Spinning
2017
- comic books, strips
- childhood and youth
- coming out (sexual orientation)
- figure skaters
- lesbian teenagers
- coming out (sexual identity)
- cartoonists
- women, united states, biography
- comics & graphic novels, nonfiction, biography & memoir
- skating
The story
A powerful graphic memoir about coming-of-age, coming out, and competitive figure skating.
What it’s like
Clean, cool-toned panels with a restrained palette of icy blues, greys and muted pinks, the rink's pale white ice set against dim locker rooms and stark interior hallways. Tillie Walden's linework is precise and economical, so the figure skating scenes carry a sense of motion and breath, while quieter pages slow to small, still moments of a teenager alone. The reading feels contemplative and intimate, like sitting with a diary someone has drawn for you, the sound of blades on ice and the hush of an empty arena folded into the silence between frames. Its vibe is wistful and bittersweet, with a steady undercurrent of longing and quiet resolve. It suits a slow weekend afternoon, a late-night read, or a long train ride where the pages can be taken in one at a time. The memoir moves in a measured, episodic rhythm, following a young skater's growing awareness of who she is while the pressures of competition tighten around her, and its emotional register is honest and tender rather than dramatic. Intensity is low: no graphic violence or sexual content, with emotional strain, loneliness and family tension as the main weight. It is for readers who want a sensitive coming-of-age story about identity, ambition and belonging, told with graphic restraint.
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