Review: ‘Little Victories: Autism Through A Father’s Eyes’ Is Inspirational

This comic is by writer/artist Yvon Roy. It is an autobiographical tale of Roy raising his son. A son who happens to be on the Autism Spectrum. Despite this being a story about parenting such a child there are some universal truths about caring for a kid. Therefore it is possible adults with neurotypical children will find something to relate to in this tale. Also it may give those with certain types of autism a slight understanding of their parents. Yet, the methods Roy relates as being useful for helping his son will not work on every autistic, thus this is not a manual.

Roy masterfully relates moments in a way that keeps the focus where it should be. Thus Roy allows readers to see things as he remembers. He also attempts to relate things very slightly from other peoples’ point of view, particularly his son’s. Although the writing is masterful sometimes symbolism occurs in the story that maybe to the detriment of the reader. Specifically when it occurs in the text via a language that is not English. Luckily his art combines with his writing to help translate the various forms of symbolism. The only major flaw in the writing is a few typos.

Roy uses grays, blacks, and whites to create a sense of color in this interiors that lack them. While his art style falls somewhere between the styles of artist/writer Lynn Johnston and artist/writer Garry Trudeau. Mainly this is due to his characters looking realistic, yet slightly cartoonish. As for the cover it features a slightly different design for Roy’s analog Mark, due to a rounder head. Lastly, the cover’s colors create a sense of warmth which elevates some art to make it look enticing. Although the difference between the cover’s colors and the interiors’ colors may turn off some readers.

Little Victories: Autism Through A Father’s Eyes (2021) is out now from Titan Comics.