A sad and touching story of 3 generations of Italian immigrant men, simply trying t figure out life and coping with age, illness and a lot of regrets.

'Macaroni!' by Zabus with art by Thomas Campi is a graphic novel with some nice heart and humor.

Young Romeo has to spend time with his grandfather, the 'old pain-in-the-butt' when his parents start having marital problems. At first, the two barely talk, but at the urging of a cute neighbor girl, Romeo begins to break the ice. He learns about this Italian immigrant now living in Belgium. He learns how his grandfather lost his thumb. He learns why the pig is named Mussolini, and what happens to pigs that live in the yard.

I really liked this story and the art has a sort of watercolor style to it that fits the story very well. The story concludes with essays on where the ideas came from and the successful drama that it was turned in to. I'm glad I got a chance to read this.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Europe Comics and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

Macaroni! is a sad and slow-paced story about memories, the past and above all, life. The story is set in Belgium where a 11-year-old Romeo is learning to know his grandpa. Romeo's dad dumped him there for the summer vacation and the boy has to work and tend the pig, Mussolini. The grandpa is an Italian immigrant and the past now haunts him due to Alzheimer's. Romeo gets to know about his past and the choices he had to make, and also he needs to battle his own demons as his parents are getting a divorce. The gap between the grandson and grandpa is huge, they are from different centuries and the clashes are big and makes you think. In a way there's hardly anything in the comic, but it's perfect like that. The minimal movement and the beautiful sorrow in it makes the reading truly a pleasure. Also, the historical setting is interesting and I didn't know about the Italian immigrants in Belgium.

The art is simple and like a light scratch. The panel structure is wonderful in its simplicity and the movement is great. The story is easy to read and it moves a lot without words just with the atmosphere alone. The colors are deep and rich like the autumn. The combination of art and colors is very rich and really, the best possible. In a way I wished the comic would've been longer, since I would've wanted to know more about the war and the past and to get inside grandpa's head. Macaroni! is a wonderful comic for both kids and adults.

This is a lovely story about a young boy who goes to stay with his grandfather. He doesn't really know his grandfather that well and he doesn't like staying with him, but as the days pass he gets to understand his grandfather as a person. He also gets to know a bit more about his grandfather's life. All of this is set against the backdrop of the young boy's life, but change is coming to his own life as well and it is his grandfather's story that will help him get through the change.

I thought the art was lovely with such bright and beautiful colouring and I also enjoyed reading the story because the underlying message in the story is that people should value the time that they have and live as fully as possible. It is also an underlying message about the importance of dreams and family. My only disappointment was the abrupt ending but I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

Copy provided by publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

This is a heartbreakingly beautiful graphic novel. Loved the little bits of Italian too.

I received this ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I enjoyed reading this. I’ve never read a memoir in this format before.

This is a deceptively simple book - it's not just about a young lad with his modern, cosseted, city way, struggling when forced to live with his smelly old grandfather and work on the man's vegetable plot. It's about family history, the silence inherent in man and his reluctance to share, and so much more. The book doesn't really have to be about Italian immigrants to anywhere, either, for I saw it as pretty much universal. I really was pleasantly surprised by this, and the artwork for the ghosts when they turn up is just exceptional, turning them into blotched images, rather like a bodged and incomplete Banksy figure. Definitely a book to recommend.

I was drawn into this lovely comic from the fabulous cover. Great artwork (I love the palette)! A very sweet story.