GREAT LINES:

“You got family in New York?”

“No…I’m gonna see about a girl. My parents think I’m going for a job interview, and it’s sorta true. If it works out with this girl, I’m gonna try and find a job as a web designer.”

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When I opened this graphic novel I saw the first panel showed two people standing outside of an Oakland Public Library branch and I knew I was going to love it. Shiga’s artwork is very easy on the eyes and the story is charming. A young man who works at the public library by day and hacks away at a website by night makes a cross-country journey to see his best friend Sara, a young woman with dreams of becoming a publishing intern. It’s a nerdy, sweet “will they or won’t they” story, filled with wry comments about what it means to be 20-something these days. The illustrations are clean and approachable. The two color palettes – pinks and light blues – are used effectively for jump cuts and moving the reader through the story. It was a fast read, and I was so delighted by it that as soon as I finished I read it clean through a second time. If you want to see pretty illustrations of some local spots, or if you like your comics to read like romantic comedies this is the book for you.

Check the BPL catalog for this title: Empire State