Publisher's Weekly Review
Hayden (Underwire) celebrates love, laughter, and life's many ups and downs in this affecting memoir. From prepubescent anxiety to a climactic battle with cancer, her relationship to her breasts serves as a prism through which she chronicles her life. Her honesty is blistering: every panel is a densely inked peek into the gory details of womanhood, from breastfeeding to breast cancer. Post-surgery fluid draining, bathing without ripping one's stitches, cesarean sections-no detail is spared. Her knack for dreamlike imagery is a delightful counterpoint to this frankness: her husband grows fangs when he is angry, a sentient songbird dispenses advice for dealing with life crises, lightning crackles around her mother-in-law as she reveals her own cancer diagnoses. It is this combination of surrealism and an unflinching commitment to candor that elevates this memoir beyond simple confessional into something truly moving. Hayden has created a heartfelt and often hilarious tribute to her life-and to the resilience of women everywhere. (Sept.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Library Journal Review
In this graphic novel, author/illustrator Hayden (Underwire) examines her life using her breasts as touchpoints (no pun intended), starting out as a flat-chested youth whose first bra was the source of hilarity among her friends and family. She progressed through stage after stage, with increased chest measurements meeting increased anxiety. The text is earthy, as is the pointed black-and-white artwork. With panel headings along with text, there is a good deal to absorb. Hayden's mother is diagnosed with breast cancer. Hayden marries musician Jim, a college boyfriend, whose mother succumbs to lung cancer and whose father's mistress (yes, it's complicated) dies after her battle with breast cancer. Then, at 43, Hayden receives the breast cancer diagnosis, too. VERDICT Graphic novels aren't for everyone, but this depiction of female growth and independence deserves to be read by more than the typical graphic novel fan. Shelve with Marisa Acocella Marchetto's Cancer Vixen, which, Hayden claims, inspired her to write this book.-Bette-Lee Fox (BLF) © Copyright 2015. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.