Book Review: On a Sunbeam by Tillie Walden

Title: On a Sunbeam

Author: Tillie Walden

Genre: Sci-fi Graphic Novel

Number of Pages: 533

Rating: B

Recommended?: Yes

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I’ve enjoyed all the books I’ve read by Tillie Walden, and this one was no exception. It’s kind of a space opera so naturally I was reminded of Joss Whedon’s Firefly even though On a Sunbeam isn’t as good (nothing is.) At first this book was a little bit confusing but then once I started to get into it I really enjoyed it. The main character Mia goes to an all-girls boarding school in space (not an unusual occurrence in this universe) and then she ends up being a member of a all-girls spaceship crew. I kind of found myself wondering where all the men were in this graphic novel… are they all in cryogenic pods somewhere? It also bothered me that all the women seemed to be gay and I wondered how that worked.

Tillie Walden could have used to up her game on world-building in certain instances, how did people keep getting born with this apparent lack of males? Anyway, Mia had a girlfriend in school who left under traumatic circumstances, and she wants to find her. Their love story is sweet and one of the best things about the book, and I really enjoy Tillie Walden’s moody and distinctive art style. We get to meet a variety of characters that have strong relationships and a believable rapport between them. I finished this book in no time at all and if Tillie Walden writes a sequel I’m totally up for learning what will happen to these characters next.