An exciting and thought-provoking compilation.
A brilliant, misunderstood girl with autism uses her impressive intelligence to protect her home from interdimensional intruders in Bennett and Martin’s debut YA comic collection.
Glamorella is a much-commercialized superhero whose powers include flight and superstrength. But this volume, collecting the first four issues of the L.P. Comics title of the same name, isn't about her; instead, the star is her young daughter, Comet, who has autism. She’s unfazed by her mother’s fame and spends time with her exuberant friend Isaac (who has superheroic aspirations of his own). Her challenges include social events, such as dances and birthday parties. In this story, Comet helps her father, “interspace” researcher Emmett Emeagwali, fix his computer code to shut down an interdimensional portal after Steve, one of his scientists, is yanked inside it. Steve is pulled into the dimension from which Emmett rescued Glamorella 13 years prior; it tuns out that Glamorella’s father, the king, wants Steve’s assistance in bringing her back. Steve manages to reopen the portal, and the king’s squirrel-shaped minion goes through it, captures Emmett, and takes him back to the faraway dimension. As Comet’s only remaining parent, Glamorella refuses to go through the portal to rescue Emmett. So Comet sneaks out and, aided by Isaac and her frenemy Betsy, breaks into Emmett’s facility in a bid to save him. Bennett and Martin subtly weave Comet’s autism into the story and intriguingly make her a latchkey kid of divorced parents, with a mom who can be called into action at any time and a dad’s who’s lost in his work. The book points out that having a superhero for a parent isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be, and Bennett is unafraid to tackle other difficult subjects, as when Glamorella’s vile publicist warns her to keep Comet’s activities with Isaac, who’s undocumented, off of social media because “the optics are bad.” While gleefully employing such comic-book staples as monsters and other dimensions, Bennett gives plenty of substance to Comet’s everyday life.
An exciting and thought-provoking compilation.Pub Date: June 15, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-943988-34-1
Page Count: 104
Publisher: Literati Press Comics and Novels
Review Posted Online: June 17, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
Problem-solving through perseverance and friendship is the real win in this deeply smart and inspiring story.
Leaving Brooklyn behind, Black math-whiz and puzzle lover Bree starts a new life in Florida, where she’ll be tossed into the deep end in more ways than one. Keeping her head above water may be the trickiest puzzle yet.
While her dad is busy working and training in IT, Bree struggles at first to settle into Enith Brigitha Middle School, largely due to the school’s preoccupation with swimming—from the accomplishments of its namesake, a Black Olympian from Curaçao, to its near victory at the state swimming championships. But Bree can’t swim. To illustrate her anxiety around this fact, the graphic novel’s bright colors give way to gray thought bubbles with thick, darkened outlines expressing Bree’s deepest fears and doubts. This poignant visual crowds some panels just as anxious feelings can crowd the thoughts of otherwise star students like Bree. Ultimately, learning to swim turns out to be easy enough with the help of a kind older neighbor—a Black woman with a competitive swimming past of her own as well as a rich and bittersweet understanding of Black Americans’ relationship with swimming—who explains to Bree how racist obstacles of the past can become collective anxiety in the present. To her surprise, Bree, with her newfound water skills, eventually finds herself on the school’s swim team, navigating competition, her anxiety, and new, meaningful relationships.
Problem-solving through perseverance and friendship is the real win in this deeply smart and inspiring story. (Graphic fiction. 10-13)Pub Date: May 17, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-06-305677-0
Page Count: 256
Publisher: HarperAlley
Review Posted Online: March 1, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
Like the pathfinders, readers will be crying, “Plus Ultra!” and hoping for the next adventure.
Five intrepid, young pathfinders explore the environmentally volatile Windrose Valley in search of a fabled treasure.
Deep in Windrose Valley awaits an adventurous summer at Camp Pathfinder, founded by a renowned, eccentric pioneer named Henry Merriweather. Merriweather’s fixation on finding the legendary Windrose treasure serves as a grand catalyst for the campers’ quest. The eclectic group of campers—newcomer Kyle, history buff Beth, zany magician-in-training Harry, cheerleader/math queen Vic, and tinkerer Nate—sets off, running all over town to find Merriweather’s baroque tile markers. Eventually, their efforts lead them to the Merriweather Estate, where the campers slowly uncover the mystery behind the Moon Tower catastrophe. Shortly after the bizarre incident, Merriweather disappeared, and the town’s fortunes failed. As the adolescent pathfinders near the trail toward the Moon Tower and inch ever closer to the treasure, they learn more about the mythical Merriweather and his infamous obsession. Sedita, Seraydarian, and Hamaker’s series debut zips along nicely, mixing cryptic teases with affable characters. Though the quieter moments rarely make much of an impact, the authors’ exposition-heavy worldbuilding incites enthusiasm for the campers’ endeavor. The hints of magic in the snappy illustrations add another layer of allure. Featuring flashes of time slips and a racially diverse cast, this graphic novel hits all the right spots for the inevitable sequel.
Like the pathfinders, readers will be crying, “Plus Ultra!” and hoping for the next adventure. (Fantasy. 8-12)Pub Date: April 21, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-425-29186-3
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Jan. 20, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
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