Jillian Tamaki – författare

Unrequited love, underage drinking, and teen angst rule at a high school for mutants and witches

A woman post-breakup becomes obsessed with the mirror Facebook of herself seeing a life that could be hers. Another woman, besieged by bed bugs, studies her relationship and the affects her recently- ended secret affair has on it. An anonymous music file surfaces on the internet and a cult springs up in its wake. A group of city animals briefly open their minds to us; A woman finds her clothes growing baggy, her shoes looser, as she shrinks the world around her recedes. Jillian Tamaki brings her combined characteristic realism and humour to her first collection of short stories. Boundless explores the lives of women and how the expectations of others influence their real and virtual selves. Mixing objective reality, speculative fiction, out-and-out fantasy, and a matter-of-fact feminism, Tamaki shows herself to be a short story talent equal to her peers Adrian Tomine and Eleanor Davis. As Tamaki experiments with art-styles, we see hyper-realist detailing duelling with thick chunky blocks of ink, each delicately setting the mood for her characters inner turmoil.

Spring Break, 2009: Five days, three friends, and one big city. Roaming marks a triumphant return to the graphic novel and a deft foray into new adult fiction for Caldecott Medal authors Jillian Tamaki and Mariko Tamaki. Over the course of a much-anticipated trip to New York, an unexpected fling blossoms between casual acquaintances and throws a long-term friendship off-balance. Emotional tensions vibrate wildly against the resplendently illustrated backdrop of the city, capturing a spontaneous queer romance in all of its fledgling glory. Slick attention to the details of a bustling, intimidating metropolis are softened with a palette of muted pastels, as though seen through the eyes of first-time travelers. The awe, wonder, and occasional stumble along the way come to life with stunning accuracy. Roaming is the third collaboration from the critically acclaimed team behind Skim and Governor General s Literary Award winner This One Summer. Moody, atmospheric, and teeming with life, the magic of this comics duo leaks through the pages with lush and exquisite pen work. The Tamakis singular, elegant vision of an urban paradise slowly revealing its imperfections to the tune of its visitors rhythms is a masterpiece a future classic for generations to come.

Unrequited love, underage drinking, and teen angst rule at a high school for mutants and witchesThe New York Times and New Yorker illustrator Jillian Tamaki is best known for co-creating the award-winning young adult graphic novels Skim and This One Summer moody and atmospheric bestsellers. SuperMutant Magic Academy, which she has been serializing online for the past four years, paints a teenaged world filled with just as much ennui and uncertainty, but also with a sharp dose of humor and irreverence. Tamaki deftly plays superhero and high-school Hollywood tropes against what adolescence is really like: The SuperMutant Magic Academy is a prep school for mutants and witches, but their paranormal abilities take a backseat to everyday teen concerns.Science experiments go awry, bake sales are upstaged, and the new kid at school is a cat who will determine the course of human destiny. In one strip, lizard-headed Trixie frets about her nonexistent modeling career; in another, the immortal Everlasting Boy tries to escape this mortal coil to no avail. Throughout it all, closeted Marsha obsesses about her unrequited crush, the cat-eared Wendy. Whether the magic is mundane or miraculous, Tamaki's jokes are precise and devastating.SuperMutant Magic Academy has won two Ignatz Awards. This volume combines the most popular content from the webcomic with a selection of all-new, never-before-seen strips that conclude Tamaki's account of life at the academy.

APPEARED ON BEST OF THE YEAR LISTS FROM NPR, PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, WASHINGTON POST, VULTURE, BOOKLIST, AND MOREThe cartoonist of This One Summer and SuperMutant Magic Academy explores the virtual and IRL world of contemporary women via a lens both surreal and wryJenny becomes obsessed with a strange "e;mirror Facebook,"e; which presents an alternate, possibly better, version of herself. Helen finds her clothes growing baggy, her shoes looser, and as she shrinks away to nothingness, the world around her recedes as well. The animals of the city briefly open their minds to us, and we see the world as they do. A mysterious music file surfaces on the internet and forms the basis of a utopian society-or is it a cult? Boundless is at once fantastical and realist, playfully hinting at possible transcendence: from one's culture, one's relationship, oneself. This collection of short stories is a showcase for the masterful blend of emotion and humour of award-winning cartoonist Jillian Tamaki.

Roaming marks a triumphant return to the graphic novel and deft foray into new adult fiction for Caldecott Medal-winning authors Jillian Tamaki (Boundless) and Mariko Tamaki (Cold).Over the course of a much-anticipated trip to New York, an unexpected fling blossoms between casual acquaintances and throws a long-term friendship off-balance. Emotional tensions vibrate wildly against the resplendently illustrated backdrop of the city, capturing a spontaneous queer romance in all of its fledgling glory. Slick attention to the details of a bustling, intimidating metropolis are softened with a palette of muted pastels, as though seen through the eyes of first-time travelers. The awe, wonder, and occasional stumble along the way all come to life with stunning accuracy in this sumptuous softcover with gorgeous jacket.Roaming is the third collaboration from the critically acclaimed team behind Skim and Governor General’s Literary Award winner This One Summer. Moody, atmospheric, and teeming with life, the magic of this comics duo leaks through the pages with lush and exquisite pen work. The Tamakis’ singular, elegant vision of an urban paradise slowly revealing its imperfections to the tune of its visitors’ rhythms is a masterpiece–a future classic for generations to come.

Now available as a board book, the award-winning They Say Blue is a playful, poetic exploration of color and point of view In captivating paintings full of movement and transformation, we follow a young girl through a year or a day as she examines the colors in the world around her. Egg yolks are sunny orange as expected, yet water cupped in her hands isn’t blue like they say. But maybe a blue whale is blue. She doesn’t know; she hasn’t seen one.Playful and philosophical, They Say Blue is a book about color as well as perspective, about the things we can see and the things we can only wonder at.

A lively celebration of food and community from Caldecott Honoree Jillian Tamaki  Tie on your apron! Roll up your sleeves!Pans are out, oven is hot, the kitchen’s all ready!Where do we start?In this lively, rousing picture book from Caldecott Honoree Jillian Tamaki, a crew of resourceful neighbors comes together to prepare a meal for their community. With a garden full of produce, a joyfully chaotic kitchen, and a friendly meal shared at the table, Our Little Kitchen is a celebration of full bellies and looking out for one another. Bonus materials include a recipe and an author’s note about the volunteering experience that inspired the book.