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Gabrielle Bell
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Everything is Flammable Hardcover – Illustrated, May 30, 2017

by Gabrielle Bell (Author)
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“Bell's pen becomes a kind of laser, first illuminating the surface distractions of the world, then scorching them away to reveal a deeper reality that is almost too painful and too beautiful to bear."— Alison Bechdel, Fun Home, Are You My Mother

In Gabrielle Bell’s much anticipated graphic memoir, she returns from New York to her childhood town in rural Northern California after her mother’s home is destroyed by a fire. Acknowledging her issues with anxiety, financial hardships, memories of a semi-feral childhood, and a tenuous relationship with her mother, Bell helps her mother put together a new home on top of the ashes. A powerful, sometimes uncomfortable, examination of a mother-daughter relationship and one’s connection to place and sense of self. Spanning a single year, Everything is Flammable unfolds with humor and brutal honesty. Bell’s sharp, digressive style is inimitable.

Gabrielle Bell’s work has been selected for Best American Comics and the Yale Anthology of Graphic Fiction, and has been featured in McSweeney’s, the Believer, Bookforum, and Vice among numerous other publications. Her story, “Cecil and Jordan In New York,” was adapted into film by Michel Gondry. Bell’s previous graphic novel, The Voyeurs, was named one of the best books of the year by Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, and the Atlantic. She currently lives in Brooklyn, NY.
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  1. Print length
    160 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Uncivilized Books
  4. Publication date
    May 30, 2017
  5. Reading age
    16 years and up
  6. Dimensions
    6.25 x 0.75 x 9.5 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    1941250181
  8. ISBN-13
    978-1941250181
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"The latest from one of the finest contemporary graphic artists. Few cartoonists can match Bell’s (Truth Is Fragmentary: Travelogues & Diaries, 2014, etc.) eye for evocative details, but the words of her narrative fill practically every available space, an outpouring from the artist who confesses, 'sometimes the anxiety creeps up and suddenly starts to strangle me.' If her life at the subsistence level of artistic renown seems a little dysfunctional, that of her mother seems even more so—especially after a fire destroyed her mother’s home, leaving her living in a tent on the lawn, and Bell had to travel across the country to help her put her life back together. There’s ambivalence about the visit from both sides: 'It’s hard to be there in normal times, and I’m prone to cruelty under duress.' Bell also worries that she exploits her mother for material, which she does, of course, like she does everyone and everything else in her life. The trip to the Pacific Northwest introduced a whole range of challenges—packs of dogs and cats and bears—and a mission to get her mother a house built and stocked. The author also conducted a series of interviews with the characters who fill this volume, most of whom have murky motives and histories. This certainly includes her mother, with whom she discusses the troubled home life and the pregnancy that spawned the author: 'It’s a paradox,' the author replies to her mother, after discussing the considered abortion. 'On the one hand, I wish you’d had access to a safe, legal abortion. On the other hand, I’m glad to exist!' Eventually, Bell’s mother got her home and life back, and the artist returned to her own apartment—but then the cycle began again, as the title of the memoir underscores.
A provocative, moving, and darkly funny book that seems almost worth the crises that it chronicles.”—Kirkus Reviews STARRED REVIEW

“Bell writes and draws stories with deep humanity, and, impressively, that humanity—painful, awkward, and uncertain—is her own. [ Everything is Flammable ] spans a year and follows Bell as she travels to and from her mother’s home in rural Northern California, navigating the guilt she feels as an absent daughter and the anxiety she feels in trying to care for her independent mother. Bell’s self-awareness and observations never result in tidy epiphanies; the book’s strips open out into one another, accumulating without resolution. She is also always funny, and her distinct blocky hatching style gives warmth to every panel. The ineffable quality is that she makes all this look easy.”—Nicole Rudick, The Paris Review

“Gabrielle Bell is able to create, with simple art and storytelling, the complexities of what are supposed to be life’s ‘simple’ moments with hilarious honesty and—fair warning—delicious cringe.”—Patton Oswalt

"Everything is Flammable is sometimes frightening, sometimes funny, sometimes incredibly sad, and always deeply engrossing. The center of Everything is Flammable is Bell's complicated relationship with her complicated mother-a person who lives a lot farther off the grid than most people's mothers. But there are many other characters in this book, and we want to know about all of the them. Bell is an acute and compassionate observer of her fellow humans.” —Roz Chast, author of Can’t We Talk About Something More Pleasant

"No one but Gabrielle Bell can so quietly traverse a single raw nerve for 160 pages. Just brilliant.” —Tom Hart, author of Rosalie Lightening: A Graphic Memoir

About the Author

Gabrielle Bell’s work has been selected for Best American Comics and the Yale Anthology of Graphic Fiction, and has been featured in McSweeney’s, the Believer, Bookforum, and Vice among numerous other publications. Her story, “Cecil and Jordan In New York,” was adapted into film by Michel Gondry. Bell’s previous graphic novel, The Voyeurs, was named one of the best books of the year by Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, and the Atlantic. She currently lives in Brooklyn, NY.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Uncivilized Books; Illustrated edition (May 30, 2017)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 160 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1941250181
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1941250181
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 16 years and up
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.32 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.25 x 0.75 x 9.5 inches
  • Customer Reviews:

About the author

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Gabrielle Bell

Gabrielle Bell

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Gabrielle Bell was born in England and raised in California. In 1998 She began to collect her “Book of” miniseries (Book of Sleep, Book of Insomnia, Book of Black, etc), which resulted in When I’m Old and Other Stories, published by Alternative Comics. In 2001 she moved to New York and released her autobiographical series Lucky, published by Drawn and Quarterly. Her work has been selected for the 2007, 2009 and 2010 Best American Comics and the Yale Anthology of Graphic Fiction, and she has contributed to McSweeneys, Bookforum, The Believer, and Vice Magazine. The title story of Bell’s book, “Cecil and Jordan in New York” has been adapted for the film anthology Tokyo! by Michel Gondry. Her latest book, The Voyeurs, is available from Uncivilized Books. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
24 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

A voracious reader
5.0 out of 5 stars Another great one from Gabrielle Bell!
Reviewed in the United States on May 19, 2017
Verified Purchase
I own several of her other books, and this one is also terrific. The story is all-too-true and certainly very serious, but it's beautifully-illustrated and very well-written.
3 people found this helpful
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Garrett Zecker
5.0 out of 5 stars Candor, wit, and beauty
Reviewed in the United States on February 8, 2019
A beautiful, quiet little graphic memoir that explores the relationship between an adult woman and her mother left homeless after a devastating fire destroys her home. The result is a piece that explores the process in helping out parents who seem helpless themselves, and what it is like to do that regardless of the impact they have on your life in the long run. The resulting struggles, especially when reflected through the lens of Bell’s own struggles with anxiety, depression, and the drive to create captures the major complications of a life that comes with no instruction manual. Bell’s storytelling, narrative structure, and often beautiful and visually representative illustrations showcase a life I am familiar with. The unique relationship between a mother and daughter depicted here is no small wonder of sentimental and stark truth. Bell is a master at her craft, and in Everything is Flammable she is soaring above her contemporaries with fiery yet touching candor.
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PenB
5.0 out of 5 stars one of the best
Reviewed in the United States on October 18, 2017
Gabrielle Bell, in the core of this and all her work, touches on what it means to be human. The struggle, the little joys, the existential frustration and relationships that tie us all together, while sometimes simultaneously isolating us. Witnessing the way Gabrielle moves through the world makes me feel less alone.
One person found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Read in one sitting and will read again and again!
Reviewed in the United States on January 17, 2018
I picked this up intending to read it for a bit before bed and stayed up to finish it! So quiet, devastating, moving, surprising. I really loved it. Bell's honesty and artwork pulled me in immediately.
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J. Edgar Mihelic, MA, MA, MBA
4.0 out of 5 stars Slices of a life
Reviewed in the United States on August 5, 2018
There’s a blurb on the cover by Patton Oswalt on the copy I have in front of me. He speaks of Bell’s depth of storytelling ability. That’s what made me pick this up. I’m unfamiliar with Bell but like Patton.

The stories in this volume are a linked collection of what it’s like to be a daughter of a somewhat estranged mother – what it means to love her and want to help but not be overbearing. They’re more a slice of life than any larger arc except with how they’re all focused on getting the author’s mom a new house after hers burns down. I’m still not sure how I feel about them, especially as there is no resolution at the end of the book, so it leaves the reader hanging with that note your waiting for but never comes. I turned the last page and then flipped back, wondering if I was missing something. I’m always missing something.
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P. N. Mulcahy
4.0 out of 5 stars Bell depicts a world not often seen in lit, art
Reviewed in the United States on February 3, 2019
I did not like this at all in the beginning — but I kept reading and the story grew on me —to the point that I wanted to write a review of praise. The subject matter is challenging: poor white people living on the margins. Violence and the threat of violence lingers throughout. But there is sensitivity by Bell and her characters that is pretty much like most adult life — brief and soon dulled by depressing crap. I admired the network of friends who are helpers that Bell is alert to. The mother is at once alienating (depressed, lacking vitality) and amazing (living out in the sticks off the grid). This is not a world that a lot of people are interested in but Bell lovingly depicts it for us.
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Melissa Hensley
4.0 out of 5 stars A Quiet, Insightful Story about Mothers & Daughters
Reviewed in the United States on October 7, 2017
Reading Gabrielle Bell's "Everything is Flammable" is a quiet pleasure that will interest readers who enjoy stories about family relationships as well as those who appreciate peeking into the small, reflective & private moments of life. Many of the vignettes included in this collection revolve around Ms. Bell's effort to reconnect with her mom as the older, solitary woman rebuilds her life after her remote cabin burns to the ground. There are challenges in the relationship between mother & daughter, & brief glimpses of a chaotic childhood, but the main tone of the book is one of the simple unfolding of everyday life as told to a trusted friend.
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Top reviews from other countries

Nick D.
2.0 out of 5 stars Underwhelming daughter and mother story, by yet another depressed author
Reviewed in Canada on December 17, 2017
Verified Purchase
I'm getting pretty weary of autobiographical graphic novels dealing with depressed authors using the medium as a psychological outlet, of which there are so many lately (Allie Brosh, Sina Grace, Hannah Bradshaw, Julie Delporte). Unlike some of her peers though, Bell is not really an empathetic or compelling character, and seems completely out of touch with her surroundings. Sure, this is probably what depression does to you, but neither her naive drawings, repetitive layout or bland rumblings elevate this story beyond the usual "depressed author in search of inspiration and meaning" story. Her relationship with her mother, a much more intriguing and fascinating character that should have been the focus of the book, is ultimately the most interesting aspect of the story, but even then, it is sketched in a rather superficial way.
One person found this helpful
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Liam J Madden
5.0 out of 5 stars Definitely Worth Getting Into
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 6, 2018
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If you haven't read a Graphic Novel from Gabrielle Bell then you are missing out on a joyous time spent. 'Everything Is Flammable' could easily make an exceptional film and it is a very interesting and very witty piece of work. As a Graphic Novel it manages to be both shocking, funny and also sad and enlightening. Ms. Bell's narrative follows a journey from Brooklyn, New York to California and back but the entire book is made up of six coloured panels on each page which tells a story that allows the importance of small things to emerge as being mind-blowingly important. This is perhaps the strongest piece of work she has released. It's a beautiful world that Gabrielle Bell creates and her comics approach is a rare and talented gift to the reader. Anything by her is worth getting but 'Everything Is Flammable' could be the best.
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