There is a truthfulness to these anecdotes that read separately might seem stiff and boring to those of us not used to this type of storytelling. In fact, a few of the early tales – some a couple of pages, several a little longer than that – seem odd and even a little off-putting (perhaps a little too French?), like a loose grab bag of tenuously connected vignettes. But soon enough the work finds its footing, a cohesive story arc begins to take shape, and Get A Life begins to read like a good novel.

Though both the writing and art are shared equally between Dupuy and Berberian, one would be hard pressed to find much difference between them throughout the collection, probably owing to the long creative partnership the two have shared over the years. The book reads just as we might expect real people of this age and time to sound like, with dialog that is literate, but not overly so, and witty, though rarely laugh out loud funny. The art seems flat (virtually no shading at all) and European in flavor, like one might find in a Tin-Tin collection, but with far more cartoonish exaggeration; Jean, for example, has a massively over-shaped nose that seems to cover half his face. But it all works because the pages are bright and colorful and seem ready to burst with life.

It’s kind of difficult to discern what exactly is it that makes this collection so engaging, especially to the average American comic reader, who might be put off by the definite European – okay, FRENCH – vibe that it exudes, but perhaps it would be best described as the ‘universality’ of the stories. These are slices of life told from the perspective of two men who had lived that lifestyle and thus know from what they speak (and write and draw). The bonus for Americans is getting a peek into the window of another culture. One in which we learn that though the USA and France might disagree on many things it seems that their countrymen are human just like the rest of us. 

Grade: A-