Alison: a stunning and emotional graphic novel for fans of Sally Rooney, from an award winning illustrator and author

(Hardback, Main)

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'Alisonabsorbed, delighted and moved me with its quiet truthfulness. No shouting, no hatred, no bitterness-just a patient, determined tackling of the eternal question: how can a woman artist fight her way out of the back seat and get behind the wheel' - Helen Garner


'Subtle and deliciously complicated' - Tessa Hadley

Alison is newly married, barely twenty and struggling to find her place in the world.

A chance encounter with an older artist upturns her life and she forsakes convention and her working-class Dorset roots for the thrumming art scene of London in the late seventies. As the thrill of bohemian romance leads inevitably to disappointment, Alison begins to find her own path - through art, friendship and love.

'This book is a testament to the right to choose your own life' - Jessica Andrews

Reviews

'Subtle and deliciously complicated' - Tessa Hadley

'This book is a testament to the right to choose your own life. It is a tender, heartbreaking meditation on the bonds between women, the dazzle of the city, the struggle to become a female artist within the bounds of patriarchy, and the desire to make a mark on the world'' - Jessica Andrews, author of Saltwater and Milk Teeth

'Praise for It's Not What You Thought It Would Be: This brilliant debut collection explores the intensity of teenage ennui and female friendship, with a deft feel for its slights and tensions' - Rachel Cooke

'A quietly powerful book, and Stewart's well chosen and often witty dialogue goes straight to the heart. Her artwork is filmic and beautiful' - Isabel Greenberg, author of Glass Town

'Her compassionate depictions of women alone, women together, will undoubtedly find welcoming audiences.' - Shelf Awareness

Author Bio

Lizzy Stewart is an illustrator and author from Plymouth who lives and works in London. She has written and illustrated three picture books for children alongside 'Walking Distance', an illustrated essay, and 'It's not what you thought it would be' a graphic short-story collection. Her debut picture-book 'There's a tiger in the garden' won the Waterstones Children's book prize for picture books in 2017 as well as a World Illustration Award. She teaches illustration at Goldsmith's college.