In a near-futuristic Roman Empire, scores of subjugated drivers compete and survive in a cruel, destructive game known as Truckus Maximus.
Overseen by the Dominus, an omnipresent gamemaster that bends and twists the rules in an instant, the game dangles the promise of freedom to whichever driver can win 100 races and achieve the coveted rank of Centurion. Enter Axl, lead driver of Team Apollo, who’s racking up win after win in an impressive feat of ambition. When Axl recruits a headstrong young driver named Piston, it seems as if he’s courting disaster. The girl’s impressive string of damaging losses hurtles her toward the bottom of the rankings despite Axl’s training efforts. Piston’s unorthodox driving style, however, soon proves advantageous. Axl, meanwhile, scores his 99th win. As his final race approaches, the honor-bound hero must contend with the attention of the whole Roman Empire, including the malevolent Caesar. Thanks to the incisive probing of the crushing power of spectacle via a focus on the game and its toll on the drivers, the story evokes oppressive regimes. The gritty artwork overflows with frenetic action, using colors that evoke a dystopian world. Ample use of close-ups, irregular panel layouts, and other techniques sharpen the story’s emotional resonance and stakes. Diversity in the multiethnic cast presents mainly via skin color; Axl has brown skin and hair, and Piston is light-skinned and blonde.
A truly marvelous tribute to underdogs. (Graphic fantasy. 12-18)Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-59643-814-9
Page Count: 288
Publisher: First Second
Review Posted Online: Aug. 28, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2019
Categories: GENERAL GRAPHIC NOVELS & COMICS | SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY
Did you like this book?
A dangerous quest to feed an impoverished land leads to chance encounters and awe-inspiring sights.
Shuna, the prince of a humble, struggling country, acts on the advice of a dying traveler from an Eastern land to seek out seeds that will grow bountiful grains. What he finds is a hostile city built on greed with an active slave trade. After meeting Thea and her little sister, Shuna fights to free them from enslavers. Every scene in this cinematic work stands apart with breathtaking watercolors aided by expert staging and blocking. The sights along Shuna’s journey range from a derelict ship in a treacherous desert to supernatural creatures and settings. The certainty and simplicity of Shuna’s motivations along with Thea’s own narrative arc allow the story to move nimbly from one larger-than-life spectacle to another. The pages read right-to-left manga style, while large panels and minimal dialogue create an immediate, immersive experience for readers. The narration sits outside or along the edges of panels, allowing the lush visuals maximum room to impress. Afterwords from the author and translator describe the story’s roots in a Tibetan folktale as well as comparisons to Miyazaki’s later animated works; this story, translated from Japanese, was originally published in Japan in 1983 before Miyazaki rose to fame with Studio Ghibli. The story’s cultural origins are cued through characters’ garb and other visual elements.
A reimagined folktale as grand as its painted visuals are sublime. (Graphic fiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-250-84652-5
Page Count: 160
Publisher: First Second
Review Posted Online: Aug. 3, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2022
Did you like this book?
PERSPECTIVES
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
Did you like this book?
© Copyright 2023 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
