La Perdida
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''La Perdida'' is an
alternative Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * ''The Alternative'' (film), a 1978 Australian television film * ''The Alternative ...
comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...
series Series may refer to: People with the name * Caroline Series (born 1951), English mathematician, daughter of George Series * George Series (1920–1995), English physicist Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Series, the ordered sets used in ...
created by
Jessica Abel Jessica Abel (born 1969) is an American comic book writer and artist, known as the creator of such works as ''Life Sucks'', ''Drawing Words & Writing Pictures'', ''Soundtrack'', ''La Perdida'', ''Mirror, Window'', ''Radio: An Illustrated Guide' ...
and published by
Fantagraphics Fantagraphics (previously Fantagraphics Books) is an American publisher of alternative comics, classic comic strip anthologies, manga, magazines, graphic novels, and the erotic Eros Comix imprint. History Founding Fantagraphics was found ...
. It was collected into
graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...
form by
Pantheon Books Pantheon Books is an American book publishing imprint with editorial independence. It is part of the Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group.Random House, Inc. Datamonitor Company Profiles Authority: Retrieved 6/20/2007, from EBSCO Host Business Source ...
, and has received a positive critical response.


Publication history

''La Perdida'' #1 debuted in August 2001 and new issues came out every year until 2005. Abel revised the text for its compilation and publication in 2006 as a 288-page hardcover
volume Volume is a measure of occupied three-dimensional space. It is often quantified numerically using SI derived units (such as the cubic metre and litre) or by various imperial or US customary units (such as the gallon, quart, cubic inch). The de ...
by Pantheon.


Content

''La Perdida'' is centered on the life of a young Mexican-American woman, Carla Olivares, raised by her Anglo mother, who moves on a whim to
Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...
to search for her identity. (Although Abel herself lived in Mexico City for two years 998–2000with her (now) husband
Matt Madden Matt Madden (born 1968 in New York City) is a U.S. comic book writer and artist. He is best known for original alternative comics, for his coloring work in traditional comics, and for the experimental work '' 99 Ways to Tell a Story: Exercises in ...
, the story is not autobiographical.) ''La Perdida'' is an expressively illustrated, emotional/relationship-based comic with strong cultural overtones. During her stay in Mexico City as an American
expatriate An expatriate (often shortened to expat) is a person who resides outside their native country. In common usage, the term often refers to educated professionals, skilled workers, or artists taking positions outside their home country, either ...
attempting to gain a greater knowledge of her Mexican heritage, Carla encounters a variety of people, eventually rejecting her role within the expatriate social hierarchy and attempting to achieve a more authentic experience of life as an "ordinary" citizen of Mexico. Her encounters prove time and time again, however, that the dismissal of her background is not easily achieved and she eventually reconciles with the universality of human nature (in controversion to her initial notions of authenticity). Along the way, she confronts the complexities of an age-old civilization, upheavals of conflicting politics, and the criminal undercurrents of Mexico City.


Style

Abel's style of rendering is an expressive ink-and-brush method, emphasizing persons over objects. Abel devotes care, however, to depicting accurate and enthralling environments, as well as her complex characterizations of expression. Although the black & white brush technique has been used in other graphic novels to great effect (notably
Frank Miller Frank Miller (born January 27, 1957) is an American comic book writer, penciller and inker, novelist, screenwriter, film director, and producer known for his comic book stories and graphic novels such as his run on ''Daredevil'' and subsequen ...
's ''
Sin City ''Sin City'' is a series of neo-noir comics by American comic book writer-artist Frank Miller. The first story originally appeared in ''Dark Horse Presents Fifth Anniversary Special'' (April 1991), and continued in ''Dark Horse Presents'' #51â ...
'' or Jeff Smith's ''
Bone A bone is a Stiffness, rigid Organ (biology), organ that constitutes part of the skeleton in most vertebrate animals. Bones protect the various other organs of the body, produce red blood cell, red and white blood cells, store minerals, provid ...
''), Abel's usage achieves and effect perhaps most credibly comparable to that of
Art Spiegelman Art Spiegelman (; born Itzhak Avraham ben Zeev Spiegelman on February 15, 1948) is an American cartoonist, editor, and comics advocate best known for his graphic novel ''Maus''. His work as co-editor on the comics magazines ''Arcade (comics maga ...
's ''
Maus ''Maus'' is a graphic novel by American cartoonist Art Spiegelman, serialized from 1980 to 1991. It depicts Spiegelman interviewing his father about his experiences as a Polish Jew and Holocaust survivor. The work employs postmodern technique ...
''. Tight panels and gutters, often crowded with speech bubbles, identifies Abel's primary allegiance to dialogue in her works; this careful attention is supplemented further by her use of Spanish punctuation and vocabulary in her work (complete with glossary).


See also

*
List of feminist comic books This is a list of feminist comic books and graphic novels. A *''A-Force'' by G. Willow Wilson, Marguerite Bennet, and Jorge Molina. A Marvel Comics series about an all-female team of Avengers. *'' Anya's Ghost'' by Vera Brosgol. Graphic ...
*
Portrayal of women in comics The portrayal of women in American comic books has often been the subject of controversy since the medium's beginning. Critics have noted the roles of women as both supporting characters and lead characters are substantially more subjected to gen ...


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Perdida, La 2001 comics debuts 2006 graphic novels Comic book limited series Comics about women Feminist comics Harvey Award winners for Best New Series Pantheon Books comics titles