated. Lambda relates traumatic experiences with insight and a sardonic sense of humor; she depicts her manipulated feelings with a fluctuating "Ego-Meter" and gets hard truths from her inner voice, represented here as a chain-smoking teddy bear, who points out all the cracks in her desperate fantasy that everything is fine. In the last section, she shares practical information on abusive behavior, showing readers how to recognize tactics like love-bombing and gaslighting. Lambda's cute, expressive characters, bounding through elegantly drawn European city streets, provide a coating of sweetness to bitter lessons. Readers recovering from a toxic relationship will find this invaluable, but the frank, personal story is enough to win over anyone. (Apr.)