When we meet Eagle Valiant Brosi, he is a long-haired commune kid, bullied by other kids, teachers, and his neighbors. And because of his speech impediment, Eagle observessilently and often. Mom--a classic earthy, free spirit prone to discursive lectures on naturalmedicine and the efficacy of certain plants--is the only one who really cares. So Eagle letsothers talk and talk and talk, revealing their true natures and selfish (sometimes evenselfless) motivations.

In Black Cohosh, Eagle pieces together the puzzling and hurtful things he has been told ashe takes his first, tragic steps into adulthood. While things may seem grim, Brosi'sdrawings are loose and limber, stretching and falling across each page. His cast of hippiearchetypes come with iconic thatches of hair, bushy beards, and scrawny, gesticulatingarms. Black Cohosh is a captivating debut from a natural storyteller with the expert timingof a veteran comedian and the soothing empathy of a death doula.