Jacob’s Apartment

by Joshua Kemble

Jacob's Apartment follows the stories of two twenty-something roommates, Jacob and Sarah, as they seek to find their place in the world. When confronted with the death of his aging father to cancer, Jacob's world is turned upside down, causing him to question everything. Sarah wrestles with her own demons, searching for solace in one-night stands after her professor (and ex) leaves her for a job in New York. A coming-of-age graphic novel in the vein of Ghost World and Fun Home, Jacob's Apartment weaves the threads of faith deconstruction, identity, young love, and loss to create an engrossing world in which waking and sleeping dreams collide. This book invites readers to consider how young idealism can be quickly extinguished--and questions what the value of anything is without love.

Genres: Graphic Novels

136 pages, Paperback

Published June 7, 2022

About the author

Joshua Kemble is a full-time art director, freelance illustrator, and Xeric Award-winning cartoonist. He writes and illustrates his own comic books, while creating freelance illustrations for t-shirts, magazines and other media. His illustration clients have ranged from Scholastic to Random House, and his comic work has been published in various anthologies and self-published mini-comics. An unabashed comic book geek, Joshua was born in 1980 in Tarzana, California, and grew up in the Antelope Valley. He received his BFA and MFA in Illustration from California State University of Long Beach and resides in Lancaster, CA, with his wife and fellow artist, Mai S. Kemble, and son Benjamin. He occasionally teaches college art courses in design and illustration, was co-host of illustration podcast Big Illustration Party Time, and now co-hosts both The Artcasters and 48-Hour Art Check. He is a member of the Los Angeles Chapter of the National Cartoonist's Society. You can see Josh's work at www.joshuakemble.com.

Reviews

[Molly · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a miss for me. I appreciated Jacob's musings about his complicated relationship with Christianity, but the rest of it fell flat.

Thanks to the publisher for providing an ARC of this at PLA!

[Sierra · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the character of Jacob... and how the dinosaur stuffed animal was a representation of him at some points... but this felt unfinished to me.

I understand the ending to an extent and I'm glad it's not just a cliche "everything is happy now" ending, but I didn't fully believe that she would still be with Todd or that Jacob would feel like the story had ended. The bee died because the "mate" it found wasn't the right place to call home, the right place to rest/hibernate. But the religious storyline and the relationship between them both felt unresolved. Did they become just friends? Did they fade into acquaintances? Did he find meaning in anything?

It makes sense to leave some of these answers unresolved, but I would've felt so much better about the story as a whole if there had been more of a hint about WHY it ended this way or HOW he grappled with his religious doubt and his father's death. The ending felt too abrupt considering the beautiful and drawn-out setup to the story and the characters. This could be amazing as a longer graphic novel, but the ending needs to feel more motivated. The relationship dies, sure, but what does it end up meaning to the two characters? How does it influence their future and his religious questioning?

Loved the dream sequences and the flashback sequences though. The swimming ones, in particular, were interesting and intriguing. This has SO much potential, but a disappointing ending.

[Kimberly · Rating 5 out of 5]

*A Thank you to Edelweiss+ for allowing me to read this. This is my honest and unbiased review*

Hello Fellow Readers,

Jacob's Apartment is a realistic tale about two roommates who are going through very emotional turmoils. Joshua is having a crisis of faith, which stems from the fact that his father is currently in the hospital dying. Sarah is trying to cope with childhood drama in the way way with excessive drinking and meaningless one night stands. This leaves her drowning in a sea of disappointment and bad choices. Both of these young souls are lost.

Kemble does an amazing job bringing Jacob and Sarah to life through his art and words. I wish I could say that everything works out in the end for these two, but Kemble (and I) realize that there is a need to share a realistic story no matter how much we wish for things to be different.

Overall, a very emotional graphic novel which may or may not break your heart.

[Theediscerning · Rating 4 out of 5]

Engaging and quickly-read graphic novel, that concerns a pair of young adults who flat-share but slowly realise they might mean more to each other. She is getting through a slew of naff lovers, while he is losing his faith, not because he is getting beaten up by school bullies as per the previous times he doubted things, but because his dad is dying. When you realise it has theological discussion as quite a large part of it you expect something heavy and turgid, but no – this remains sprightly, with what seems a majority of frames that are silent, thus making the pages turn quite effortlessly. It's also more mature and literary than the usual 'hey, I'm a teen finding my feet – ooh, a girl' story. It might want for more coherence at times, but the jumps in narrative are there to mimic real life, and to bring the couple's odd dreams to the fore. Recommended.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

While always look forward to a happy ending with all books i read sometimes life just doesnt present that and that whats this novel represents.