Cartoonist Marisa Acocella Marchetto's graphic memoir about her battle with breast cancer is as bold, vibrant, and brave as she is -pumped full of color, the story leaps off the page and into your heart. Poignant and funny, this inspiring story is made all the more powerful by Marchetto's cartoons. Lucky for us, Marchetto agreed to create a cartoon just for Amazon.com customers. Check out her strip below.
The cartoonist in question, Marisa Acocella Marchetto, was at the top of her game when a doctor noticed a lump in her breast. It couldn't have come at a worse time for Marchetto. She was engaged to a wonderful man and life was humming along pretty well in a profession that can be less than pretty. Then came The News. Cancer.
So instead of writing another book about breast cancer, Marchetto grabbed her pen and did what she does best: cartooning. The result is an honest, visually engaging and sometimes hilarious read. Beast Cancer doesn't say, "graphic novel", but here, it works, and quite well, too. The illustrations reflect the author's emotions with a great deal of clarity and are quite effective. And the back-story of how she met her fiancé and the description of her multiple biff, shopping habits, and work life is interesting as well.
Meet Marisa, a self-described "shoe-crazy, lipstick-obsessed, wine-swilling, pasta-slurping, fashion-fanatic, single-forever, about-to-get-married big-city girl cartoonist with a fabulous life." Her graphic memoir, Cancer Vixen describes what happens when she finds a lump in her breast. Want to know what happens to an author when they discover their sales rank at Amazon.com? Read Marisa's exclusive strip below to find out.
In 2004, cartoonist Marchetto, a hyperstylish "terminal bachelorette," was busy capturing "fabulista" humor, in the New Yorker and Glamour. She was engaged to a fabulous guy, perennially cool restaurateur Silvano Marchetto, whose personal style perfectly matched her Manhattan-centric life. If this were fiction, this is exactly when she'd stumble; unfortunately for her, life imitated art, and sure enough, she found a lump in her breast shortly before her wedding. Just as bad, she didn't have health insurance: her policy had lapsed shortly before the fateful mammogram.
Cancer Vixen tells the story of what happens next, and how her inner circle, stylists, gossip columnists, shoe designers and assorted others you'd only find in New York City, rallies round to help her beat the disease and get married on time and in high style. Marchetto wears her best high heels to chemotherapy and remarks on the similarities between her hospital gown and Diane von Furstenberg designs. The fashion details are great fun, drawn in a spare loose style, but it's the heart of her story, the support and love she gets from her family and friends, that make Cancer Vixen a universal story that's hard to put down.
Even if you are not shopping for something about cancer, this is a very good read. And if you buy a copy of it with crumbs in it, that's just from the workers who read it during lunch. Consider it a compliment for the book. This does not have to be a book you read if you're experiencing cancer (friend, you, family member...). It's a great book for all women. It is very funny and light-hearted for someone in a situation like this with a positive attitude and sense of humor. A must-read for anyone dealing with breast cancer, Cancer Vixen is a witty, entertaining, and accurate account of the whirlwind of thoughts and emotions.
So instead of writing another book about breast cancer, Marchetto grabbed her pen and did what she does best: cartooning. The result is an honest, visually engaging and sometimes hilarious read. Beast Cancer doesn't say, "graphic novel", but here, it works, and quite well, too. The illustrations reflect the author's emotions with a great deal of clarity and are quite effective. And the back-story of how she met her fiancé and the description of her multiple biff, shopping habits, and work life is interesting as well.
Meet Marisa, a self-described "shoe-crazy, lipstick-obsessed, wine-swilling, pasta-slurping, fashion-fanatic, single-forever, about-to-get-married big-city girl cartoonist with a fabulous life." Her graphic memoir, Cancer Vixen describes what happens when she finds a lump in her breast. Want to know what happens to an author when they discover their sales rank at Amazon.com? Read Marisa's exclusive strip below to find out.
In 2004, cartoonist Marchetto, a hyperstylish "terminal bachelorette," was busy capturing "fabulista" humor, in the New Yorker and Glamour. She was engaged to a fabulous guy, perennially cool restaurateur Silvano Marchetto, whose personal style perfectly matched her Manhattan-centric life. If this were fiction, this is exactly when she'd stumble; unfortunately for her, life imitated art, and sure enough, she found a lump in her breast shortly before her wedding. Just as bad, she didn't have health insurance: her policy had lapsed shortly before the fateful mammogram.
Cancer Vixen tells the story of what happens next, and how her inner circle, stylists, gossip columnists, shoe designers and assorted others you'd only find in New York City, rallies round to help her beat the disease and get married on time and in high style. Marchetto wears her best high heels to chemotherapy and remarks on the similarities between her hospital gown and Diane von Furstenberg designs. The fashion details are great fun, drawn in a spare loose style, but it's the heart of her story, the support and love she gets from her family and friends, that make Cancer Vixen a universal story that's hard to put down.
Even if you are not shopping for something about cancer, this is a very good read. And if you buy a copy of it with crumbs in it, that's just from the workers who read it during lunch. Consider it a compliment for the book. This does not have to be a book you read if you're experiencing cancer (friend, you, family member...). It's a great book for all women. It is very funny and light-hearted for someone in a situation like this with a positive attitude and sense of humor. A must-read for anyone dealing with breast cancer, Cancer Vixen is a witty, entertaining, and accurate account of the whirlwind of thoughts and emotions.
Book Details
- Hardcover: 224 pages
- Publisher: Knopf (September 26, 2006)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0307263576
- ISBN-13: 978-0307263575
- Book Dimensions: 7.9 x 7.8 x 0.9 inches
List Price: $22.00