A must-read for fans of a blossoming hero.
Welcome, one and all, to the marvelous Haly’s Circus, home of the dazzling Flying Graysons!
Summer’s arrived for young Dick Grayson, who feels trapped performing alongside his mother and father as part of Haly’s legendary act. Dwindling attendance numbers, however, offer much to worry about. Haly’s fortunes take a turn for the worse when a competing carnival sets up nearby. Crowds flock over to the Lost Carnival, a world “of unexplainable delights, and unfathomable dangers.” Dick quickly falls hard for the magical Luciana, a girl with a tragic, mysterious past, and the smitten pair soon embark on a summer romance destined for heartache. As tensions flare up between the circus and carnival, Dick notices something off about the otherworldly carnival. When his best friend, Willow, falls prey to a powerful spell, Dick must unearth the truth. In this brooding coming-of-age tale, Moreci’s portrait of Dick from the early days before he met Batman gives prominence to his relationship with his parents and, by extension, his life at Haly’s and the independence he craves. Though Luciana exists more as Dick’s dream girl than a fully fledged character, their professed hopes and doubts prove to be startlingly moving. The moody artwork—awash in glum blues for Dick and golden yellows for Luciana—nicely reinforces the tale’s themes. Both Luciana and Willow are girls of color in an almost entirely white cast.
A must-read for fans of a blossoming hero. (Graphic fantasy. 12-16)Pub Date: May 5, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4012-9102-0
Page Count: 208
Publisher: DC
Review Posted Online: Feb. 25, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Pairing art from an earlier, self-published edition to a newly adapted text, Hinds retells the old tale as a series of dark, bloody, chaotic clashes. Here Grendel is a glaring, black monster with huge teeth, corded muscles and a tendency to smash or bite off adversaries’ heads; the dragon is all sinuous viciousness; and Beowulf, mighty of thew, towers over his fellow Geats. The narrative, boxed off from the illustrations rather than incorporated into them, runs to lines like, “Bid my brave warriors O Wiglaf, to build a lofty cairn for me upon the sea-cliffs . . . ” and tends to disappear when the fighting starts. Because the panels are jumbled together on the page, the action is sometimes hard to follow, but this makes a strongly atmospheric alternative to the semi-abstract Beowulf, the Legend, by Stephen L. Antczak and James C. Bassett, illus by Andy Lee (2006), or the more conventionally formatted version of Michael Morpurgo, with pictures by Michael Foreman (2006). (Graphic fiction. 12-15)
Pub Date: April 1, 2007
ISBN: 978-0-7636-3022-5
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2007
A refreshingly disability-positive superhero origin story.
Nijkamp (contributor: His Hideous Heart, 2019, etc.) reimagines the backstory of Oracle, computer genius and ally to Batman.
When skilled hacker Barbara “Babs” Gordon and her best friend, Benjamin, attempt to intervene in a robbery, Babs is shot. Six weeks later, the newly paralyzed Babs reluctantly rolls into the Arkham Center for Independence, where teens with disabilities undergo physical and emotional rehabilitation. Despite her father’s well-meaning advice, Babs resents being there. Even the mysterious cries within the mansion’s walls can’t lift the teen’s despondence—until Jena, a burn survivor full of haunting tales, disappears. Aided by supportive patients Yeong and Issy, whom she gradually befriends, Babs must accept her new reality in order to find Jena and escape a sinister plot. The author sensitively portrays Babs’ frustration and trauma and realistically addresses her challenges, such as mastering wheelchair ramps and negotiating stairs. Babs’ increasing self-confidence is heartening, and the message that people with disabilities don’t need to be “fixed” in order to thrive is empowering (albeit slightly heavy-handed). Balancing bright and dark colors, Preitano’s (contributor: Puerto Rico Strong, 2018, etc.) illustrations vividly convey Babs’ anger and determination, and a jigsaw-puzzle motif reflects Babs’ quest to piece together her new identity as well as the institution’s secret. Most characters present white. Yeong, who walks with forearm crutches, is cued through her name as Korean; Issy, who uses a wheelchair, presents black.
A refreshingly disability-positive superhero origin story. (Graphic fantasy. 12-16)Pub Date: March 10, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4012-9066-5
Page Count: 208
Publisher: DC
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2020
PERSPECTIVES
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