Not my favorite graphic style, and the translation is clumsy, but it is such a unique and well-written story! It is unlike any other graphic novel-- or novel-- that I have read in content and in style.

My favorite chapter is the one where the protagonist rides a well-read wooly mammoth discussing some of his emotional coping mechanisms for dealing with his girlfriend and girlfriend's son being HIV . Who knew Wooly Mammoth's had such good perspective and sense of humor?? ( )

Il était un temps où les pilules bleues n’étaient pas encore synonyme de bandaison ou de choix dans la matrice mais plutôt d’une maladie grave et inguérissable, le HIV et les trithérapies.

Dans cette bande dessinée autobiographique, Frederik Peeters parle de son couple, son amour, sa famille recomposée… sa vie avec Cati et son fils, les deux séropositifs.

Une bouillonnante histoire d’amour avec toujours, cette maladie entre les deux. Et les préservatifs, et la peur… Et l’amour !

C’est beau, drôle, inquiet, ça déborde d’émotions incontrôlables sans tomber dans le mélo. Une ode à la vie ! ( )

Un racconto onesto e semplice, che ha il grande merito di saper coinvolgere su un tema dimenticato e rimosso dalla maggior parte delle nostre vite. ( )

Sometimes you read books you never thought you would read and that is the case with Blue Pills. Based solely on the cover, I would never have gravitated to this title, but I am glad I found it and that I have read it. The reading challenge, Booked2022 challenged you to read a book where the protagonist is HIV positive or has aids. What I love about this book is it shows a romance between someone who is HIV positive and someone who is not, and how they change each other’s world. This is subtitled a positive love story and it is exactly that. It never looks at the downsides. It addresses them, but it’s not the main thing. It’s about the relationship, in finding the good things among the scary things. This book quietly screams of hope and joy and was not what I was expecting at all. Even though it is 22 years old it’s still entirely relevant and a fantastic read whether you need to fill a reading challenge or just want to stretch your standard reading pile. ( )

Truly a moving story. I can't help but appreciate the difficulties the characters are dealing with and the complexities of the emotions. 2 thumbs up. This is no superhero comic book. ( )