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Book Reviews of Dangerous Woman: The Graphic Biography of Emma Goldman

Dangerous Woman: The Graphic Biography of Emma Goldman
Dangerous Woman The Graphic Biography of Emma Goldman
Author: Sharon Rudahl
ISBN-13: 9781595580641
ISBN-10: 1595580646
Publication Date: 9/1/2007
Pages: 128
Rating:
  • Currently 3/5 Stars.
 4

3 stars, based on 4 ratings
Publisher: New Press
Book Type: Paperback
Reviews: Amazon | Write a Review

Book Reviews submitted by our Members...sorted by voted most helpful

sphinx avatar reviewed Dangerous Woman: The Graphic Biography of Emma Goldman on + 97 more book reviews
This book was a disappointment. I managed to read about two-thirds of the way through before giving up. The art is incredibly claustrophobia-inducing, with no space to breathe between tightly packed bubbles of writing and sloppy drawings that show no knowledge of real human anatomy or physics. The art reaches levels of the grotesque, as all the characters have a disturbing empty-eyed look and the sex scenes are more reminiscent of corpses wrestling than people enjoying each other.

One of the main issues with the book is that the author has chosen to tell and not show. Events that could have been illustrated in fascinating detail are instead dryly related as large blocks of text and awkwardly stilted dialogue that was obviously lifted directly from another book. It's clear the subject matter deserved an entire series of graphic novels and not just 112 pages. Trying to pack an entire life into such a short space is a huge mistake.

The author also feels the need to insert herself within the text in order to brag about her own anarchist activism, clearly trying to draw parallels between herself and her heroine, even though this is meant to be a biography of a historical figure and not a personal piece. It's a little embarrassing.

Not a very professional or well-thought-out piece. I'm not even sure what Emma Goldman actually achieved, based on what I read. Not recommended.