Blue Pills: A Positive Love Story by Frederik Peeters
Adult Graphic Novels - Main Level - BLU
Blue Pills is an autobiographical graphic novel that chronicles the relationship between the author/illustrator Frederick Peeters, his girlfriend Cati, and her three-year-old son. As Frederick and Cati grow closer, she must reveal that both her and her son are HIV positive. Where many might run from the relationship or fall into the trap of pity, Peeters reacts by embracing his love for Cati, albeit cautiously. With the help of a doctor who is as Peeters describes actually “human,” the two learn that the boundaries the virus creates sexually and psychologically can be broken down. With its simple monochromatic illustrations and frank and unsentimental perspective, Blue Pills is the type of book that can easily be read in one sitting. However, Peeters' true skill is his ability to turn a harrowing subject on its head and find the good in it.