My Favorite Thing is Monsters (6 Points)

For the week that we read these, we were asked to discuss whether the comics we read should be considered literary or not. My first reaction was to break down what made something 'literary'. I was inclined to say that as long as something had words and was telling a story with some amount of depth, then that was what I considered literary. However, I realized while talking with team members about this question that I had a new consideration of literary comics. I like to think of comics the same way I think about art, and that is that anything can be art. I do not think that we have to tie down the constraints of what is and is not literary because that can put writers who just want to create into a bubble. Whether I used my old definition or my new definition, I think My Favorite Thing is Monsters is definitely a literary comic. It masterfully uses its media to tell a fantastic and relatable story. Everything about the comic felt real and was very engaging, the art felt in sync with the tone of each part, and the writer made a story that could relate to many kids growing up. I think what struck me the most was how the main child was portrayed. As the comic went on, I forgot that she was not actually a monster and that that was just how she imagined herself. The way she saw herself became how I saw her, so it was a harsh reminder when her brother made her look at herself. I think the way she felt is very relatable for kids who grew up different from those around them, including me, so I really related to this.