Schizophrenia

5 Responses to “The road to god knows… an original graphic novel about hope, friendship, mental illness, schizophrenia, and a young teenage girl coping with her life and coming of age in a broken but loving family”

1. J. Morellducos on December 16th, 2009 at 9:05 am

   There are a lot of things to be said about ‘The Road to God Knows’. Some of it is good, for example, it’s set in Canada. But that’s as far as it goes. The story is not compelling at all. It seems recycled, lacks originality. The characters lack depth. In fact, they seem to be based off of Daniel Clowes’s ‘Ghost World’. One is left reading this just to see how bad it can get. The artwork is absolutely horrible. Awkward details and bad representation of the human form are everywhere. On most of the pages it looks as if the characters are suffering excruciating pain. I imagine these extremely intense positions and facial expressions are meant to convey some kind of emotion, but at the end one just finds that they’re simply grotesque. My respects to Von Allan who, as I understand, has gone through quite the journey to have this published, but after reading this I think it was probably a good thing that it took so long. I can only imagine that the above reviews were written by the publishers and Mr Allan himself.
   Rating: 1 / 5

2. nilskidoo on December 16th, 2009 at 11:58 am

   This excellent new and original graphic novel by the Canuck artist Von Allan, The Road To God Knows. . . is astoundingly poignant. And anyone familiar with my reviews knows that “poignant” is not a descriptive term I freely employ. But I was so thoroughly pulled into this story of young and gawky teenager Marie and her complicated relationship with her mother, Betty, that I read the work in one sitting and found myself thinking over its implications for a length of time afterwords. Such envelopment is for me, a true accomplishment.

   The story opens with Marie and her mother returning home from the hospital, where the mother had just been discharged after a stay that concerned certain emotional problems. In true slice of life fashion, we learn so much about Marie’s lonely world, stuck in the middle of her separated parents while failing to find acceptancel at school. Her salvation comes through her budding friendship with a neighbor girl, the two embarking on a money from-excessive-chores quest for the sole purpose of purchasing tickets to a rare but upcoming pro wrestling exhibition. Marie, awkwardly finding some levels of solace in the fandom hobby. Her interests in the pseudo-sport of professional wrestling, as well as in science fiction, all serve as distraction for the girl, desperate for an escape from the growing problematics of dealing with the psychologically damaged Betty. Betty means as well as any otherwise loving parent, but with the painfully realistic difficulties of struggling for control under the weight of Schizophrenia are seemingly beyond her own power, much less the coping abilities of her teenage daughter- who is already stuck in an embarrassing and frustrating age group. No easy solutions, and no outlets, beyond just silently going on.
   This is indeed a very touching, very dramatic tale. Von Allan’s dialogue is never at all unrealistic, and the everyday characters presented are fully-formed enough to cause the reader to wonder at what persons may have inspired such situational drama, such quietly desperate burdens. This is the kind of story that wonderfully, moodily, is all too real. Such a rich and honest portrayal of mental illness and the effects such can have on the many persons stuck in the tortured position of loving and/or living with the inflicted.
   And the art is absolutely as effective, from smart page constructions sporting fluid faces and gestures to an appropriate pacing that intuitively slows down the camera whenever a forced introspection is dutifully beckoned from the story itself. This movie is shot in real time, with all of the world of nuances that the unbiased camera is always eager and willing to capture, beit for the amusement or judgment, of others. while the overall narrative is a sea of calm before the storm sensation, the few moments of violent action are called into vivid imagining with all the more clarity. And shock, like with ripples in the stillness of waters.

   A fantastic and self-aware work, I am thankful in my own way to have come across it. Available through Von Allan’s website as a free, downloadable pdf copy, as well as through the Amazons, I advise against going for the computer screen version alone however, as digesting a wholeheartedly brilliant book such as this will fully compel you to want to support the work more viscerally.
   Most definitely one of the finest graphic novels of the year, I think.
   Rating: 5 / 5

3. Tiffany R. Johnson on December 16th, 2009 at 2:44 pm

   After reading ” The Road to God Knows. . . ” I am happy to say, I was compelled by the story and its core subjects. In many ways this story relates to my upbringing living between two households and dealing with loving/distressed parents and relatives. The art work in Von’s novel expresses the mood of the plot and I enjoyed the friendship of Marie and Kelly with their love of wrestling. Any teen going through that age of being an outcast or trying to cope with responsibilities beyond their handling should pick up this book. It teaches you to deal with responsibilities but at the same time, be a teen and go out to have fun as any teen should. Every artist has their own style and Von is one of them. I hope he continues making more graphic novels in the future.
   Rating: 5 / 5

4. Linda K. Roberts on December 16th, 2009 at 5:20 pm

   Marie is a teen-aged geek girl coping with the usual stresses of early adolescence as well as her mother’s increasingly severe and frightening schizophrenia. Marie copes by following pro wrestling – and a rare live event in her hometown gives her a goal. How she works toward that goal, and her relationships with her mother, father, and best friend Kelly are the basis of this graphic novel. Details make it clear that this is set in the mid to late 80s – Randy Savage is top of the WWF heap, Next Generation is the current incarnation of Trek – but the story is timeless. I liked the realism – people don’t have much money, furniture is old and ratty, single moms work long hours. Even with good intentions, the adults in this book are often inept and occasionally unkind. Other teenagers exhibit feral ferocity in singling out the vulnerable for ridicule. I don’t want to make it sound like this is a downer of a book. Marie is as spunky and resourceful as they come. She has a true friend in Kelly and her parents aren’t unloving, just troubled or clueless. There are no huge revelations or happy endings tied up with a bow, but there is hope.

   The drawings added to the story, although I will admit the proportions seemed off in a couple of frames. The bleakness of poverty comes through the sparsely furnished rooms with cracked plaster and peeling wallpaper. But Marie’s determination and spunk also come through, as well as her confusion and heartbreak. A frame of Marie’s empty schooldesk is an eloquent statement of the effect of her mother’s illness. I teach mental health nursing and I can’t think of a better way to show my students how schizophrenia affects the entire family than to give them this book. I look forward to future titles from Mr. Allan.

   Rating: 5 / 5

5. Creative Z on December 16th, 2009 at 5:58 pm

   Great, great artwork, awesomely provoking and well “designed” story line.
   I do recommend “The road to god knows . . . ”
   Rating: 5 / 5

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