We’re All Just Fine

By Rebecca Schwarz

“In 2018, Ana Penyas became the first woman to win the National Comic Award in Spain for Estamos Todas Bien (We’re All Just Fine), a beautifully crafted work that brings to light her two grandmothers’ memories of struggle during General Francisco Franco’s dictatorship (1939-1975). Amplifying the voices of the survivors of Francoism has been central to Spain’s transitional justice, but these perspectives remain limited when works by, for and about women are the exception. [page 104]” from Esther Claudio’s Afterword to We’re All just Fine.

Yes, the story of Penyas’s two grandmothers is an award-winning and important graphic novel. It is also a warm and tender rendering of Herminia and Maruja’s lives. Their stories are beautifully realized, showing their own hopes, dreams, and struggles. Penyas skillfully portrays the complexity of her grandmothers’ experiences in a changing society through a braided recounting of their lives. The reader is given insight into the challenges the women must navigate both during, and in the aftermath of, the Franco dictatorship.

Penyas casts an unflinching eye on the often-crushing expectations of them as women, wives, and mothers. While both women are given voice, narrating their opinions and important events in their lives, much of the commentary is in the visual portrayal of these women. They are almost exclusively portrayed in their homes, doing the domestic work of raising a family and keeping house, while the other characters come and go pursuing school, work, and their dreams all of which take place elsewhere.

While showing the constraints that these women lived under, Penyas offers a nuanced view of the world of her grandmothers. Marriage and children defined their world but also offered its own joys and security. Being a wife and mother in a traditional family meant not having to work as a single woman outside the home where unwanted attention from men, or officials of the Franco regime, was a pervasive concern. Penyas manages to portray both the joys and disappointments of her grandmothers’ lives. Events and accomplishments are recollected by association and not in time order. Here again Penyas’s visual storytelling not only grounds us in the particular moment of the scene, it also illustrates the drastic cultural changes that were transforming Spain seen through the eyes of her grandmothers.

The story opens with the elder Maruja struggling and calling for help to get out of her chair. Throughout, there is a thoughtful commentary on the challenges and limitations of aging. These women who have built their whole lives around home and family, regularly find themselves alone, when families do what they often do: husbands die, children grow up and leave to pursue their own lives. Their children and grandchildren are loving but also busy and cannot visit as often as hoped. Both grandmothers live alone in their respective apartments, but Maruja’s mobility issues are more severe. While it is not an overt theme of the story, Penyas portrays these challenges clearly. Set against the backdrop of Maruja’s lovingly decorated apartment, it invites the reader to consider what may be weighing on Maruja’s mind, too; the day when she will have to leave her home for a care facility.

One of the most striking aspects of the novel is Penyas’s artwork. Her illustrations combine drawing, painting, and collage. They are all rendered in a limited palette that creates a cohesive look to the visuals while subtly signaling the compound limitations of being a woman in their era while living under the Franco dictatorship.

We’re All Just Fine invites the reader to reflect on the nature of freedom and fulfillment. It is written in a feminist perspective that is more reflective than judgmental. It is a story of family and friendships, the choices and relationships that add up to a life.

This is a subtle and quietly stunning story, and it deserves your attention.

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Previously a public librarian, Rebecca is, currently an administrative and program coordinator at the College of Pharmacy at The University of Texas at Austin. She is pursuing a master’s degree in Humanities in Health and Medicine.