Finding the Light

Marian Henley&&&39;s beautifully illustrated memoir tells an emotionally resonant story about the wonder and redemption of raising a son after surviving extreme male violence.&&&160;&&&160;

This poignant graphic memoir describes the most difficult conversation between a mother and her son — the one about the two rapes she experienced as a young woman. It’s something she always knew she would share with her son, but the process of doing so is harder —&&&160;and more freeing —&&&160;than she could have imagined. This difficult but beautiful story chronicles how she overcame trauma and violence to find love and healing as a mother. Drawing on her decades as a professional cartoonist, Henley’s elegant black ink illustrations, trademark humour, and witty writing style shine through even in the darkest moments and tell a story of survivorship, parenting, and hope.

“Henley, creator of the long-running weekly comic strip&&&160;Maxine, recounts in this fearless and lyrical graphic memoir her decision to tell her adopted son, William, about her history as a sexual assault victim… Henley’s loose, quivering linework is acrobatic; simple, understated panels periodically give way to a vividly rendered memory or a fiercely expressive face. The pain in her story is braced by her hope, elegantly expressed, that sharing it can make a difference, and her lithe art makes a difficult topic approachable. This joins the ranks of works like Diane Noomin’s&&&160;Drawing Power&&&160;that raise awareness of sexual violence through the immediacy of comics memoir." (Publishers Weekly)