Graphic Novel Review: Meadowlark: A Coming-Of-Age Crime Story by Greg Ruth and Ethan Hawke

Posted on December 12, 2023 at 7:03 am by Gene Ambaum

Meadowlark: A Coming-Of-Age Crime Story by Greg Ruth and Ethan Hawke. Grand Central, 2021. 9781538714577. 248pp.

I saw this graphic novel a bunch of times before I picked it up — I didn’t notice the subtitle or the police cars on the bottom of the cover, and I didn’t really know what to make of the cover’s central image or title. I’m so happy I finally checked it out from the library though — it’s a great crime story, and Ruth’s detailed, evocative illustrations moved me throughout.

Teenage Cooper is in trouble. He’s disrespected his stepfather again, so his mother calls his father, Jack. It turns into a take-your-kid-to-work day at the prison where Jack is a guard, which is unfortunate — it’s not too long before there’s a riot, three prisoners escape, and several people die. It’s soon clear Jack is involved. After a violent run-in with the men who planned the whole thing, they’re soon racing to save Cooper’s mother and stepfather. It’s a harrowing, bloody crime story that’s more entertaining than any R-rated movie I’ve watched recently.