Rosemary Valero-O'Connell

Mariko Tamaki and Rosemary Valero-O’Connell’s Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up With Me tells the story of Freddie, a high school senior in a tumultuous relationship with her on-again-off-again girlfriend, Laura Dean. Laura is a free spirit, expecting Freddie to be there for her whenever but not reciprocating the same in their relationship. Worse, Laura turns Freddie’s attentions such that Freddie is a bad friend to her closest friends. She’s distracted when she’s supposed to be hanging out with them, expects them to listen to everything that’s going on with Laura, but does not invest in their lives. Freddie seeks to find a way to make the relationship work or to end it for good. Tamaki’s characters feel fully realized, so that even those we only see briefly feel like real people. Valero-O’Connell’s artwork perfectly complements Tamaki’s writing, bringing each person to vivid life and adding wonderful details to the backgrounds that reflect their inner lives and worlds. A lovely story for those looking for a timely romance where a happy ending is not necessarily a relationship.… (altro)