Date Me

by Kristin Beale

A comic collection that tells stories of the unique, awkward, and downright funny dating and social interactions that happen when you’re in a wheelchair.Dating is hard. Throw in the variable of a wheelchair and the “hard” becomes “almost not worth it.” Kristin Beale shares stories of her crazy family, the unique and often lousy ways people interact with her because of her disability, and her often failed attempts at dating in a wheelchair with a strained, but ongoing determination not to give up. Relatable for many people who have dated in the tweny-first century, Date Me offers a different perspective from a wheelchair user and how to interact with them. With a few extra indiscriminate stories thrown in, Kristin’s stories keep readers entertained as she reveals the struggles and triumphs of living in a wheelchair in today’s world.

Genres: Humor, Comics, Memoir, Graphic Novels, Disability, Romance, Nonfiction

117 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 12, 2018

Reviews

[Rod Brown · Rating 2 out of 5]

This collection of autobiographical strips has some appalling examples of how awful and casually cruel people can be to individuals in wheelchairs. Unfortunately though, the book mostly consists of unfunny, repetitive and confusing gags about fathers, dating, dogs and other slice of life sort of things.

[Kenneth Wade · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was really quick and easy to read. It had some cute moments and some valuable lessons about physical disability, but it was a bit too repetitive and lacking in punchlines for my taste.

3.5 out of 5

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

The art reminds me of Allie Bosh. She nails the crappiness of first dates.

[Morgan Golias · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kristin is in a wheelchair due to a jet ski accident. This is a book about how that has affected her life and her relationships. It is just a collection of comics about her daily life and her dating adventures.

Honestly, I didn't enjoy this very much. It didn't have a whole lot of humor (there were a couple comics that made me chuckle, but they were few and far between). The dialogue is formatted very strangely so it makes it difficult to figure out which dialogue is supposed to come first in any given panel. I don't mind the simplistic art style too much, but I do wish that recurring characters were a bit more differentiated from temporary ones. It gets confusing trying to figure out who is who. This was really just a slow, confusing read.

[Jaclyn Hillis]

Date Me is a collection of comics that tells stories of dating in a wheelchair, social situations sculpted by people’s response to a wheelchair, and the struggle of trying to fit in from a different perspective.

Each page is a 6-panel comic of mostly her experience with first dates. It definitely made me realize how insensitive some folks are, and how few places have wheelchair accessibility. There were times her date would carry her up the stairs, then she was stuck in a place with no way out. I’m also thankful I never had to experience online dating.

The art was very simplistic and at times the dialogue felt repetitive, but there are a lot of lessons an able-bodied person can learn from her experience. I really enjoyed her perspective.

[Margaret]

I'm not sure how to rate this, so leaving the stars blank.
This is a collection of almost-stick figure drawings (see cover) in six-panel comics. It is slice-of-life about Beale's life, with many comics being about going on dates (online dating, first dates, dates reacting to her wheelchair, dates (or friends) reacting to veganism, (lack of) accessibility of date locations. I found some humor in the repetition of some strips, and it was nice to have a mix of family and friend strips (not ALL dates).

[Kandace · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute illustrations and delivered in vignette style, Beale chronicles her difficulties dating men as a Christian cis-woman who also is physically disabled. Her drawing style is crude but the stories are sometimes comical but also clearly reflective of the ableist and patriarchal world in which we live. I loved the times when her dog entered into the comic!

[Krista · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was quite something...there was so much repetition that I began to think that I was accidentally re-reading some pages! I suppose this book can give some perspective on what it would be like to live life in a wheelchair and how that may affect your possibilities of dating but over all there wasn’t much to this book. 😅

[Harrison Rip · Rating 3 out of 5]

She thinks she's far more entertaining than she is. Her dad seems really interesting, and the honest experiences of dating in a wheelchair are interesting for those of us not in wheelchairs to learn.

[Cristina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute graphic novel about the trails and tribulations of dating.

[Carlos Roque]

This book is a great, lighthearted read. I'd recommend it to anyone in need of a palate cleanser after a more serious read.

[Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this title on the "new" shelf at the Central library in downtown Portland, OR. While the art is nothing to get excited about, Beale's book is amusing.

[Chandra Lee]

I got about a quarter into this and it just felt super repetitive. It something that I would read in random stray comic strip format, but can’t do as a full collection.

[Jourdan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was good when it focused on the disability stuff, but it got a bit repetitive. I also didn’t get a lot of the jokes; some stuff needed explaining and didn’t get it.

[Christa Van · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beale writes about some cringeworthy first dates as a differently abled person who is looking for love.

[Jess Witkins · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author shares what it's like to date with a disability and what everyday life is like through comic form.

Very quick read, identifiable for many, and a good introduction to things most able bodied people don't think about and take for granted.

[Emily White · Rating 5 out of 5]

Our book club read this book and loved it! How creative to illustrate the experience of dating in a wheelchair! This is hilarious at times and yet, at the same time, a bittersweet reminder of how terrible people can be of understanding how to treat humans who are differently-abled. Kristin’s strength, humor, and positive spirit shine through every page of this book.