Oh Brother (Georgina Chadderton, Penguin)

Oh Brother by Georgina Chadderton is a warm, perceptive middle-grade graphic memoir about growing up alongside a sibling with high support needs. Set in the early 2000s, the book follows Gina’s childhood in Adelaide with her younger brother, Rob, who is autistic and has an intellectual disability. Chadderton opens by acknowledging that language and terminology around autism and disability have changed significantly since the time the story is set, an important framing that will help contemporary readers aged 9 and up engage thoughtfully with the memoir. Alongside caring for Rob, Gina is on the brink of major personal changes as she starts high school. When she befriends Callie, Gina begins to feel more hopeful. Rather than being driven by high-stakes conflict, the narrative is largely explanatory, reflecting the book’s aim to inform and normalise lived experience. Chadderton’s artwork has a classic comic sensibility. Clean linework and strong blocks of colour keep the pages easy to read, while subtle visual shifts – such as exaggerated expressions or intrusive thought bubbles – capture Gina’s inner world. Interspersed throughout are pages from Gina’s notebook, rendered in a looser, hand-drawn style to illustrate character traits and Rob’s routines. Gina is an endearing protagonist readers will quickly warm to and root for. While the book captures the challenges and frustrations of siblinghood in this context, it ultimately centres love, empathy and resilience.

Books+Publishing reviewer: Jess Lomas is the reviews editor at Books+Publishing. Books+Publishing is Australia’s number-one source of pre-publication book reviews.

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Category: Reviews