BIRTH OF A HIPPIE: A Graphic Memoir, a charming visit to a bygone future

BIRTH OF A HIPPIE: A Graphic Memoir (The Chronicles of a Back-to-the-Lander #1)
JoDEE SAMUELSON
Pownal Street Press (non-affiliate Bookshop.org link)
$21.95 paperback, available now

Rating: 4.5* of five

The Publisher Says: Birth of a Hippie is a heartfelt graphic memoir that begins in the Prairies, as JoDee Samuelson, the youngest daughter of a Baptist minister―begins to search for her place in the world. Through her enchanting illustrations and witty storytelling, JoDee chronicles life on the Canadian prairies. Ultimately JoDee’s journey takes her from Alberta to Prince Edward Island.

In telling her story, JoDee blends humor, heart, and introspection. Birth of a Hippie recounts JoDee’s coming of age story from Prairie girl to be an independent spirit, back-to-the-lander, and health-food pioneer in a small Island on the East Coast. This graphic novel explores themes of family, identity, and self-discovery―offering an intimate glimpse into the life of a woman finding her place in an ever-changing world.

Perfect for fans of LGBTQ2+ narratives and those interested in the history of the back-to-the-land movement, Birth of a Hippie is both a personal story and a universal exploration of roots, resilience, and belonging.

I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA EDELWEISS+. THANK YOU.

My Review: Giving new life to the old nostrum "there ain't nobody here but us chickens" is the best, quietest moment of humor in Author JoDee's graphic memoir...her life is a journey from mainstream religiosity to self-acceptance of her sexuality, to the world of those who believe in living with instead of off Nature's gifts.

What made this a more-than-usually good sequential-art read for me is that I'm of the author's generation. The story is one I'm much in sympathy with as a result. The aesthetics are familiar to me, being those of the old underground comix scene. I'm in sympathy with Author JoDee's journey out of an environment of prescribed roles and thought into one that is exciting. is dynamic, tries new things and invents stuff for itself.

A young dyke, a back-to-the-lander, a questing, questioning ecowarrior, are all good giftees for the book. Also, old folks feeling like the past is the place to be, or just nostalgic for a vanished kind of optimism could use an inoculation against feeling forgotten.

You get the idea. I'm charmed, and suspect I'd be charmed by Author JoDee as well. I felt a bit off the five-star rating because there were moments I did not understand why we were cutting to or away from a scene; it could easily be me, since I'm not native to the sequential-art audience.

Getting one for old Aunt Lynne might prove to be the best gift this Yule.