Marjorie Glatt feels like a ghost.
A practical thirteen year old in charge of the family laundry business, her daily routine features unforgiving customers, unbearable P.E. classes, and the fastidious Mr. Saubertuck who is committed to destroying everything she’s worked for.
Wendell is a ghost. A boy who lost his life much too young, his daily routine features ineffective death therapy, a sheet-dependent identity, and a dangerous need to seek purpose in the forbidden human world.
When their worlds collide, Marjorie is confronted by unexplainable disasters as Wendell transforms Glatt’s Laundry into his midnight playground, appearing as a mere sheet during the day. While Wendell attempts to create a new afterlife for himself, he unknowingly sabotages the life that Marjorie is struggling to maintain.
Sheets illustrates the determination of a young girl to fight, even when all parts of her world seem to be conspiring against her. It proves that second chances are possible whether life feels over or life is over. But above all, it is a story of the forgiveness and unlikely friendship that can only transpire inside a haunted laundromat.
Sheets is a bittersweet story of loneliness and finding friendship.
The artwork is done in cotton candy pastels of blues and pinks and yet still manages to convey the right emotions to fit the scene. The faces are a bit strange but the rest of the illustration is beautiful.
The story jumps back and forth from the point of view but is consistent with the color so it doesn't really throw off the reader. While the ghosts are adorable, and Marjorie certainly brings out the worst of middle school memories for us, the story doesn't have enough staying power to make this a memorable read.
The supporting characters could have used more fleshing out, but given the constraints of a graphic novel, it is understandable. While the story is sometimes heart-wrenching, it does have a happy ending where the story resolution is tied up neatly in a bow.
It is probably suited for pre-teens. Although it touches on some darker themes (death, depression, drinking, bullying), I don't know that older teens would really enjoy the storyline. Bottom line: read it for the artwork and give a little grace for the story.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to review!
Brenna Thummler grew up in northwestern Pennsylvania, where she developed a great love for nature trails, peanut butter, and, above all, drawing. A graduate of Ringling College of Art and Design, she was named the Society of Illustrators Zankel Scholar during her junior year.
Since graduation, she has done editorial and advertising work for such clients as the New York Times, the Washington Post, Razorfish, and Empathic Films LLC. Anne of Green Gables was her first graphic novel but not her last: her first original, Sheets, will be out Fall 2018. In those rare moments she’s not creating art, you might find her dancing, making music, baking cheesecakes, or spending time with kindred spirits.