Graphic Novel Review: Continental Drifter by Kathy Macleod

Posted on July 25, 2024 at 6:57 am by Gene Ambaum

Continental Drifter by Kathy Macleod. First Second, 2024. 9781250813732. 218pp including an afterward, photos of Kathy and her family, and comics that she drew when she was a kid.

Kathy and her older sister Jennie grew up in Thailand where they were raised by older parents (their dad is a retired US soldier, their mother a Thai businesswoman). They attended international schools where they were educated in English. Their family also spent some summers in Maine with their father’s family.

A lot of the book is about Kathy not feeling like she fit in, no matter where she is. It also explores the way her family didn’t talk about the past and so often kept their feelings from each other.

Some people thought Kathy’s dad was her grandfather. In Thailand after friend’s brother told her she wasn’t American, Kathy started to look forward to going to Maine, where she would be attending summer camp for the first time. (She also started keeping a diary as she began her countdown to the Maine trip.) In Maine, though, she and her family were clearly different from those around them. Despite a group of loving relatives there, it wasn’t always a great experience. But camp wasn’t a complete and utter disaster, either.

There’s a lot to love about this book. It feels like the kind of story that might open up some kids’ eyes about how they treat others, especially how questioning and excluding kids can make them feel like they don’t belong. I’m a huge fan of Kathy’s warm and welcoming camp counselor. And I loved the fart jokes, her relationship with her dad, the bits about Thai culture, and the cringy moment when her mom gave her a special something to take with her to camp.