Total catnip for this feline’s fans.
An iconic character morphs from panels to prose and back to panels.
Based on the 2018 Maas novel of the same name, Simonson’s graphic adaptation faithfully follows its predecessor, introducing readers to Selina Kyle, a gifted student and gymnast who has an abusive mother and a younger sister, Maggie, who has cystic fibrosis. Selina turns to a life of crime with the League of Assassins in order to pay the astronomical bills for Maggie’s medical treatments. When Selina arrives in Gotham City (disguised as socialite Holly Vanderhees) she meets wealthy and enigmatic neighbor Luke Fox. Both Luke and Selina harbor secret alter egos, but their chemistry—both with masks and without—is palpable. When Maggie’s condition takes a turn, Selina launches her own dangerous scheme to save her, bumping elbows with recognizable characters such as Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy, and the Joker. Dodge’s shadowy black-and-white art, accentuated with well-placed bursts of color, perfectly captures the tenor of crime-laden Gotham. Simonson’s reimagining switches points of view from Selina to Luke, clueing its audience in by speech bubble colors. With the popularity of high-octane franchises like the DC Extended Universe and Marvel Cinematic Universe, this should have wide appeal based on name recognition alone, even if this offering feels somewhat diluted. Most characters, including Selina, appear White; Luke reads as Black, and Harley and Poison Ivy have a romantic relationship.
Total catnip for this feline’s fans. (Graphic adventure. 12-18)Pub Date: June 1, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-4012-9641-4
Page Count: 208
Publisher: DC
Review Posted Online: June 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
A solid introduction for budding lovers of the Bard.
Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.
The timeless tale of the young and disaffected Danish prince who is pushed to avenge his father’s untimely murder at the hands of his brother unfolds with straightforward briskness. Shakespeare’s text has been liberally but judiciously cut, staying true to the thematic meaning while dispensing with longer speeches (with the notable exception of the renowned “to be or not to be” soliloquy) and intermediary dialogues. Some of the more obscure language has been modernized, with a glossary of terms provided at the end; despite these efforts, readers wholly unfamiliar with the story might struggle with independent interpretation. Where this adaptation mainly excels is in its art, especially as the play builds to its tensely wrought final act. Illustrator Kumar (World War Two, 2015, etc.) pairs richly detailed interiors and exteriors with painstakingly rendered characters, each easily distinguished from their fellows through costume, hairstyle, and bearing. Human figures are generally depicted in bust or three-quarter shots, making the larger panels of full figures all the more striking. Heavily scored lines of ink form shadows, lending the otherwise bright pages a gritty air. All characters are white.
A solid introduction for budding lovers of the Bard. (biography of Shakespeare, dramatis personae, glossary) (Graphic novel. 12-18)Pub Date: Aug. 27, 2019
ISBN: 978-93-81182-51-2
Page Count: 90
Publisher: Campfire
Review Posted Online: July 12, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2019
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