This is a case of admiring something without being really into it. The visual style of each story is different, and there's some interesting formal exploration, but nothing I feel passionate about. Most of the stories are the kind of literary exercises where a world/feeling is gradually and methodically built and then fizzles inconclusively, and the fizzle is the whole point. Legitimate, but not my thing. ( )

This was a surprising book for me, mostly because I've adored Tamaki's other work (especially Super Mutant Magic Academy and This One Summer, but Skim, too!) and yet somehow this just wasn't for me. These little vignette-style short stories are a cool mix of speculative fiction, explorations of women, and just some heaps of weirdness that I'd usually love but I think fall flat. The stories kind of feel like doodles, something Tamaki sketched down on a napkin absently and then later came back to and worked a bit more, trying to get some shape out of it. There's an air of unfinished-ness to the work as a whole, with 2 exceptions. The stories 1. Jenny and Halflife were the stars of Boundless and I'd recommend those, but the rest? I don't know, obviously other people liked them. There just wasn't much I enjoyed in here. ( )

Lovely short stories or vignettes written and illustrated by Jillian Tamaki. They are often whimsical, dreamy, and often sad. My favourites include Body Pods, Bed bugs, and Half Life. I'm also a big fan of This One Summer which she wrote with Mariko Tamaki.

*I won this book from a Goodreads giveaway. ( )

A strong collection of weird / surreal short comics, reminding me alternately of Edward Gorey and Daniel Clowes. I found them all a bit too grim and alienated for my current mood, but I continue to be blown away by how versatile Tamaki is as a storyteller and artist. ( )

I’m gonna say up front: I have a hard time with abstract concepts and abstract art. So, I just didn’t get Boundless, a collection of illustrated short stories. I had a general assumption of the points it was trying to make but what really wowed me was the art. Guys, the art. Absolutely phenomenal illustrations. Artist Jillian Tamaki (Uh hello, This One Summer anyone?) has this incredible knack for invoking light and movement with the flattest of color palettes. I really enjoyed savoring each page but none of these stories really resonated with me. ( )