Published by First Second on February 12th, 2019
Genre: Graphic Novel, Contemporary
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
Pages: 368
Goodreads
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Now that high school is over, Ari is dying to move to the big city with his ultra-hip band―if he can just persuade his dad to let him quit his job at their struggling family bakery. Though he loved working there as a kid, Ari cannot fathom a life wasting away over rising dough and hot ovens. But while interviewing candidates for his replacement, Ari meets Hector, an easygoing guy who loves baking as much as Ari wants to escape it. As they become closer over batches of bread, love is ready to bloom . . . that is, if Ari doesn’t ruin everything.
Writer Kevin Panetta and artist Savanna Ganucheau concoct a delicious recipe of intricately illustrated baking scenes and blushing young love, in which the choices we make can have terrible consequences, but the people who love us can help us grow.
This was damn near perfection!
So I actually received this book from Fierce Reads all the way back in October. Greetings from past Bekka! I read this the very next day after getting it and it was so, so great. Funny, endearing, full of heart, I recommend it to literally anyone.
Ari is stuck in the age old battle of dreams vs familial obligation. His parents own a bakery and the business isn't doing so well. He feels lots of pressure to stick around and help his family's business. But in his heart, he longs to move to the city with his friends and band-mates and strike out on his own as a musician. There's a lot of tension between Ari and his father in particular. I think the author managed to capture that feeling so well and make it so relatable. Maybe we don't all have family businesses at stake but I do think a lot of know what it's like to want something different for yourself than your parents may have imagined. Then comes Hector, who is in the area because his grandmother recently passed and he is tasked with the job of cleaning out and selling her house. While he's there, he takes a job at the bakery to potentially replace Ari, if Ari ever actually gets it together enough to move.
I loved their relationship. It gave me exactly all the warm, fuzzy, shippy feelings that I needed. They are so, so cute together. What I really loved was how Hector sort of challenged Ari. Despite what Ari thinks, he kind of has it easy in almost all areas of life. But Hector isn't here for the entitlement. And he also isn't here for Ari being a jackass to fit in with his jackass friends. Ari's relationship with Hector helps him grow into a much, much better person. Not that he was terrible or anything, but he was insecure and had a lot of growing to do. And I just loved Hector himself. He was just so free with his heart, welcoming anyone in. He was such a good friend to everyone he knew. And he was wholly himself, secure in the best way possible. When shit hit the fan, as it inevitably does with romcoms, I was heartbroken for him. For the entire cast, honestly. I was even surprised at my depth of feelings for Ari's dad.
I had a few minor quibbles, though. First, while I loved the art and the spare, light blue color palette, I thought Hector's illustrations were a little inconsistent. He looked very different from one frame to the next, and it happened pretty often. I recognized him because he had darker skin and a certain hair texture. Speaking of the hair texture, there was a character who appeared for no more than 5 pages maximum, but he was drawn with one thousand times the amount of detail that Hector was given. Justice for Hector please. I also thought the ending was a bit rushed. I would have gladly read 100 more pages to get the pacing right.
Seriously, though, this book is my happy place. In the last year or so, First Second has been hitting the nail right on the head with adorable, happy-making graphic novels. This romance, born over kneading bread and icing cupcakes, is just another in a long list of faves from them. It's a romance, it's coming of age, it's a story about family and friendship and growing up. There's something here for everyone and I highly recommend it.
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