What starts out like a fairy tale what with a mysterious, otherworldly baby, six older brothers all with number names, and so on, grows into a more nuanced look of the complexities of life and finding a place in the world. Each chapter builds on itself as Celeste travels, meets different people, and has various experiences as she grows both upward and inward. She does this for a time, and then does that for a time, always moving, always learning, always teaching. There is meat to this tale and it's all the stronger for it.

This is the story of a giant baby that is adapted by normal sized people, and raised to adulthood.

As though this happens all the time, of course.

Celeste decides, once she comes of age, that she will go out into the world, and seek her fortune. She tries very towns, and various places, until she finds the final home for her.

The story is set in some sort of medieval magical world, where there are bad things going on, and
Perhaps it is because it is translated from French. Or perhaps it is something else, but I had problems with this book. It could just be that I don't like reading books that tell of a journey, whether it is philosophical or real.

It was beautifully illustrated, I do give it points for that, but I grew weary of taking so long to find where she fit in.

The other thing that bothered me, was the size of the giantess seemed to keep changing. I don't mean when she was growing up, but when she was grown. She would go from being just very large, to so large she could step over mountains. It was a little unnerving.

<em>Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.</em>

Reminiscent of medieval epic tales of self-discovery and incredible journeys across the globe, Giantess follows the life of Celeste, from her infancy to her womanhood and her self-realisation. There is something of Candide in there, and many famous European books, a little philosophical, inviting thoughts, criticising the ways of the world and both pocking fun and celebrating naivety.
The illustrations are very sweet and beautiful. I love the nature and backgrounds of this graphic novel. The cities and places are just beautiful with a bit of a middle-age look. I really really enjoyed them and could totally imagine one of those chapter separation pages on my walls. The colours are glorious and I adored all the visual beauty of each page.
There is something classic about this comic book, evoking Ulysses, but turned on its head with the feminist message of the book. The message feels a little dated too in a way... but I enjoyed the read. The story goes fast and is very pleasant.

First off, the art is GORGEOUS. Absolutely STUNNING. I will be for sure picking up a physical copy, it's a gorgeous graphic novel all around. I love the plot and cant stop raving about it quite honestly!!
i was not expecting it to be such a lovely and warm story,
I received an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A beautiful graphic novel about finding one's true worth and place in the world.

Giantess is about a girl, born different from the rest. Her nature is the focal point of the story and I loved every minute of it. All chapters are also very engaging and intriguing. I personally liked the art syle- It was different but gorgeous.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me an E-ARC

Giantess was a really fresh and whimsical story with a lot of undercurrent story commentary about what it means to be a woman in a world mostly of men, or at the very least where perceptions of men infect those of other women. It's a deeper meaning than I was expecting when I first saw the art.

The art of giantess is beautiful and well done, the colours and style are perfect for the story.

*I am unable to post a review to goodreads as the book is not yet available on the platform

Giantess is an epic tale of a woman finding her place in a world that already have an idea of what she should be. I loved the story, the sensibility of it, and over all I loved of contemporary it feels. The art style is stunning, I'm in love with its uniqueness and the colour palette.

I would have loved it to be longer as there are some threads and topics that would have benefitted from more pages but it's still a wonderful story about fighting prejudices and finding home. I really recommend it!

5/5

As a man was making his way home to his peaceful farmstead where his wife and six sons were waiting, he suddenly encounters a baby girl left in the woods. A GIANT baby girl. The family decides to take in this baby giant, and thus begins the story of Celeste and her journey through the world.

What a wonderful, expansive, meaningful book. French literature at its finest. It was beautiful, compelling, vast and endlessly endearing. A true saga that always impressed me by all the different adventures and lessons explored.

This book takes the reader to so many places and introduces a myriad of lovable, to not-so-lovable characters. Character design and world building was amazing and the art was very detailed and beautifully done in its simplicity.

With every chapter I was surprised by the turn of events. I expected nothing of what happened to happen, which was really exciting and intriguing to me. The plot is fast-paced and easy to read and follow along as well. This story covers so many topics and I think would be a wonderful tool in women's studies and such.

There are some scenes that display cartoonized nudity and includes some mature subjects, so viewer discretion is advised.

I really did love this book though. It was beautiful and vast and a joy to read.

What really stands out about Giantess is (well her height for one) but the art style is what really steals the show. It’s so unique, and the works so well with the beautiful honest complexity that the story brings.

Giantess is the coming of age story for Celeste who after being found in the wild, grows up with her older brothers before they each one by one leave and Celeste decides to take her chance in the world too.

Her naivete is initially abused but she learns who she is and what she wants out of life. I especially enjoyed the different relationships, romantic and platonic that grew more beautiful and grew more complex, and sometimes grew messy throughout her life.

Due to her size and nature, Celeste faces constant judgement, unwanted sexual advances, and even struggles with in inferity. But I think even the heavy topics were handled with a skilled hand and think that anyone will enjoy following Celeste’s story.


*I received an eARC from Diamond Book Distributors (Magnetic Press) & NetGalley in exchange for my honest review*

Giantess is about a young giant named Celeste, who is found by a farmer as a baby and adopted into his family. The story follows her as she and her brothers grow up and move away from home and she learns the ways of the world, especially for someone who is different like her.

The way that Celeste grows from a naive young girl to the woman she is at the end was wonderful. I appreciated the discussion of periods, childbirth, infertility, and abortion (how Celeste at first doesn't understand why a woman wouldn't want her child but then learns from the experience) and how none of it was demonized or looked down upon. I was also pleased by the way that there was nudity, but it didn't feel sexualized, just a woman living in her own skin.

And I will say that one of my absolute favorite things was when her brothers would call her their little sister.

There were also some story elements that just felt very open ended, like that Celeste was the only giant, which is sort of touched on and implied that there were other giants at one point, but the way the story presents it makes it seem like it was too long ago for Celeste to have been born from them. Also the way each chapter had it's own kind of story, but sometimes felt like there was way too much disconnect from the previous chapters. The passage of time was also kind of bizarre. From the time Celeste was about fourteen until the end she didn't seem to physically change at all, which made it hard to tell how much time was passing throughout the story and some of the deaths or appearances of her lovers later on a bit shocking when they had white hair and she looked the same as she did at fourteen. I first thought that meant she was supposed to have a longer life expectancy than humans or was maybe immortal, but the ending squashed that a bit, in my eyes anyway.

I both loved and was in different towards the ending. I loved that Celeste was able to have a happy and fulfilling life and we got a polyamorous relationship that was a woman and three men instead of the reverse where it's usually a man and more women. But I personally found the the last couple of pages a bit bland, as in literally the last couple of pages, and implications it left.

I loved the art style and found it fun and different, but had a hard time reading the font of the text (to be fair this could be because I was reading a digital copy, but it's still something to consider for accessibility).

Thank you to NetGalley, Diamond Book Distributors, and Magnetic Press for making this available in exchange for an honest review!

This is an utterly gorgeous, expansive graphic novel that tells a potent and emotive tale through the journey of Celeste.

Giantess is a larger than life story about a giant girl who can't help but make a huge impact on the world around her.

I was drawn to this graphic novel for it's cover and description, but I never expected the fairytale/fable inside to be so compelling. I think this story did an absolutely wonderful job of weaving in existing folklore to create an entirely new and unique fantasy story. It's also a huge graphic novel, with over two hundred illustrated pages that contain beautifully simple artwork that drives the narrative forward and keeps your attention on the page.

Celeste as a character is so flawed and feels very human. I never expected to follow her character from infancy to well into adulthood. Giantess handles it with grace, trying to navigate her teen years, early adulthood, and finally allowing Celeste to come into her own. Her choices aren't always right, but there is a strength and feminist undertone to her story and all the things that happen to her. The only parts of this book I didn't particularly enjoy were the scenes after she marries and is subjected to court life. Though I do think the narrative redeems itself at the end with Celeste and her trio of suitors.

This graphic novel is such a rare find. Overall, I can't help but give it five stars. While having a few faults and tough subjects tackled in the story, it does it's job well by telling the fantastical story of the Giantess, Celeste.

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Diamond Book Distributors, and Magnetic Press for providing me with a copy for an honest review!

I straight up loved this. It’s such an exploration of feminism and all of the ways that women exist in society, in the minds of others and themselves. The story is a journey of self and finding your place in the world but it’s more than that as well. At times it felt like a fairytale but it offers so many quiet truths for people, especially women now that it remains very relevant. And the art style is gorgeously executed. The loved every bit of this, all of the places and people Celeste meets and fights against or with throughout her life. Every time I thought we’d peaked and it would turn out happy, another curve ball hit and it became more complex again. Also the ending for this is lovely. A feminist masterpiece that graphic novel enthusiasts will love. I highly recommend picking it up.
Thank you so much to Netgalley and the publisher for this title.

3.5 stars

"Giantess" is a fantastic story already published in French and soon to be released in English later this year, with a unique plotline whose protagonist is a giant.

But not your average giant, no. You've never seen anyone like Celeste before, of that I'm fairly confident. Found abandoned as a baby in a ravine and rescued by a humble woodcutter, this oversized creature is adopted by him and his family of six sons, with whom she grows up to become a lively and larger-than-life girl, literally and figuratively. She leads an idyllic existence in a remote valley farm, innocent and loved, until one day the last of her six brothers has to leave the farm and seek their own future, leaving her alone. Celeste wants to leave too, experience life and see the world, but her parents don't allow her to, wanting to protect her from harm. And they do have a point, because one day the naïve giantess is tricked by an unscrupulous peddler into leaving her sheltered home for the big world.

Naïve youngsters that have never seen anything foreign are taken advantage of, naturally, and so is Celeste. But she's smart and has a natural talent for forming relationships, and she manages to extricate herself from her various predicaments, with the help of people she charms along the way. In the course of 200 pages, she'll have several adventures in rapid succession, that range from the usual Medieval Fantasy tropes to subversions of them. She'll meet a dreamy knight-errant, a scheming Inquisitor, a practical witch, a cheery theatrical troupe, a lovesick prince, a manipulative queen, a bunch of sirens, and a whole cast of characters from all walks in life from whom she'll learn and be taught in return. Ultimately, she realises her dream of creating a place where all she's ever dreamt of in terms of lifestyle and education for herself and others becomes a reality through communal effort by people she leads and protects.

It's a lovely narrative about acceptance, fighting prejudice, creating equality, and finding the meaning of home. It's uncomplicated, straightforward, and very engrossing. I do think it's sometimes too fast-paced and in need of deeper nuance for the characters, because sometimes their motivations aren't clear and they change suddenly for plot requirements, including Celeste, and there's loose threads left untouched, like the origins of the giant baby and her parentage. Sometimes, the tropes are a bit cartoony, too, and based on exaggerated myths. But the story overall reads fluidly and does drive the points across fine. I also thought the ending was too hippie-fantasy to be believable, although you could always point out that this is a fable and therefore skips plausibility in favour of metaphors. In that sense, it is a beautiful moral that this story contains.

Celeste is found all alone in the woods by her adopted father when she was just a baby.

She grows up well loved with her parents and six brothers, but wants to see what the world has to offer.

When she sets out she finds cruelty, deceit, fear, but also magic, love, and adventure.

I literally cannot wait to purchase a copy for my library's collection as well as my own personal collection. This is one of the best pieces of literature I have ever read. The artwork is fantastic, and the journey of the main character complex and odyssey like.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

GIANTESS by JC Deveney and Nuria Tanarit is a fantasy graphic novel that feels like a fairy tale. The story revolves around a giant baby girl who is raised in a family of regular humans. Her enormous size sets her apart from the rest of the people in the village. According to the description, the book is "a wonderous, fantastical tale of feminism, difference, love, freedom, and the quest to be oneself."

Overall, GIANTESS is a fantasy graphic novel that will appeal to fans of Gulliver's Travels or the fairy tales of Oscar Wilde. One highlight of this book is the fairy-tale-like atmosphere of the story. I am a huge fan of fantasy stories, so I was very interested in reading this book. I did take off 2 stars, because I just wasn't a huge fan of the artwork. The art was definitely unique and easy to look at, but it just didn't appeal to me personally. It reminded me a bit of the button people in Coraline. If you're intrigued by the description, you can check out this book when it comes out in October.