In this graphic memoir, Joyce Farmer chronicles the gradual decline of her elderly parents’ health and how that decline affects their relationships, their emotional well-being, and their day-to-day existence. Farmer’s parents, Lars and Rachel, face their suffering with a stoicism that borders on insanity, refusing to see doctors or simply just not telling their daughter they are seriously ill because they don’t want to bother her. Lars tells Farmer at one point, “Things get worse in such small increments you can get used to anything.”
Farmer’s parent live in a bad neighborhood in southern Los Angeles. They experience the 1992 L.A. riots as shut-ins, her mother not being able to leave the couch. Farmer’s father can see the flames from their front door. Their house is in disrepair, and like most elderly couples, they get to a point where they just can’t keep up with the cooking and cleaning. Farmer regularly visits to clean the house, shop for groceries, and learn about her parents’ lives; but it is too much for one person to do part-time. She hints throughout the years that they need assisted living, but both of her parents refuse until it is no longer an option. In fact, her father makes her promise that he will be able to die in his own house.
Anyone who has cared for a loved one in that last season of life, or witnessed their parents care for their grandparents, will attest to the heartbreaking truth about the human condition Farmer has captured in pen. This book, like Art Spiegelman’s Maus, will likely become a classic in the graphic novel medium for its artistic craftsmanship and emotional power.
