Graphic Novel Review: Ash’s Cabin by Jen Wang

Posted on December 10, 2024 at 6:35 am by Gene Ambaum

Ash’s Cabin by Jen Wang. First Second, 2024. 9781250754059. 320pp.

I read Wang’s Koko Be Good to my daughter when they were, arguably, way too young for it, but they loved it anyway so I read everything Wang writes. I was at the American Library Association convention last summer when I ran into First Second’s Calista Brill, who told me this book is super special and not to be missed, and she was right.

Ash recently changed their name and cut their hair short but their parents think it’s just a phase. It’s not. Ash wants to be a writer. Chase, their dog, seems to be Ash’s only friend. Ash is looking forward to the yearly family vacation at Grandpa Edwin’s ranch. (He’s the only person who understood Ash, and he died a few years ago.) When their family decides to go to Disneyland instead, Ash explodes. No one understands them. But their parents give them permission to go to the ranch and stay with their cousin, Reese, who will be there.

But Ash secretly wants to do more than just take a trip to the ranch. Ash wants to go into the woods, find their grandpa’s secret cabin, and stay there forever. (Their planning starts with a bit of research and a trip to the public library. Woo!)

I don’t want to say much more about what happens, but I think it’s worth noting Ash spends time in the woods with Chase (the story has an informed Hatchet vibe) and by the end, Ash doesn’t feel as alone as at the beginning.

Worth noting: parts of the book were harrowing, both as a father and as someone lacking wilderness survival skills.