Welcome to the world of Marlys and Maybonne
Lynda Barry's comics were my YA, before YA really even existed. She's
been writing teen stories with an incredibly clear voice since the early
80s. [The Greatest Of Marlys] is raw, ugly, hilarious, and poignant.
--Raina Telgemeier, Smile & Drama
Eight-year-old Marlys Mullen is Lynda Barry's most famous character from
her long-running and landmark comic strip Ernie Pook's Comeek, and for
good reason! Given her very own collection of strips, Marlys shines in
all her freckled and pig-tailed groovy glory. The trailer park where she
and her family live is the grand stage for her dramas big and small.
Joining Marlys are her teenaged sister Maybonne, her younger brother
Freddie, their mother, and an offbeat array of family members,
neighbors, and classmates.
Marlys's enthusiasm for life knows no bounds. Her childhood is one where
the neighborhood kids stay out all night playing kickball; the desire to
be popular is unending; bullies are unrepentant; and parents make few
appearances. The Greatest Of Marlys spotlights Barry's masterful skill
of chronicling childhood through adolescence in all of its wonder,
awkwardness, humor, and pain.