2024 EDIT: Still a powerful, passionate, enlightening, feminist space journey. The author's best work in my opinion (it's certainly the most coherent).
Final Score: 5/5
Original Review:
What a journey. An experience in space and time.
Be prepared to be thrown back to reality with a deep breath once you've finished 'On A Sunbeam'.
Words cannot describe the beauty, the near-perfection, of this graphic novel masterpiece by Tillie Walden. It's a quiet, gradual, yet human, powerful, and imaginative coming-of-age space adventure populated entirely by LBGTQA and ethnically-diverse women and girls - no male character in sight - plus a nonbinary character; and each are gorgeous and well developed in her/their own unique way. Now THIS represents what good science fiction should be - daring, unconventional, challenging, breaking down barriers, thinking outside the box - for there are no limits in space, and in reflecting the depths of the human soul, as well as of the wonders and mysteries of the universe.
For there is practically nothing conventional about 'On A Sunbeam' - it will surprise, enthral and enrapture you along its ride. Ships shaped like fishes are not its only novelty!
The seemingly simplistic art with its colours of white, black, yellow, light brown, shades of red, and shades of blue (for the flashback scenes of childhood), are captivating. The dialogue is only necessary and kept to a minimal - you could breeze through 'On A Sunbeam''s 535 pages in a day, marvelling at the scenery as well as the story and characters at each rocky, asteroid step. Space and space travel have never looked so magnificent.
Themes include: Love, loss, family, friendship, moving forward from the past, rebuilding without - and within, settling down, and just generally finding yourself and people you love and trust, and vice versa. Bizarrely, the school flashback scenes remind me a little of my own school experiences. Earth, space - wherever the school, it's not so different.
There are dangerous moments throughout 'On A Sunbeam', and it gets violent and intense towards the end, but nothing melodramatic, silly, unreasonable, contrived, or gratuitously shocking happens. It is the least fatalistic sci-fi story I've ever read or seen. Another refresher! The suspense is no less thrilling, because you care deeply about the characters and their relationships with each other.
Nice little trivial features: A character who's an aspiring writer. Plus a cat. This is too adorable.
A prism sunbeams' worth of highlights, but one I feel I have to credit - carefully without spoiling a thing - is this dialogue exchange, over halfway through the book:
"You don't get to decide what's important for us. You can choose for yourself, but no one else. [...] When you chose not to respect us, we chose not to respect you. [...] The fact that you expect people you shit on to treat you nicely shows just how delusional you are."
"I can't believe this. So I screwed up some words. You act like I'm a monster!"
"Wow...you, you really don't get it, do you? [...] Have you ever even considered that something that's trivial to you could mean...so much more to someone else? [...] You don't get to take the easy road out and just respect the parts of people that you recognize. [...] And, pro tip: If you find yourself in a similar situation in the future where you're surrounded by people you don't understand--try listening. It'll work a lot better for you than talking."
Wow. It is moments like this that transform a good story into a great story. There is so much that so many people can learn from in these few short lines. 'On A Sunbeam' is sci-fi that is relevant today, and life changing.
Infinitely warm in the cold reaches of space and its planets and regions. Full of love, care and affection. Touching and effortlessly diverse. Terrific.
Final Score: 5/5
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