Aside from the amazing drawings, this book is filled with emotions. ''You can't buy love, nor force it. You have to earn it.''

I liked the art style a lot. And the twist at the end tho very confusing, did catch me off guard. i also enjoyed some of the characters.

the description was kiiiiind of misleading
Also, there was some unnecessary nudity in page 21. This book isn't rated for age, and some people might be mislead and gift this to their children.

Gabriel is a 75 year old man stuck in his habits. His life turns upside down when his son and daughter-in-law adopt a child from earthquake-affected Peru. Slowly, the little girl works her way into Gabriel's heart and he is just beginning to enjoy the privilege of being a grandfather when suddenly, an unexpected twist changes the circumstances for everyone involved.

Up until the twist, I absolutely adored the story. The humour is so nicely balanced with emotional moments that many times, I had happy tears in my eyes. After the twist however, the story becomes a lot more serious. Thw twist itself is unforeseeable so you are as confused as Gabriel by all that ensues. The story is bittersweet and will leave you with many thoughts.

The translation seems to be spot on and the illustrations are really fabulous. They add wonderfully to the charm of the story. Overall, it is a very sentimental read, absolutely not like I had expected. But still, it is a book worth reading.

My rating: 4.5

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for a honest review.
A poignant story telling which reaches out to your hearts and tugs hard against the family intricacies which we have stored deep within our recesses. A story of a retired butcher trying to get in terms with his retirement and disappointment of his son not taking over the family shop, a daughter in politics and when his son adopts a foreigner kid to be his grandchild the initial reluctance and then melting of his heart is too cute to be described in mere words. The second chapter of the book is more about him discovering what he already had in front of him and learning to accept them rather than only wishing for things that was more of his regrets.
A wonderfully created and crafted book, the illustrations though wacky in parts were the right touch keeping in line with the story.
Absolutely recommend this book.

A beautifully written graphic novel. Zidou takes us on a whirlwind experience surrounding a family and their adoption of a little Peruvian girl following a devastating earthquake.
Characters are well developed and brought to life in an amazing human experience. Gorgeous artwork by Arno Monin breathes life and creates a world that engulfs the reader.
The Adoption will leave the reader both satisfied and yearning for more.

An unassuming novel about adoption that will break your heart. I'm not quite sure why the author chose to make this story of adoption a journey that included kidnapping, jail and heartbreak, but it packs quite the emotional punch.

Review to come December 20th on blog/Goodreads

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.

So, I read this book in Dutch last year (absolutely loved it btw), sadly, the library I got this one from (and the only one of my libraries who had it) only had the first part. So I was beyond excited when I spotted this book on Netgalley and it was the WHOLE book. I just had to have it despite half the story still being quite fresh on my mind. It does help that this one is in English, while the one I read was in Dutch. Plus, there is like half of the book that is just NEW and from what I remember there will be quite some things happening given the ending of the first part and I am eager to see how things will get solved there.

This book is about an old man whose son and his wife adopt a tiny little girl from Peru after a devastating earthquake that took the lives of hundred-thousands of people. The old man is now a grandfather... but he isn't too happy with it. But I know that he will love her eventually. It just takes a while and some cuteness from Qinaya to win her new grandfather's heart. That is the first part, the second part is about the old man going to Peru. Why, you will have to read the book. 

Next to the grandfather making peace with the fact he is now a grandfather and Qinaya winning his heart, we also see other parts in the life of this family. Like his fitness buddies or well, just his buddies given that they feast after a bit of exercising. :P I love that they kept the name GeeGees, I was worried that may have changed, but no!  I loved their friendship and their bond. But we also see the old man's relationship with his own children, in particular his son. Back in the days when they were small our old man worked so hard he didn't have a lot of time for them. You can imagine that he now does have the time and with a new grandchild to help out with...  that his children (especially his son) may feel jealous. But I am pretty sure that they are also happy to see this other side to their father. There are so many facets and they make this book just absolutely wonderful. 

Of course, we also see how Qinaya is adapting to her new surroundings, her new family, and a brand-new language (oh boy, does our old man have some explaining to do given her first word is hooker, yes, don't ask). She is, as our old man's wife said earlier in the book, cute as a button. I loved her enthusiasm. I loved how happy she was. 

I do hope that my hubby and I are as happy and in love as our older couple in this one. Yes, they had their arguments and yes ups and downs, but in overall you could just see the love so so much and it made me happy. 

OH LORD, and then the ending came for the first part and my heart broke in pieces once again. Tears. So many tears. Poor family, poor Qinaya. :( I was bracing myself for the second part, I knew a lot would happen and I would need even more tissues than I needed in the first part of the book. 

The second part, well. I enjoyed it, but I don't know it just didn't have the same impact as the first one. Though sure, there were two moments that had me crying. That last part, holy wow. In this part 2 the old man heads to Peru for reasons, and while he is there he meets people. There is talk about Qinaya, about the earthquake, about family. But we also see the POV of the son and the daughter and also the GeeGees make an appearance. It was interesting to read, but something was just missing. I would just have liked to see something more, some more details on what happened. 

The art is fantastic. I love love love the style. 

All in all, a great book. I would give the first part 5 stars and the second part 4 stars.

I wanted to read this story because I was adopted and I thought it was a story to help children understand being adopted. Instead it was a story about an adoption that was illegal and a journey of a grandfather who goes to Peru to give the little girl the bike he gave her while she lived among them.

The illustrations are awesome the story is a little confusing.

Gabriel's son and his wife adopt a little girl who was orphaned in an earthquake. Initially, Gabriel doesn't know how to feel as he wasn't much of a father to his own children since he was always working. Eventually, the little girl worms her way into his heart, but then the unthinkable happens. It turns out her adoption wasn't exactly legal, and she still has living family in Argentina. She is sent back to her real family, and Gabriel's son goes to jail and his wife divorces him. Later, Gabriel takes a trip to Argentina to see the girl and discovers more about himself along the way.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an electronic copy to read and review.

I thought this would be a heart warming picture book about a grandfather and his adopted granddaughter. I did not realize that it was a graphic novel for older reader (adults). The story is still very much a heartwarming one, albeit one that will make you want to cry from a heart broken with too much love.

"Is anyone gonna invent a richter scale to measure the magnitude of emotions in a young girl's heart?"

This story follows Gabriel a new grandfather after his son and daughter in law adopt a girl from Peru who's parents died after an earthquake hit. It's all about how this man falls in love with this child and it's the sweetest thing ever.

Gabriel soon finds out he loves being a grandfather to this little girl, Qinaya, is the best thing that ever happened to him.

The second half of the story was not as sweet. I still enjoyed it very much but it was a shock. I didn't see it coming because the story follows Gabriel not his son Alain. This part of the story was bitter and sad. But it was still beautiful because it followed this man and his love for his son. I really enjoyed this story, even though it was so bitterly sweet at the end. It was still about love and life and how this little girl changed their lives.

I got this on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review!
This is a REALLY intense and heartwrenching story, and it is SO realistic. A lot of children worldwide are put up for adoption without their parents' knowledge or consent, and especially from natural disasters like the one depicted in the story. The first part of the story depicts how Gabriel is struggling to accept his new adoptive granddaughter, believing that he is too old to be a grandfather again and not agreeing to the adoption in the first place. Slowly but surely he grows to love and adore the little girl, and they grow really close to each other over the summer. The twist that followed shocked me to my core, and you can feel the desperation and confusion Gabriel is feeling! I also think the end of the story is really realistic, with Gabriel searching for closure, discovering the true value of family and life. I would recommend this wholeheartedly!

I don't know how much I can say about this except that it was absolutely beautiful. Had me in both stitches and in tears. Touched my heart to its furthest depths. I enjoyed every moment and didnt want it to end.

Wonderful and intensely emotional graphic novel about a French pensioner whose life is unexpectedly turned upside down when his son and daughter in law adopt a child from Peru. Little can be said in a review for this title without radically impacting the reading experience, so I will simply encourage people to download and read.

A surprising graphic novel about the bond between a French grandfather and his adopted, Peruvian granddaughter.

Honestly, this comix was like a French film - it was a naturalist story which started one way (grumpy grandfather slowly warms to his adorable newly-adopted granddaughter) but then veered off into a suspenseful, psychologically unexpected place. I really admired the gorgeous art, as well as the rich setting and diversity of perspectives: we see a modern France, with immigrants elbowing next to old xenophobes. The plot took a very unexpected turn about halfway through, and then resolved in yet another unexpected place. In a way, my American brain just wanted to hear about the adorable bond; I want a tidy ending! While this comix definitely ENDED, it did so in a much more complicated emotional place. Really interesting.

Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced reading copy.

This slice of life French graphic novel was full of feelings, exploring the ups and downs of a new grandpa. The title grabbed me from the get go. Adoption has always been an intriguing topic to me, perhaps because my best friend was an adopted baby and we talked about that numerous times as teens, trying to figure out how we fit in the world. It always adds more complex feelings on things.

The story follows Gabriel, retired, uninterested by his son’s life and his new adopted peruvian grand-daughter but who suddenly finds himself on babysitting duty. This is the typical gruff old man plot, who doesn’t want to be bothered by others, has his own things to do and thinks he has no place in his life for any more people, especially demanding ones… but surprise surprise, his heart is right there for the taking and he can’t help but melt for his new granddaughter, so quiet, full of traumas and in desperate need of love.

The soft pastel colours of this book are very soothing. They did make me feel like we were walking into the life of an elderly couple. I liked that, a kind of nostalgia palette with lots of shadows of ending days, I’m sure there was something symbolic about that. The drawing of the characters was a little cartoony, more caricatural, that is less my style, but it was slight and did not bother me in my reading. Overall the images were very pleasant and the big eyes of the little girl are so very soulful.

This is a story with a twist. And it is a well done one, though it does leave you on a cliffhanger. I know I want to read the next volume, even though I prefer my books neatly wrapped up, but some stories do need the time to developpe. This was one of those. This is not a graphic novel for those who like fast paced works, but for people who like to sit down and enjoy the moment slowly. I like those kinds of graphic novels, I find them peaceful, even when they talk about very serious topics. This is for a more mature audience who like contemplative comics. There is no hard edges here, I would recommend it to people who liked films like “As good as it gets”.

This was a very heart warming graphic novel. I thought the story was interesting because the grandfather was getting an adopted granddaughter from a different country and culture. It was nice to see how their relationship progressed. His relationship with Qinaya affected his relationship with his son. Without giving too much of the story away, I was surprised about a dilemma in the story.

A tale of family and all that entails. From longing, to rejoicing and mourning. It’s a story born out of désire to grow ones family and acceptance that a vison doesn’t always translate into reality.

The Adoption offers a cautionary take on how ones needs can come at great personal cost so that a child remains at the core of family values.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced reading copy.

Thanks to the publisher for providing an eARC of The Adoption in exchange for an honest review.

The adoption tricked me and played with my heart so I'm not going to talk much about the plot because I need other people to also feel my pain.

Gabriel wasn't a very active figure in raising his own children, so when his kids adopt a 4-year old orphan from Peru, he's more nervous than thrilled. The Adoption follows Gabriel as he comes to understand more about himself, his children, and his new grandchild. The art style is stunning and while this definitely didn't go the way I thought it would, I really enjoyed reading both halves of this.

The Adoption is a heartfelt story and a truly gorgeous book. I loved the way art and narrative came together in this work, and I recommend this title for a wide range of readers (including those who want to see comic books and graphic novels do more than tell superhero stories). Lovely.