A fantastical series-starter with sumptuous art, delightful dialogue, and lovable characters.
A heroic mushroom works tirelessly to maintain balance in his magical hidden world in Bly’s graphic novel.
Outside the veil of human perception is a magical world, Glöd, created by the Gödels, a mysterious, ancient group. When the Candle Fly, an important crystal with life-altering magic, is stolen from the small village of Pertwee, Gowlitrot the Gardener is sent to find it and bring it back. His friend, Ranger Erdagaude, is the presumed culprit, so, in addition to the Candle Fly, Gowlitrot seeks answers about his friend’s apparent betrayal. But when he does find her, he is only left with more questions. The worldbuilding is gradual; Bly weaves details about the setting into the narrative using flashbacks and alternating point-of-view characters. The inhabitants of Pertwee are a diverse menagerie of fairy-like creatures, ranging from rodentlike Grekin to the goblin-inspired Chief. Gowlitrot self-identifies as a Tridipidean, “a species of sentient bipedal basidiomyc-…er, well, mushroom.” Gowlitrot is a Ranger; he explains there are two other types of his species: Magi, who are unseen in this volume, and Knights, to whom readers are introduced in the imposing figure of Primrod. Rendered in vivid, colorful detail in Bly’s illustrations, the creatures of Glöd are a combination of creepy and cute, in the manner of Tim Burton characters. Their diction matches their adorable/weird designs; absurd phrases, like “I can see your Filbert,” “you’ve made me squirt out a cuss,” and “mind yer clompers, ya goose!” dominate the dialogue, endearing the populace to the reader. Much of the story is told from Gowlitrot’s perspective, but others’ perceptions of him complicate the character in compelling ways (the aforementioned Grekin seems to idolize Gowlitrot while side character Mr. Perchant considers him a fascist). Though it lacks a satisfying resolution, this series-starter hooks the reader sufficiently to return for further installments of the whimsical fantasy story.
A fantastical series-starter with sumptuous art, delightful dialogue, and lovable characters.Pub Date: March 5, 2024
ISBN: 9781960578792
Page Count: 112
Publisher: Mad Cave Studios
Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A clever and timely conversation on reclaiming identity and acknowledging one’s full worth.
Superman confronts racism and learns to accept himself with the help of new friends.
In this graphic-novel adaptation of the 1940s storyline entitled “The Clan of the Fiery Cross” from The Adventures of Superman radio show, readers are reintroduced to the hero who regularly saves the day but is unsure of himself and his origins. The story also focuses on Roberta Lee, a young Chinese girl. She and her family have just moved from Chinatown to Metropolis proper, and mixed feelings abound. Jimmy Olsen, Lois Lane’s colleague from the Daily Planet, takes a larger role here, befriending his new neighbors, the Lees. An altercation following racial slurs directed at Roberta’s brother after he joins the local baseball team escalates into an act of terrorism by the Klan of the Fiery Kross. What starts off as a run-of-the-mill superhero story then becomes a nuanced and personal exploration of the immigrant experience and blatant and internalized racism. Other main characters are White, but Black police inspector William Henderson fights his own battles against prejudice. Clean lines, less-saturated coloring, and character designs reminiscent of vintage comics help set the tone of this period piece while the varied panel cuts and action scenes give it a more modern sensibility. Cantonese dialogue is indicated through red speech bubbles; alien speech is in green.
A clever and timely conversation on reclaiming identity and acknowledging one’s full worth. (author’s note, bibliography) (Graphic fiction. 13-adult)Pub Date: May 12, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-77950-421-0
Page Count: 240
Publisher: DC
Review Posted Online: Feb. 29, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A Rand primer with pictures.
A graphic novel for devotees of Ayn Rand.
With its men who have become gods through rugged individualism, the fiction of Ayn Rand has consistently had something of a comic strip spirit to it. So the mating of Rand and graphic narrative would seem to be long overdue, with her 1938 novella better suited to a quick read than later, more popular work such as The Fountainhead (1943) and the epic Atlas Shrugged (1957). As Anthem shows, well before the Cold War (or even World War II), Rand was railing against the evils of any sort of collectivism and the stifling of individualism, warning that this represented a return to the Dark Ages. Here, her allegory hammers the point home. It takes place in the indeterminate future, a period after “the Great Rebirth” marked an end of “the Unmentionable Times.” Now people have numbers as names and speak of themselves as “we,” with no concept of “I.” The hero, drawn to stereotypical, flowing-maned effect by illustrator Staton, knows himself as Equality 7-2521 and knows that “it is evil to be superior.” A street sweeper, he stumbles upon the entrance to a tunnel, where he discovers evidence of scientific advancement, from a time when “men knew secrets that we have lost.” He inevitably finds a nubile mate. He calls her “the Golden One.” She calls him “the Unconquered.” Their love, of course, is forbidden, and not just because she is 17. After his attempt to play Prometheus, bringing light to a society that prefers the dark, the two escape to the “uncharted forest,” where they are Adam and Eve. “I have my mind. I shall live my own truth,” he proclaims, having belatedly discovered the first-person singular. The straightforward script penned by Santino betrays no hint of tongue-in-cheek irony.
A Rand primer with pictures.Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-451-23217-5
Page Count: 144
Publisher: NAL/Berkley
Review Posted Online: Dec. 2, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2010
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