New Yorker cartoonist Lila Ash makes a revealing, surprisingly humorous graphic debut with Decodependence, with her vulnerable intention immediately divulged in her clever title: to decode her codependence. Opening with her first crush in fourth grade and capturing the toxic relationships that defined her adulthood, Ash both recounts and analyzes her actions in detailed full-color panels, all neatly arranged--as if the order on her pages could bring her life into balance. Ash announces each new chapter on the right, synchronized with text on the left describing a facet of codependent behavior. "Codependents often do not perceive themselves as lovable or worthwhile" prefaces "chapter two: daddy issues," in which she relives her parents' divorce and her devolving connection to her increasingly unreliable father. "Codependents often have trouble setting healthy priorities and boundaries" introduces "chapter four: a line in the sand," which recalls an inappropriate relationship with a guitar teacher. Her ongoing recovery continues to be a work in progress in "chapter eleven: a conclusion in two parts," as she announces: "Turns out codependents might have hope after all." She diligently works--despite "off days, often"--with the help of therapy, medications, and self-care to reclaim her autonomy.
Readers already familiar with Ash's cartoons in multiple publications will certainly be drawn to her memoir. And an official mental health diagnosis is hardly necessary to connect with the material here. While Ash revives her faltering youthful selves, she's the first to find humor amid the cringing regrets, and to allow a chuckle or two--or many. As voyeuristic as readers might feel with her most baring panels, so, too, will they likely encounter compassion and understanding. --Terry Hong, BookDragon