by Doug TenNapel & illustrated by Doug TenNapel ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 1, 2012
Utterly brilliant
An out-of-the-box story of golems, guys and guts.
Though dealing with the recent death of his mother, Cam and his father are trying to make the best of a difficult time. Currently unemployed and virtually penniless, Cam’s father buys him the only birthday present he can afford: a cardboard box. From the get-go, it is apparent that this is no ordinary cardboard: It comes with a list of rules, which Cam’s father casually dismisses. In an attempt to make the bland box more exciting, his father fashions a cardboard man, a boxer he names Bill, who undergoes a Pinocchio-like transformation and becomes a loyal friend. The animated man catches the interest of menacing Marcus, a well-off, wide-eyed, fish-lipped bully, who steals the cardboard for his own malicious intent. When Marcus’ plans go horribly, terribly awry, he discovers that he needs one thing that money can’t buy: a friend to help him. TenNapel’s story is edge-of-your-seat exciting, but what really drives home this clever outing are the added complexities and thought-provoking questions it asks of its reader, specifically examining what constitutes “good” and “bad,” and how to change how one is labeled. The result? An exceptionally seamless blend of action and philosophy, two elements that usually do not mix easily; TenNapel handles this masterfully.
Utterly brilliant . (Graphic fantasy. 10 & up)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-545-41872-0
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Graphix/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: June 12, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2012
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More by Doug TenNapel
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by Doug TenNapel ; illustrated by Doug TenNapel
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by Doug TenNapel ; illustrated by Doug TenNapel
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by Doug TenNapel & illustrated by Doug TenNapel
adapted by Gareth Hinds & illustrated by Gareth Hinds ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 2010
Hinds adds another magnificent adaptation to his oeuvre (King Lear, 2009, etc.) with this stunning graphic retelling of Homer’s epic. Following Odysseus’s journey to return home to his beloved wife, Penelope, readers are transported into a world that easily combines the realistic and the fantastic. Gods mingle with the mortals, and not heeding their warnings could lead to quick danger; being mere men, Odysseus and his crew often make hasty errors in judgment and must face challenging consequences. Lush watercolors move with fluid lines throughout this reimagining. The artist’s use of color is especially striking: His battle scenes are ample, bloodily scarlet affairs, and Polyphemus’s cave is a stifling orange; he depicts the underworld as a colorless, mirthless void, domestic spaces in warm tans, the all-encircling sea in a light Mediterranean blue and some of the far-away islands in almost tangibly growing greens. Don’t confuse this hefty, respectful adaptation with some of the other recent ones; this one holds nothing back and is proudly, grittily realistic rather than cheerfully cartoonish. Big, bold, beautiful. (notes) (Graphic classic. YA)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-7636-4266-2
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Sept. 15, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2010
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by Kristin Cashore ; adapted by Gareth Hinds ; illustrated by Gareth Hinds
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adapted by Gareth Hinds ; illustrated by Gareth Hinds
BOOK REVIEW
by Gareth Hinds illustrated by Gareth Hinds
by Velinxi ; illustrated by Velinxi ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 8, 2022
A captivating read for teens, especially those who enjoy e-sports.
A talented gamer hides her identity and competes in an e-sports tournament.
Sixteen-year-old Vicky Tan lives in the shadow of her older brother, Virgil, an e-sports champion and her legal guardian. Virgil always speaks for her, believes she hates video games, and chooses food she doesn’t like, making it hard to communicate with him. Little does he know, Vicky has a secret: She not only loves playing Xenith Orion, the game he also plays, she’s extremely talented and dreams of one day playing on stage and winning a tournament. Between her brother’s unpredictability and the harassment and scrutiny women face in the male-dominated field, Vicky prefers playing as Aegis, her powerful alter ego. When the game developers announce an open tournament, Vicky and some new friends have the chance to realize their dreams. This is an emotion-filled story of family, friendship, growth, and identity based on a popular webcomic. Even readers unfamiliar with gaming will be able to enjoy it, as it includes enough explanation and background information. As the story develops, the misogynistic tendencies of the e-sports world are exposed, bringing awareness to the issue. Virgil and Vicky’s sibling relationship also portrays the fine line between being protective and overbearingly toxic. Vicky and Virgil are cued Chinese American; there is a diverse cast of secondary characters.
A captivating read for teens, especially those who enjoy e-sports. (Graphic fiction. 13-18)Pub Date: Nov. 8, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-5248-7649-4
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2022
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