I read this for the first time earlier last year, and it pretty much made me a Clowes fan for life and re-ignited my interest in graphic novels altogether. Not sure where to start. Clowes' artwork is clean and polished, almost to the point of being clinical. That along with the monochromatic color scheme really give this book a sense of emptiness and melancholy right off the bat. You know that this book isn't gonna end on a happy note, but the characters are all so fun and fascinating that you just sort of decide that any time spent with them is worth a little heartache.

I guess you'd call it a 'character piece,' which is generally just a nice, artsy fartsy way of saying 'nothing happens.' How a middle aged man was so able to write 2 high school girls in such a three dimensional, complex manner is beyond me. Come to think of it, I don't *want* to know how he did it.

Highlights for me include Bob Skeetes, the Satan Worshipping couple, and of course, the 'Weird Al' scene in the horrible 50's diner. Also, when they answer that 'Bearded Windbreaker' guy's personal ad, I felt sick to my stomach. That shit crossed the line. These characters had become so real to me that I was actually disappointed in them.

A nice little coming of age story and analysis of suburbia & the art of people watching. One of my personal faves.