I really enjoyed this graphic novel.

Olive is an autistic girl who struggles to fit in with her peers and is made fun of a lot.

I could relate to Olive with being the odd one out and people didn't understand why I was different.

Olive likes to escape in her mind to a place she feels in control of and safe.

The plot was a bit confusing but the art and the character of Olive really kept me intrigued.

I look forward to the other volumes.

Olive is a very unique graphic novel experience. It's a slower story, than the average graphic novel pacing, and has a lot of nuances in it; but overall is still very well done

think this is one of the best art styles in a book I’ve seen in a really long time. You can tell a lot of work and thought was put into the story and I absolutely love that with any book. The colors were absolutely breathtaking. The story was really good and I can’t wait to continue reading more from this author / artist.

Olive is a very unique graphic novel experience. It's a slower story, than the average graphic novel pacing, and has a lot of nuances in it; but overall is still very well done. Although I will warn you that each volume (there are 4 total) has a cliffhanger, and that volume 4 does not seem to be available yet!! So I'm dying (as I've now read this volume and 2, 3) to get my hands on the end of it all.
In this first volume you will not really know what our real story is yet. You will meet our leading girl, who is on the spectrum, her dream/imaginary world that she can go to, her parents, and her roommate. But you do really meet or learn of the plot until the very end of the book. Hence why I say that it's a bit of a slow reveal.
I can say that Volumes 2 & 3 are absolutely engrossing!! So it's well worth the slow, confusing pace of this volume to get to the rest of the story!

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.

I think this is one of the best art styles in a book I’ve seen in a really long time. You can tell a lot of work and thought was put into the story and I absolutely love that with any book. The colors were absolutely breathtaking. The story was really good and I can’t wait to continue reading more from this author / artist.

Olive is a beautiful coming of age story that I greatly enjoyed. The art style is beautiful, and the story is great (especially for younger readers)

I think what I love most about graphic novels is the ability to pick you up and transport you to incredible, fascinating worlds at the flick of a pen. Comic books present a lurid, impossible view that can alter your consciousness in a matter of pages. I was reminded of this when I picked up writer Vero Cazot and illustrator Lucy Mazel's Olive - Volume 1 - By the Light of a Blue Moon, a tale about the incredibly rich inner world of a neurodivergent young woman that somehow receives a real life visitor.

The Story

Seventeen-year-old Olive has always received a lot of support at her school, with administration respecting her neurodivergency and allowing Olive to board alone. That all changes with the arrival of her room mate and the crisis it unearths in Olive's world.

But that's okay.

When things in the outer world get too overwhelming, Olive can escape to her own imaginary world complete with a laboratory, observatory and her favourite place of all, a dreamarium. It is all wonderful until one day Olive discovers a visitor.

The Art

The art in Olive is absolutely beautiful. Lucy Mazel captured Olive's inner world perfectly as well as illustrating the trauma of her outer world.

Verdict

Like Oliver, writer Vero Cazot is not keen on oral communication and prefers to express herself through the written word. Together with Lucy Mazel, she has created a dreamy, magical illustration of the inner world of a neurodivergent person that I found especially relatable.

I give Olive a superb five out of five stars and will definitely be reading the other three graphic novels in the series.

A bit odd. Disjointed. Confusing. For being volume 1, not a lot is answered. Is Olive off her rocker or can she access somewhere that no one else can? Volume 2 is not translated yet so I may never know. The font for the dialogue was a bit hard to read but I liked the illustrations.

This was a really interesting graphic novel that really introduces disassociating and possible PTSD as Olive constantly goes into the world in her head. I thin the artwork was so beautiful but the book was so short and the plot really started picking up in the last 5 pages. If I had purchased this, I would have been a little disappointed in this volume. I will still pick up the second volume as it's on my library app.

17 year-old Olive is an autistic girl whose vibrant inner world cuts her off from the people around her. One day the combination of a new roommate at her boarding school and a mysterious visitor to her inner world sets her off balance. I enjoyed the concept of the story and the illustrations were beautiful. The novel ends on a cliffhanger, so I'm interested in seeing what happens next.

Wow, Olive is such a mysterious and interesting series! Olive is 17 years old and has a rich inner life that she can enter whenever she wants to. The place she has created herself, or at least built the parts and she spends her time there with a giant (rubber) duck and a see-through whale of sorts. In real life she has to visit a shrink for this and in school she gets a roommate, even though she just wants to be left alone. Now her inner world has an intruder, an astronaut guy and the world changes without Olive's permission. The whole thing is set in a wondrous and creepy way even and the inner world surely is magical, but even more it's hollow and eerie. The whole atmosphere of the comic is detached and it's perfect.

The art is wonderful and the dark tones work well with the story. The color world is breathtaking and the rhythm is wonderful and works like the mind, somehow zip zapping at times. I really enjoyed this and the plot seems such a mystery. Cazot surely knows how to move the story and keep it odd at the same time. You just need to know more! Nice!

Olive is 17 and has created a rich inner life that she can escape to whenever she wants. It’s the “real” world that gives her trouble. When a new roommate arrives at her boarding school, a visitor arrives in her inner world as well, and Olive will have to step far outside her comfort zones in both worlds to find her way.

I love the neurodivergence of Olive, and I love her world. It’s interesting that things start changing in her world as they are changing in what others call the “real” world, and I was just getting fully invested when this collection ended, so I hope it will keep going, and soon.

It’s out now, so if you, like me, enjoy representation across all media and want to see more neurodivergent characters, pick this one up.

I love the illustration and the color so much. The story is interesting, I love the character, and the worldbuilding!

I really hoped to like the book. The graphics are beautiful but I found the story to be comparatively dumb and something that couldn't keep me caught throughout the story.

Beautiful book. The story looks intriguing. Unfortunately, I don't read french, so I'm not able to give this a full review.

The illustrations are truly, truly stunning.
I didn't realize this is the first in a series, I feel like the story just got going. A 17 year old has created a whole new world in her dreams, which seems connected to her actual life.
I feel like the story needs to be fleshed out more, but in my own teenage years I created fantastical places as well, so I get it.
I don't really know what the story wants to be or say though.

Olive is a story about the power and importance of imagination, a story where a young woman struggling to find her place in the world relies on her imagined world in order to escape from the troubles of her every day life, and find acceptance for herself.

The artwork throughout is not only great at conveying the story, but is incredibly beautiful, able to transport readers into Olive's world as show us her inner workings.

I would say: not for me. ... maybe?
I wasn't really interested in the story. A girl seeing things and grown ups not believe her is a pretty overused plot device and there wasn't anything here that made it more "original" or special.

Also the art style didn't speak to me. It was pretty bland and dark and it didn't communicate anything really.

What a great first installment!

I really want the next part!

I don't want to explain too much, but I really enjoyed how Olive dealt with life and I hope her world is explained soon. It is so interesting!

I also hope the next installment talks about how the victim of the bully shouldn't have to be "more careful" but that the bullies need to stop bullying!

Also, I don't enjoy it when a character decides to be mean to another character for no reason. This is in regards to her nice roommate! Olive isn't mad when the bullies are bullying her but her roommate gets the cold treatment just for existing...?
Just a little odd and I hope it's addressed in the next part!

Lastly, I wish it where longer!!!

Overall, I really enjoyed it and can't wait for the next part!

I don’t have many thoughts on this graphic novel. While I was reading this it seemed easy for me to get distracted and i was unable to emotionally connect with the characters.