I wasn't sure what to expect from this graphic novel, but once I started reading it I fell in love. The art is gorgeous and I love the colors throughout. The story is cute and is based on a Persian story, so its cultural merit is there. I loved reading this and honestly enjoyed it!

I really wanted to enjoy this book, and I really tried but it was too disjointed for me, and I really could not get into it. It lacked flow. I did not finish.

This graphic novel tells the story of a woman who published a poetry book and got to go to a poetry festival in Iran. I used the word “tells” but I should have used “tries to tell”. You see, the story feels quite disconnected, it tries not only to let us know about the history of Iran but also tries to create a new story. I didn’t like this approach at all, especially because Iran has such a lengthy and complex history.

Not only that, I didn’t find the art great either, most characters looked weird. The parts in which poetry was illustrated were beautiful, though.

To be honest, I couldn’t bring myself to finish this book, it was too much of a mess for me to handle. Maybe, if I have more time someday, I’ll give it another go. But, for now, it’s a solid no from me.

Rating: 1 star – disconnected story and weird art

Beautiful and lyrical with a fascinating plot twist, the gem will delight whoever its find its way too. I think it work best in a young adult collection as it features finding your own voice, gaining confidence, and healing from childhood trauma.

When I first started reading this book I wasn't sure if I was really going to like it. But this little coming-of-age story really grew on me.

In this story, Rosie Ming, a half Persian half Chinese Canadian tries to find her identity and fulfill her dreams of going to Paris by publishing her book of poetry. And her life changes when she receives an invitation to a poetry festival in Iran and decides to travel out of her country (and her comfort-zone) for the first time.

I really enjoyed the bits where Rosie traverses the country trying to understand its artistic history and her own cultural background and discovering new relationships. There is a moment where Rosie hears the Azaan for the first time and the art of her just floating up is just so lovely. NOt to mention the various styles of poetry sprinkled throughout the book along with the descriptions of various poets.

The art was abstract. I loved it but I couldn't really understand why only Rosie had to be a stick figure when everyone else was not. Maybe this just made her stand out more and brought out her need to belong culturally.

All in all, I enjoyed reading the book and will probably go ahead and watch the feature-length film for Window Horses because the story is great and animation looks lovely

Rosie Ming is a young Canadian. Her mother was Chinese and her father is Iranian. Rosie's father left when she was young and her mother died, so Rosie was brought up by her grandparents.

Rosie writes poetry and she self-publishes a book of her own poems. These poems are seen by the organisers of a poetry festival in Shiraz Iran, and Rosie is invited to participate in the festival and she does so against her grandparents wishes. Rosie thus embarks upon a journey in which she discovers poetry, Iran and family.

I though this was a beautiful story. At first there is a sense of awkwardness because although Rosie publishes poetry she doesn't see herself as a poet. She has questions about her past and in a way she doesn't seem to fit anywhere. By the end of the story Rosie has discovered that she is indeed a poet and she fits somewhere. It seems her journey of poetry in Iran is a journey of learning and discovering who she really is and finding home.

I watched the trailer for this book https://youtu.be/Viiui3v-ncg and I think I must also watch the film. The book is beautiful in its simplicity and the artwork although quite simple, manages to tell the story in quite a powerful way. There is a strong sense of a young girl who doesn't know her own story but who manages to uncover her own past just by following her heart. Watching the clip on Youtube and listening to the animation really brings the story to life in a way the book can't but the book is still really good.

If you enjoys graphic novels and you want a gentle story about a young girl on a journey of discovery then this is a good one to read.

Copy provided by publishers via Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

A very interesting story that was not able to sustain my attention for the totality of the narrative. An admirable attempt.

The graphic novel is taken from an animated film of the same name that I've wanted to see for a while so I was really excited to see a graphic novel version of it and requested it immediately.

I unfortunately didn't like it though. I was really hoping I would because the topics it covers are so interesting, like family, identity and belonging, travelling, and poetry, but the main factor in why this is only a 2 star book for me is the art. The main character- Rosie- is a stick figure for some reason with some kind of buglike antennae (does anyone know why?) and the other characters kind of look like Picasso pieces, but more neat and uniform, and I didn't like any of that. There is one great bit with the art where Rosie (who always wears a pink triangle skirt) is packing to go on a trip to Iran and she's deciding what clothes to take and the floor of her room is just covered in pink triangles. That did make me laugh but the rest of the time the art just didn't work for me.

I just didn't feel connected to the poetry or the characters. Rosie loves Paris and that's always something that puts me off characters, obviously that's just a personal thing but it just irritates me the way people venerate Paris, and it's kind of her "thing"... I guess apart from the fact she likes poetry and pink? But the character just seemed a bit underdeveloped, and the other characters were worse, apart from her dad maybe.

'Window Horses' by Ann Marie Fleming is a graphic novel based on her film. It's a story about finding your voice and your family.

Rosie Ming is a young Chinese/Persian poet living in Vancouver. When she publishes a book of poems about Paris, she finds herself invited to a poetry gathering in Shiraz, Iran. It's a chance for her to travel. She meets people along the way who stretch her poetic gift. She learns about famous poets from Iran. She learns about her father, who abandoned her when she was quite young, and she finds out that some stories are more complicated than first imagined.

I really liked this graphic novel. The art style varies from the almost stick figure Rosie Ming, to some of the elaborate drawings illustrating the stories of ancient poets. I initially wasn't sure what to expect, but in the end, I found it to be moving.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Bedside Press, Diamond Book Distributors, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

I found parts of this interesting and other parts lost me. The illustrations were nice at times, but I am not a fan of the weird nostrils. The main character is drawn different from everyone else and I hoped that would be addressed at some point but it was not. It hints and possible relationship for Rosie but that never happens. Thre is a lot of stuff within this graphic novel that just feels out of place. I expected this to read like Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi so this book fell really flat for me.

"Window Horses" is a very interesting graphic novel. The art style is a nice mesh of different ideas and methods. The story is alright.

I really enjoyed Rosie’s story. The multicultural characters were portrayed with great kindness and affection. The snapshots into different types of poetry were a nice addition. Overall a nice heartwarming read.