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Diana: My Graphic Obsession
A unique perspective on the life of Diana, Princess of Wales, the beloved icon of many people in the LGBTQ community and beyond.
Sivan Piatigorsky-Roth is obsessed with Princess Diana, in the specific, laser-focused way an autistic person can be. This book is an unorthodox biography of Diana Spencer told through a particular autistic and transmasculine lens, examining issues of identity and self-determination, and the mythological parallels in the lives of the royal family and the author.
Sivan Piatigorsky-Roth is obsessed with Princess Diana, in the specific, laser-focused way an autistic person can be. This book is an unorthodox biography of Diana Spencer told through a particular autistic and transmasculine lens, examining issues of identity and self-determination, and the mythological parallels in the lives of the royal family and the author.
160 pages, Paperback
First published May 2, 2023
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186 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 55 reviews
July 20, 2023
The title tells the story. Sivan Piatigorsky-Roth talks about why he is obsessed with Diana, Princess of Wales, offering an LGBTQ+ perspective as he recaps her life and death. His facts are all secondhand, his analysis is shallow, and he only wrestles lightly with the fact that he is exploiting her life while criticizing those who exploited her life, but it's still a nice nostalgic wallow for me. I only wish the author had shared as much of his life as he did of Diana's.
Still, a nice diversion.
Still, a nice diversion.
October 19, 2023
Diana finds the author addressing and attempting to understand his obsession with Princess Diana. It's an interesting method of biography, particularly in looking at Diana as a gay icon, but the dense navel-gazing passages can feel distracting. The whole book made me wonder if Taylor Swift is our modern Diana as a famous, attractive white woman who is hounded by paparazzi and ravenous fans.
October 31, 2023
It was trying to say some things, but I feel like we never really got to the point.
March 16, 2023
An interesting and new angle for a biography about Diana, Princess of Wales. The author approaches the subject through the lens of their obsession with Diana, including her place as a LGBTQ+ icon.
Since the book is titled, Diana, My Graphic Obsession, I would have liked to see even more of what the author had collected through the years, along with the narrative about Diana's life.
Recommend for teen and adult readers.
-Read advance copy provided by publisher through Edelweiss-
Since the book is titled, Diana, My Graphic Obsession, I would have liked to see even more of what the author had collected through the years, along with the narrative about Diana's life.
Recommend for teen and adult readers.
-Read advance copy provided by publisher through Edelweiss-
March 23, 2023
I really enjoyed this quick yet deep read about Princess Diana and what she meant and has come to mean for those who still love her, told from the point of view of the author, who connects her life to their own neurodivergent, transmasc journey. The graphic style was clean, simple, highly "readable," yet evocative.
July 8, 2023
Beautiful depiction of devotion, obsession, care, and life.
September 1, 2023
One of my friends wrote this book, so I’m a little biased - but, objectively, how lucky am I to have such cool friends?
I read this in one sitting, inadvertently on the 26th anniversary of Diana’s death. I appreciated the unique, personal lens this book uses to study Diana. In some ways, this book is not so much about Diana, but about how we remember Diana. AKA politics of memory AKA my favourite area of academic study
I read this in one sitting, inadvertently on the 26th anniversary of Diana’s death. I appreciated the unique, personal lens this book uses to study Diana. In some ways, this book is not so much about Diana, but about how we remember Diana. AKA politics of memory AKA my favourite area of academic study
November 20, 2024
i’m glad this is out here, understanding yourself through another person and also being obsessed with them is something that i’ve experienced and i think diana really gets this feeling
August 20, 2025
Wonderfully self-aware and really earnest
January 13, 2025
This book is a double biography of the author, Sivan, and the icon, Diana, weaving together fragments of both people's history. While a vague timeline of Diana's life exists in the text, the author seems to assume we already know her story. And he's probably right; Diana is a background character in four decades of pop culture, and even those of us who never sought out her story know the major beats. The uniqueness of this work, then, lies on the author's own ambivalence around his obsession and the intentional/unintentional objectification of his idol through his art.
At times, this struggle feels tedious. The author's interest in Diana is possessive and self-righteous. "It's selfish and deluded," he admits on page 134. "But sometimes it feels like she's for me. Like every way of relating to her is diminishing or false, or violent, so I need to keep it inside of me." This man overthinks his nonexistent relationship to a degree of arrogance, policing every depiction of Diana in media as if only HE knows her properly. And yet there's validity in some of his overwrought concerns. We're so used to commodifying people who interest us that we don't think of it as problematic. We feel we have a right to others' privacy because of the celebrity culture we live in. Sivan identifies this and castigates himself and others for those instincts. It's especially disturbing in a case like Diana's: She was destroyed - physically and emotionally, consistently and ultimately - by graphic obsession. By ruthless, relentless refusal of privacy. A constant and hounding insistence on access into her inner life.
Sivan's theory on WHY Diana so captivated people is convincing: "She's a blank screen you can project anything onto" [135]. Almost unarguably, this was her appeal from the beginning. Charles literally chose her as a teenager to be a pure, blank slate. She was already a person, of course, and a complicated one, but she was MUCH younger than Charles and didn't have a messy past to drag into the royal spotlight. No matter what she did after that point, Diana could still be read in a way that can suit one's projection. She was both too public, yet too private; a commoner, but from a connected family; demure, but rebellious; a figurehead of white, conservative womanhood, but a defiant, bleeding heart activist. One good example of this is on page 34, where Sivan draws Diana posing, first bashfully, then coyly, with her young sons. "In the famous image of [Diana] from this time [early marriage / motherhood], she has a baby on her hip and a long skirt blowing around her. Broken through with light, it goes transparent. It was somewhat scandalous. How could she be a maternal figure and a sexual one at the same time?"
On the surface, the question is silly; sex and reproduction are obviously linked. But society DOES aggressively desexualize motherhood, and Diana seemed to exist in many similar dichotomies. As Sivan puts it, "Diana operates in the public image as goddess, as Cinderella, as the betrayed wife, the princess in the tower, the holy mother, all at once." [131]
The goddess element is an interesting one, given Diana's name and her penchant for spirituality and belief in past lives. The author also relates her to Medea, the ancient scorned sorceress whose fury consumes her own family when her husband leaves her for another woman.
The gender aspect is interesting, too, especially since this narrative is by a trans man. He's fascinated by Diana's white, colonialist brand of femininity, as well as the general mythical statuses of "princess" and "wife." On page 156, he writes, "By all accounts the wedding was a fairy tale. And nothing is more emblematic of a fairy tale than a princess. She is the very essence of femininity. Someone who performs girlhood so well that she is elevated to professional status." At the same time, "Standing at the alter, pledging herself to Charles and the monarchy, Diana turned herself from a child to a woman." [47] The next page continues solemnly, "That's what this kind of performance is, inevitably. A gender transition." [48]
I appreciated this perspective - a literal queering of the context. A righting of it, I would argue, because I agree with the author that these titles and concepts deserve scrutiny. Still, I'm happy I'm not in his head to over-analyze everything. (S0rry, Sivan!)
On obsession itself, Sivan writes on page 132, "An obsession is something we can learn enough about to offer up to others [as a point of connection or identity]. ...But I can't help feeling like I am playing an elaborate prank on people, tricking them into knowing me by letting them know something close to me." Sivan, sir, that's just how interests work. They are PART of our identities. Especially in cases like this, where the interest appears to be SO much of the author's identity! He documents himself spending an abundance of his time, work, and relationships focusing on the object of his obsession.
This was the final element that really struck me. Diana famously declared that there were three in her marriage - Diana, Charles, and Camila - and the book highlights the way Charles, by carrying a picture of Camila in his diary, "brought Camila on their honeymoon." But the closing pages of this book feature Sivan and a partner engaging in a one-sided conversation about Diana. The partner - real or imagined - doesn't get a name or a single personal detail. She gets a shirt with a heart and perfect active listening responses to Sivan's Diana monologue. The final image in the book is the two of these people gazing at each other across a table, speaking in unison, with Diana's ghost between them. The other woman. Diana is literally the third in their relationship.
Of course, this book is merely the author's depiction of a particular interest, and Diana may not be a proverbial snapshot in his diary on his honeymoon. But it is interesting to end a book about obsession - a concept that both connects and isolates - with the object of obsession embodied, sitting BETWEEN two living characters. Perhaps the image is meant to be cozy: a reassurance that Diana, like Sivan's partner, accepts his obsession. Maybe not. Either way, it's a fittingly ambivalent ending to an ambivalent book. For all his ethical grappling, the author's questions remain unanswered. Our understanding of Diana's history, her identity, her death, and her appeal all remain incomplete. We can analyze, theorize, scrutinize, but never know.
We often think scrutiny will end the cycle of obsession. Instead, it only fuels it - especially when answers remain elusive.
At times, this struggle feels tedious. The author's interest in Diana is possessive and self-righteous. "It's selfish and deluded," he admits on page 134. "But sometimes it feels like she's for me. Like every way of relating to her is diminishing or false, or violent, so I need to keep it inside of me." This man overthinks his nonexistent relationship to a degree of arrogance, policing every depiction of Diana in media as if only HE knows her properly. And yet there's validity in some of his overwrought concerns. We're so used to commodifying people who interest us that we don't think of it as problematic. We feel we have a right to others' privacy because of the celebrity culture we live in. Sivan identifies this and castigates himself and others for those instincts. It's especially disturbing in a case like Diana's: She was destroyed - physically and emotionally, consistently and ultimately - by graphic obsession. By ruthless, relentless refusal of privacy. A constant and hounding insistence on access into her inner life.
Sivan's theory on WHY Diana so captivated people is convincing: "She's a blank screen you can project anything onto" [135]. Almost unarguably, this was her appeal from the beginning. Charles literally chose her as a teenager to be a pure, blank slate. She was already a person, of course, and a complicated one, but she was MUCH younger than Charles and didn't have a messy past to drag into the royal spotlight. No matter what she did after that point, Diana could still be read in a way that can suit one's projection. She was both too public, yet too private; a commoner, but from a connected family; demure, but rebellious; a figurehead of white, conservative womanhood, but a defiant, bleeding heart activist. One good example of this is on page 34, where Sivan draws Diana posing, first bashfully, then coyly, with her young sons. "In the famous image of [Diana] from this time [early marriage / motherhood], she has a baby on her hip and a long skirt blowing around her. Broken through with light, it goes transparent. It was somewhat scandalous. How could she be a maternal figure and a sexual one at the same time?"
On the surface, the question is silly; sex and reproduction are obviously linked. But society DOES aggressively desexualize motherhood, and Diana seemed to exist in many similar dichotomies. As Sivan puts it, "Diana operates in the public image as goddess, as Cinderella, as the betrayed wife, the princess in the tower, the holy mother, all at once." [131]
The goddess element is an interesting one, given Diana's name and her penchant for spirituality and belief in past lives. The author also relates her to Medea, the ancient scorned sorceress whose fury consumes her own family when her husband leaves her for another woman.
The gender aspect is interesting, too, especially since this narrative is by a trans man. He's fascinated by Diana's white, colonialist brand of femininity, as well as the general mythical statuses of "princess" and "wife." On page 156, he writes, "By all accounts the wedding was a fairy tale. And nothing is more emblematic of a fairy tale than a princess. She is the very essence of femininity. Someone who performs girlhood so well that she is elevated to professional status." At the same time, "Standing at the alter, pledging herself to Charles and the monarchy, Diana turned herself from a child to a woman." [47] The next page continues solemnly, "That's what this kind of performance is, inevitably. A gender transition." [48]
I appreciated this perspective - a literal queering of the context. A righting of it, I would argue, because I agree with the author that these titles and concepts deserve scrutiny. Still, I'm happy I'm not in his head to over-analyze everything. (S0rry, Sivan!)
On obsession itself, Sivan writes on page 132, "An obsession is something we can learn enough about to offer up to others [as a point of connection or identity]. ...But I can't help feeling like I am playing an elaborate prank on people, tricking them into knowing me by letting them know something close to me." Sivan, sir, that's just how interests work. They are PART of our identities. Especially in cases like this, where the interest appears to be SO much of the author's identity! He documents himself spending an abundance of his time, work, and relationships focusing on the object of his obsession.
This was the final element that really struck me. Diana famously declared that there were three in her marriage - Diana, Charles, and Camila - and the book highlights the way Charles, by carrying a picture of Camila in his diary, "brought Camila on their honeymoon." But the closing pages of this book feature Sivan and a partner engaging in a one-sided conversation about Diana. The partner - real or imagined - doesn't get a name or a single personal detail. She gets a shirt with a heart and perfect active listening responses to Sivan's Diana monologue. The final image in the book is the two of these people gazing at each other across a table, speaking in unison, with Diana's ghost between them. The other woman. Diana is literally the third in their relationship.
Of course, this book is merely the author's depiction of a particular interest, and Diana may not be a proverbial snapshot in his diary on his honeymoon. But it is interesting to end a book about obsession - a concept that both connects and isolates - with the object of obsession embodied, sitting BETWEEN two living characters. Perhaps the image is meant to be cozy: a reassurance that Diana, like Sivan's partner, accepts his obsession. Maybe not. Either way, it's a fittingly ambivalent ending to an ambivalent book. For all his ethical grappling, the author's questions remain unanswered. Our understanding of Diana's history, her identity, her death, and her appeal all remain incomplete. We can analyze, theorize, scrutinize, but never know.
We often think scrutiny will end the cycle of obsession. Instead, it only fuels it - especially when answers remain elusive.
July 30, 2023
A brilliant graphic novel about celebrity, media obsession, and how one person’s public persona can provoke such powerful, contradictory feelings among vastly different people. This felt like something I would have read in a Cultural Studies class in university when discussing media representation and signs, and I believed it deserves a slot on an LGBTQ literature/Gender, Sexuality and Feminist Studies syllabus. There were moments when reading this book that I paused to just admire a single comic frame because I was so entranced by how a drawing could reveal so much with relatively simple imagery. Likewise, the layered references to Greco-Roman mythology (the parallels between the stories of Medea and Artemis with Diana’s own public mythology were ingenious) and the way in which these stories intertwined with the author’s own life experiences were well-developed, and it reminded me of a certain other well-known, meta-textual LGBTQ graphic memoirist…in the best way possible, of course 😉. Excited to read more from this talented debut author!
Overall: 🐏 (Golden ram)
Read If You Liked: Fun Home, The Barbie Movie, Greek Mythology by Edith Hamilton, Fangirl, the Céline Dion musical (just kidding…maybe not though??)
Overall: 🐏 (Golden ram)
Read If You Liked: Fun Home, The Barbie Movie, Greek Mythology by Edith Hamilton, Fangirl, the Céline Dion musical (just kidding…maybe not though??)
July 25, 2023
This small memoir compares the author's private Princess Diana obsession with the intense scrutiny she faced as a young woman. There's enough detail about her life that readers don't need to be familiar with her to follow along. The questions this book raises about the ethics of media attention and privacy are nuanced and interesting.
December 24, 2023
I was kinda bored the whole time.
January 10, 2025
This was the first time I found a piece on Diana in the medium of a graphic novel. I really enjoyed seeing the author’s life, values, and perspective incorporated into their illustration of Diana. I love the illustrations and wit! It was an interesting read to demonstrate why and Diana became an icon for the LGQBT+ community.
However, I think it fell short (as the author imagined) that writing about Diana makes assumptions about Diana, something she fell victim to for decades through the media and sensational journalism. In the act of articulating of what Diana meant and how Diana broke the heteronormative culture, I felt it was reaching at times…do we give too much credit to Diana in the act of idolization?
That said, I was fascinated to learn how Diana broke against norms, values, and expectations of the Crown, which to me stands as a physical and non-physical symbol of historical colonization of Black and brown people as well as modern colonialization through perpetuation of white heteronormative.
However, I think it fell short (as the author imagined) that writing about Diana makes assumptions about Diana, something she fell victim to for decades through the media and sensational journalism. In the act of articulating of what Diana meant and how Diana broke the heteronormative culture, I felt it was reaching at times…do we give too much credit to Diana in the act of idolization?
That said, I was fascinated to learn how Diana broke against norms, values, and expectations of the Crown, which to me stands as a physical and non-physical symbol of historical colonization of Black and brown people as well as modern colonialization through perpetuation of white heteronormative.
January 18, 2025
The premise of this book was incredibly fascinating to me - a transman recounting Princess Diana's life and what fascinated him regarding this woman. I didn't know much about her story going in, besides knowing she was beloved by so many people - now I know much more!
The author struggles with talking about Diana as a fan and understanding that media attention is what, perhaps, killed her. Their writing could be considered part of the problem. I found that conflict interesting.
I wish he had pivoted to examining himself more; I'm not sure we ever got what was promised. Why the obsession? How would that connect to their gender identity? If the focus stayed on his feelings regarding Diana instead of a memoir, I think that could've resolved the internal conflict.... But having the memoir helped highlight what Sivan thought was essential.
Really lovely illustrations and the framing of it was done well with the teacup and dips into memoir. I just wanted more!
The author struggles with talking about Diana as a fan and understanding that media attention is what, perhaps, killed her. Their writing could be considered part of the problem. I found that conflict interesting.
I wish he had pivoted to examining himself more; I'm not sure we ever got what was promised. Why the obsession? How would that connect to their gender identity? If the focus stayed on his feelings regarding Diana instead of a memoir, I think that could've resolved the internal conflict.... But having the memoir helped highlight what Sivan thought was essential.
Really lovely illustrations and the framing of it was done well with the teacup and dips into memoir. I just wanted more!
August 12, 2023
Okay, so my opinion on this may or may not be biased, because the author of the book is one of my close friends, but I loved this book. Not only did it move me to tears, it made me laugh, and think. The way Sivan chose to talk about Diana was like no other. They talked about her like a human, which people have started to do less and less of. While Diana seems more like a story now, Sivan brought her back to life to all the readers of this book. The art is wonderful, and I will never again confine Diana to a stereotype, or a picture. Thank you, Sivan.
July 14, 2023
Loved this graphic novel that looks at how Diana serves as an icon for the LGBTQ community but also appears to be a reflection of our own desires and obsessions. It's interesting to contemplate what sort of identity Diana had outside of her marriage. Piatigorsky-Roth treats the idea of self-image deftly and links "England's Rose" to the Diana of Greek mythology. Can't wait to see what's next from Sivan Piatigorsky-Roth!
August 12, 2023
This is more a exploration of the author's obsession with the late Diana Spencer, Princess of Wales, than a biography proper of her life--though that would be a welcome next book for this author that I wouldn't mind reading. Clean simple lines clash with some very complex topics of Diana's traumatic yet privileged life and the author's struggle with trans status. A quick, easy read that will recall the sadness of her short life.
September 11, 2023
I thought that this came from a very interesting perspective- examining Princess Diana's identity rather than her life. It's not a 'she was born then, did this, did that' sort of memoir, but instead a 'her femininity, her sexuality, the way she navigated public perception of her womanhood' sort of way. It felt very personal.
Although my biggest takeaway was 'holy cow, she was only 36 when she died?!' I just never put it together in my head that she was so young, yikes. :(
Although my biggest takeaway was 'holy cow, she was only 36 when she died?!' I just never put it together in my head that she was so young, yikes. :(
March 1, 2024
I really enjoyed this! There are some parts that are really poignant and the writing and imagery have this incredible pacing and synergy that feels so complete and resolved! All of the topics are really well researched and the overall pace of the narrative is great, it’s just that some sections falter in favor of the areas that really, really shine.
The minimal color palette is also really lovely to see!
The minimal color palette is also really lovely to see!
November 12, 2024
A collage of thought, this story of inspiration from Lady Di to a queer kid who loves who and what she stood for. All of the characteristics that the world loved about Princess Diana are the characteristics that the author interprets and gives to the idealism of the main character who is resemblant to the author.
it is rendering and charming and all the while nostalgic even though it is based in modern times.
it is rendering and charming and all the while nostalgic even though it is based in modern times.
March 29, 2023
Really enjoyed this one. It's a quick read with a gorgeous color palette and easy to read graphics. Not only is this a love letter to Diana, it is a love letter to the author himself. This made for a wonderfully interesting take on gender and how we shape public figures in our minds for our own needs.
September 27, 2023
I wish this graphic novel was longer! My obsession with Diana is probably not as strong as Sivan’s but I enjoyed their perspective on her life and mythos. Lots of details of her life are just touched on briefly, so if you have no other knowledge of her, this maybe isn’t the book for you. Or maybe it is as a sampler? Would recommend.
December 18, 2024
I always appreciate books that seem like external processing - the author figuring out the "why" while working on the project. I don't understand people's obsession with Diana, but I didn't really follow along while she was alive. This book didn't answer that question for me but I enjoyed the journey.
June 14, 2023
This made me remember I like graphic novels. There are funny moments, beautiful reflections and heartbreak contained in this. So glad to have read and consumed this and to now have it on my bookshelf. Will definitely be buying this book for friends in the future.
August 1, 2023
I enjoyed every single page of this book. It made me laugh, it made me cry, it made me feel validated and seen. Sivan's mix of autobiography and history created a beautifully fleshed out take on the people's princess.
August 11, 2023
This is an interesting fan comic about Princess Diana. The author looks into her place in society and explores gender, authority and fame. The drawing style wasn’t to my taste but there were some good takes.
October 22, 2023
I was 11 when Diana married and followed her until the day she died. I loved everything about her so when I came across this graphic novel about her I had to check it out. It is a different and interesting perspective which I enjoyed. ⭐️⭐️⭐️
February 13, 2024
im always thinking about the commodification of celebrity bodies in the 80s and 90s so this is up my alley. i also learned more about princess diana! a little navel-gazey, but i feel like that’s true of any comic/graphic novel w a author or self-insert character
June 29, 2024
A clear-eyed, sharp and deeply felt graphic memoir with some profound meditations on gender, celebrity, femininity and what it means to obsess over someone you’ve never met. The visual storytelling element of this book really lands, it’s immensely readable and beautifully composed.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 55 reviews