I Know You Rider

I Know You Rideris Leslie Stein's rumination on the many complex questions surrounding the decision to reproduce. Opening in an abortion clinic, the book accompanies Stein through a year of her life, steeped in emotions she was not quite expecting while also looking far beyond her own experiences. She visits with a childhood friend who's just had twins and is trying to raise them as environmentally as possible, chats with another who's had a vasectomy to spare his wife a lifetime of birth control, and spends Christmas with her own mother, who aches for a grandchild.

Through these melodically rendered conversations with loved ones and strangers, Stein weaves one continuing conversation with herself. She presents a sometimes sweet, sometimes funnyand always powerfully empathetic account, asking what makes a life meaningful and where we find joy amid other questions most of which have no solid answers, much like real life.

Instead of focusing on trauma,I Know You Rideris a story about unpredictability, changeand adaptability, adding a much-needed new perspective to a topic often avoided or discussed through a black and white lens. People are ever changing, contradicting themselvesand having to deal with unforeseen circumstances: Stein holds this human condition with grace and humour, as she embraces the cosmic choreography and keeps walking, open to what life blows her way. (From Drawn & Quarterly)

LeslieStein is a Canadian creator based in New York. Her previous books includePresentandBright-Eyed at Midnight.She's been featured in The New Yorker and the Best American Comics anthology.

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Interviews with Leslie Stein

The Next Chapter11:38Leslie Stein on I Know You Rider

Leslie Stein talks about creating her new graphic memoir I Know You Rider.

From the book