Synopses & Reviews
One of NPR’s Favorite Books of 2019
American Library Assocation’s Alex Award winner 2020 “for the best adult books that appeal to teen audiences”
Winner of the 2020 Prix Des Libraires Du Quebec in the Comic category
Finalist for Pop Culture Classroom’s 2020 EGL Award, Best in Adult Graphic Literature
A tale of love, heartbreak and surfing from an important new voice in comics. In Waves is Craig Thompson’s Blankets meets William Finnegan’s Barbarian Days.
In this visually arresting graphic novel, surfer and illustrator AJ Dungo remembers his late partner, her battle with cancer, and their shared love of surfing that brought them strength throughout their time together. With his passion for surfing uniting many narratives, he intertwines his own story with those of some of the great heroes of surf in a rare work of nonfiction that is as moving as it is fascinating.
Review
“I love this book deeply. AJ writes and draws like a surfer, with such fluidity, grace, and breathability, managing to flow with the most profound love and loss, without it dragging us under. He surrenders to the infinite power and mystery of the ocean to heal the void within... this book is a clean line that glides, rolls, and truly moves you. Currently my favorite graphic novel in the universe.” Craig Thompson, Eisner award-winning author of the bestselling Blankets
Review
“Always interesting when something is at once terribly sad and gorgeously life-affirming. A.J. Dungo’s In Waves is exactly that... It’s heartfelt and it’s heartbreaking. And it’s so beautiful.” Jamie Brisick, author of Becoming Westerly
Review
“While In Waves packs an emotional punch, Dungo avoids sentimentality and is careful not to miscast the ocean as some soppy metaphor for salvation… As Dungo states, loss often leaves us alone ’with only water to comfort.’” Surfer magazine
About the Author
AJ Dungo is an illustrator from Florida. He studied at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, and his work has been shown in several group exhibitions in New York and LA. His work strives to create interesting atmospheres and feelings that viewers can have a reaction to. He lives in LA.