Srdcovka
(Sweetheart) Book not yet available in English
Summary:
The main character, Štěpánka, guides us through her intimate experiences from puberty to the present day, exploring the unwritten rules of love and relationships. Štěpánka’s ideas about relationships were shaped by living with her parents in a housing estate in the 1990s, popular magazines for girls at the time, and TV series from the West. The author reflects on the world of online dating and chat rooms, modern apps often associated with casual sex or toxic relationships. She takes us through college parties and feelings of loneliness, challenges ideas about what it means to be a young woman or man, and also confides her own experience of abuse.
Edited by: Gender Studies, o p.s. - Knihovna Jiřiny Šiklové
Comment:
This autobiographical graphic novel captures the dynamics and complexity of adolescence and early adulthood, relationships, and sex in the modern internet-obsessed world. The author describes her experiences in a college art environment, where she often encountered alcohol and frequently problematic romantic relationships. The book avoids stereotypical views of relationships between men and women and does not shy away from difficult topics such as power imbalances and sexual harassment.