Another one of those book-length graphic novels, this one outlines the narrator’s growing up and coming of age in Brooklyn. Instead of the author meeting some girls and learning a thing or two about sex and religion like in Blanket, this author slowly and roundaboutly finds religion, but you don’t realize you’re reading a story about someone who found God until the very end. The illustrations by Glenn Barr are a crucial part of this tale, carrying the story along when the plot is less than punchy and giving even more dimension to DeMatteis’s well-outlined characters. The story is told as a series of digressions so by the time it’s really started, it’s pretty well over. This can be a bit hard if you’re actually trying to keep track of the players. I think the next time I read this book I’d try to do it without always thinking “I wonder what is going to wind up happening to whatshisname...?”