Earthling

by Aisha Franz, Helge Dascher (Translation)

A finely wrought account of aliens and alienation in the suburbs The German cartoonist Aisha Franz''s debut graphic novel details a few short days in the life of two sisters and their single mother. Set in a soulless suburb populated by block after block of identical row houses bordered by empty fields and an industrial no-man''s-land, Earthling explores the loneliness of everyday life through these women''s struggle to come to terms with what the world expects of them.

Earthling unveils a narrative rich with surrealist twists and turns, where the peas on the dinner plate and the ads on television can both literally and figuratively speak to the most private strife and deepest hopes in a person''s life. As the sisters begin to come to terms with their sexuality, they are confronted by harsh realities and a world that has few escape routes for young women.

Drawn in deep gray pencil, the claustrophobia of Franz''s crosshatching and smudging matches the tone of the book perfectly. Earthling is an atmospheric and haunting account of the inevitability of losing the dream worlds of childhood.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Graphic Novels Comics, Fiction, Comix, Bande Dessinée, Womens

208 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Juan Naranjo]

Detrás de la aparente sencillez de este cómic dibujado íntegramente a lápiz se esconde una historia bastante cruda, curiosa y con considerables dosis de humor.
En una casa viven tres mujeres en momentos complejos de su vida, y cada una se enfrenta a la frustración y a la falta de comunicación que les rodea refugiándose en algo: la hija mayor empieza a conocer (y a decepcionarse) con los chicos, la madre se enfrenta a una aparición televisiva que le recuerda quién podría haber sido si hubiera tomado otras decisiones, y la hija pequeña mete en casa a escondidas a un extraterrestre que se ha encontrado en un descampado cercano y que poco a poco le va obsesionando. Me ha parecido una historia muy original en la forma de mezclar fantasía (¿delirios?) y realidad, y considero que tiene una técnica pictórica que le viene como anillo al dedo.

[Ariel · Rating 3 out of 5]

The art was great but very strange story.

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two women, their mother, all sad, living quietly isolated lives, all bruised by encounters with men, who escape into fantasies of aliens, alternate selves. The art is pencil drawing, sometimes deliberately smudged, just to give it the feel of realism and accessibility, to match the simplicity and isolation of the workmen's lives. I read it in English, as Earthling. I like it.

[Sandra Miksa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This black and white pencil drawn graphic novel is very characteristic to the sad reality it depicts: shared individual loneliness (alieness) in the suburbs. The story ends with irresolution. The dialogue is sparse, the images speak for themselves of the miseries presented in the words unsaid, in everyone's silent. This was more of a melancholic simple read than anything.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had a very good feeling I was going to enjoy this, and I certainly wasn't let down. Incredibly unique, realistic (aside from one obvious aspect if you read it ahah) and a tad depressing.

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two women, their mother, all sad, living quietly isolated lives, all bruised by encounters with men, who escape into fantasies of aliens, alternate selves. The art is pencil drawing, sometimes deliberately smudged, just to give it the feel of realism and accessibility, to match the simplicity and isolation of the workmen's lives. I read it in English, as Earthling. I like it.

[Danielle Stacy · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars

Picked this up on a whim at the library because I liked the cover art and graphic novels are half about the art. Uh yeah, the art of the inside is just black and white pencil sketches which is unfortunate. I liked that the story was about a mom and two sisters all dealing with the fallout of a divorce, but I can't say I loved just how sexual a lot of the content was. Really just not the vibes for me. Also it felt like it ended really prematurely. I feel like there was more story to be told

[Chris Brook · Rating 3 out of 5]

Weird, quick one. Very simple pencil drawing account of loneliness and aliens. Looking forward to reading Work-Life Balance but saw this, published 13 years ago, available at the library so grabbed it.

[Sian Lile-Pastore · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was so lovely! Two girls and their mom trying to find a bit of connection - plus aliens. Wonderful pencil drawings too.

[Tom Hill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another moving graphic novel by Aisha Franz that examines human beings and relationships through an unconventional story and artwork.

[Sofi Salinas · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Lisa]

I think I like the author's subsequent works better but this is a fascinating & odd talent!

[Javier Eduardo Alfonso López Campos · Rating 4 out of 5]

me gusto el final aunque no lo haya entendido

[Adina]

This was very sweet and charming. Her drawings are so fab.

[Mary Montgomery · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like Aisha’s art style. Somewhere between 3.5-4 stars. Read this quite a while ago, after Shit is Real, and though I preferred the first, this book was good. Relatable in self destructive teen girl ways and weird young girl ways and child of a single mother ways. Not the happiest of stories, but I love the drawing style and enjoyed the read.

[Vittorio Rainone · Rating 3 out of 5]

Una bambina trova in un campo un alieno, lo porta a casa e cerca di comunicare con lui. Sembra che non riesca a farlo, sembra che l'alieno sia poco più di un pupazzo capace a malapena di dire ciao. La mamma della bambina è una donna sola, lasciata dal padre delle sue due figlie, convinta di aver preso una china sbagliata. Il giorno del ritrovamento dell'alieno, la sua coscienza o chissà cos'altro avvia un dialogo con lei, le fa capire che qualcosa è andato per il verso sbagliato e che è stato un caso se non è diventata ciò che voleva. La sorella della bambina è un'adolescente decisa a buttarsi nel mondo della sessualità e contrastata fra ricordi di un passato spensierato e un presente di ribellione per un padre che non è stato presente in famiglia. Alien racchiude diversi percorsi che si compiono in una giornata: la madre, che fugge, la sorella, che realizza la relatività dei sentimenti, la bambina, che alla fine trova, non per caso, un compagno di giochi ed esperienze. E' una storia piccola di crescita, raccontata con una giustapposizione di microvignette quadrate, colori pastello, fisionomie abbozzate e tondeggianti, fumi che escono dalle vignette, splash pages a fondo bianchissimo che inchiodano alcuni momenti. Interessante, anche se sembra soffrire della patina di fissità di espressioni che tanto irrigidisce certo indie a fumetti.

[Ma'Belle · Rating 4 out of 5]

German illustrator Aisha Franz might not have the most precise or distinctive drawing style, but her smudgy pencils really work well for this book. Earthling depicts two sisters and their mother each exploring their insecurities through possibly hallucinatory coping mechanisms in preparation for their absent father/husband's visit. The girls are comparing their limited knowledge and experience with sex and romance with one another and their peers and media representations, while their mother is confronted with a ghostly alternate reality of herself that comes out of her TV to show her how successful and sexy she could have been if she hadn't met her asshole husband.

Every mundane movement and environmental happening carries significant symbolic weight, and the entire book could be described as magical realism. The cries and stares of insects, neighborhood cats, peas on a dinner plate, and even a welcome mat all instill strong emotions and a sense of confusion about what is real and whether imaginative coping delusions might be preferable.

Earthling is yet another reason why publishers should be investing more in translating graphic novels from non-English-speaking creators.

[Meghan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Slow and matter-of-fact and surreal and cool. Nice pencil artwork except I didn't like the scribbled cheeks all the characters had - looked like everyone was always blushing. Tells of a few days in the life of two sisters and their mom, mundane events, coming-of-age experiences, deep feelings, and weirdness.

[Moon Captain · Rating 5 out of 5]

This found me at the exact right time and I love everything about it. I could feel the smoke especially, when characters are smoking and the car is running. I could feel lots of feelings from this comic.
I read at the library but ought to buy a copy

Thankyou for publishing this

Update June 2 2024: I own this s book. This book does NOT pass the Bechtel test lmfao

[jess]

the drawing style did not immediately capture my attention but I stuck it out because I'd heard good things. ultimately I enjoyed the perspectives & some of the weird moments that make us human, which are captured perfectly here.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really touching and true. I loved the drawings--although they're deliberately childish (mechanical pencil doodles), they evoke exactly the actions and feelings involved.

[nom pom · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book revolves around three main characters: two sisters and a mother. The oldest sister is exploring her sexuality with her boyfriend. The younger sister hangs out solo with her imaginary friend who happens to be an alien who doesn’t talk at all. Their mother runs errands and when she relaxes to watch television, she flashes back to her younger self having an argument that she’s now a failure and not a successful writer and professor.

The older sister realizes her teen boyfriend is an asshole when he attempts and fails to perform oral sex on her. She confronts her best friend who happens to fool around with him behind her back when accidentally walks in on them by chasing a bunny.


The mother wants her daughters to go on vacation with their father who happens to be absent in most of the book. The oldest daughter doesn’t want spend her time with her asshole father just until the end she discovers her best friend betrays her for her so called boyfriend she planned on going on vacation with.

[Chelsea Martinez · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took me many pages to get into this because the drawings are a bit crude and smudgy. I read this this same weekend as "Skyscrapers of the Midwest" and there is a similar structure with shifting perspective from young sibling to older sibling to mom; both moms are in pretty dire straits. The younger sibling's storyline is more comedic: they encounter an alien but don't have an amazing time---they mostly just stare at each other unable to communicate, so it's like a realist alien story. In the course of a single day, the older sibling goes through a melancholy transformation involving a haircut, regret, running away, and not, so the comic relief of the alien-staring is nicely balanced. Unlike Skyscrapers of the Midwest, this work doesn't have the strongest sense of place, but it has a similarly dark view of gender roles (even for aliens).

[Francisco Silva · Rating 3 out of 5]

El dibujo es precioso con lápiz mina y unos detalles a veces toscos y aveces tremendamente bonitos (sobretodo las que son a página completa de los pastizales).

La historia es rara.

Muchas mujeres aisladas. Algunas con los fantasmas de una vida que no fue, otras acomodándose a los cambios que trae el crecer y otras definitivamente azotadas por la continua decepción que son los hombres en su vida. Hay un sinnúmero de iconografias de cultura pop al fondo y en general es una historia que de alguna manera pegotea y esparce soledad.

Ese miedo constante al fracaso y la ingravidez de no saber bien si se está en el lugar correcto.

Además hay extraterrestres.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely, evocative art that needs (and uses) few words to express a mood. A family of deeply sad and lonely women, 'haunted' by their sexuality and failed relationships. Tender and imaginative. Aliens and parallel selves. Mysterious ending that asks: if you could go back and change the path your life took, would you? Might not be a good choice for you if you get triggered by depictions of sexual advances without consent.

[miha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Zanimiv stil risbe ima, skor osnovnošolska risba - sploh arhitekturo, ko nardi kr z ravnilom, škatlaste hiše. Ampak ne rabi drugačne risbe, zgodba zelo lepo teče in te potegne noter z gostoto kvadratkov. Mi je blo všeč, malo se mi zdi da je vesoljček metafora... čeprov na koncu je bil pa kr zares.

[Brianna Davies · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh I loved this! Very very different from work-life-balance. I loved the smudgy drawing style, it felt so intimate. Little clever details like the overlapping speech bubbles made it all feel real. The three POVs were really seamless and whereas I normally struggle to invest myself into a multi-POV books I found that I enjoyed all of them equally. Looking forward to reading more by Aisha.

[Gulianhe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very nice storytelling that shows 3 parallel stories of a family of 3 woman and each of their sad stories related to men and life.
Grllllll I love this Aisha franz, she knows how to tell a story and how to do it with cool drawings and how to transmite a ambience. This is a great work
And aliens!
Story have a slow rithm which I enjoyed

[jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

5 stars for the art. Story was eh. I really liked the drawings, they were very effective and emotion-filled. The pencil with smudges etc is not something you see a lot of in graphic novels but it was really neat.

[kip · Rating 4 out of 5]

De tekeningen waren de hoofdreden dat ik dit boek kocht, het verhaal was iets minder maar wel 'relatable' op sommige momenten. Het mocht wel een beetje minder seksueel getint zijn tussen het jong meisje en de alien.