Tokyo Ghost, Vol. 1 Review

Tokyo Ghost, Volume 1: Atomic Garden. Rick Remender and Sean Murphy. 2016. Image Comics. 136 pages.

Rating: 5/5

I've only read a few things by Rick Remender, but man have they been entertaining. This book is no exception. It is set in the near future where everyone (almost) is plugged into technology pretty much all the time. It takes our current obsession with tech and ramps it up, incorporating 3D and VR elements. Tokyo Ghost is also a rebellion against that addiction to tech.

Debbie has lived a life apart from tech because of her father. Now she is trying to pull her boyfriend, Led Dent, out of that world. There are two primary locations for the book: LA, which is all teched out, and Tokyo, where no tech functions. I love the contrast between these two areas with the characters, tech, and color choices.

The art is wonderful. It switches between a lot of different elements to help create an interesting setting. There are even references to other books by the creators and the creators themselves that I thought was a nice touch. I look forward to reading volume 2.

What If? Review

What If? Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions. Randall Munroe. 2014. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 321 pages.

Rating: 4/5

This is a highly entertaining book based on a silly concept. The author responds to ridiculous, often destructive, questions that came into his website. I haven't read the blog on which this is based, but that didn't affect my enjoyment of the book.

It took me reading through a couple questions to get into it. I think that is because I was not familiar with Munroe's writing before starting this book. The humor took over quickly enough, and once it did I was drawn in. Reading this went very quickly after that. It is easy to read despite the heavy (at times) topics. The images, usually little cartoon drawings with stick figures, highlight the humorous aspects of the topics (or Munroe's response anyway).

There are short sections of questions that are so off the wall that no response is given, but it seems like the author wanted to share them anyway. These help break up some of the heavier topics and are pretty funny. A science background isn't necessary to enjoy this book. If you have any inkling to read it, get your hands on a copy.

I am still waiting to find out what happened to the dinosaur that got lowered into the sarlacc pit though.

The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo Review

The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo. Amy Schumer. 2016. Gallery Books. 336 pages.

Rating: 4/5

Disclaimer: I received a free copy via Goodreads Giveaways in exchange for an honest review.

I'll be honest, I didn't know anything about Amy Schumer when I read this book. I was curious about it because I had heard her name numerous times over the past year. Her book was insightful and fun to read. There are events from throughout her life presented here, both before and after her comedy career took off.

The best part about this book is that it was able to make me laugh. It was genuinely funny, especially after I got used to her sense of humor. It's not all a chuckle fest though. There are some tough topics that she talks about, which probably don't get discussed enough. I suppose that could make the book uncomfortable to read at times. After the first time, I was better prepared for the couple of other rough parts. The book mixes the good and bad elements of her life to make an enjoyable read, even if it isn't always fun.

Fans of Schumer's other work will definitely enjoy this. Yet, I think this provides a necessary voice for women that should not be limited to those already familiar with her. Will I check out her comedy after reading this? I doubt it, but I enjoyed the book none the less.

Ultimate Spider-Man, Volume 1 Review

Ultimate Spider-Man, Volume 1: Power and Responsibility. Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Bagley. 2002. Marvel. 184 pages.

Rating: 4/5

Power and Responsibility is a great introduction to Spider-Man. It takes the core concepts around the character and updates them. The world is rounded out in a way that makes it more believable than sometimes happens with comics. Peter Parker is a teenager in this book. The concerns and ambitions that he has are reflected in that.

Anyone familiar with the character, whether it is from the movies or other comics, should know this story. It is about how Peter Parker obtains his powers and transforms into Spider-Man (but seriously, how did no one figure out who he is?). This is both a physical and a mental change. Bendis does a superb job building this up and creating the core of Peter Parker.

I love the art. It really modernizes the characters. Green Goblin in particular is fantastic. He becomes a monster in all aspects and is a great villain for Spider-Man to face off against. I definitely want to see more of him in future books. The coloring is good, but nothing jumped out at me about it.

This series reboots the Spider-Man franchise and sets it in Marvel's Ultimate universe. As an introduction, it moves slowly. But by setting the stage so well, the rest of the books should be great.

Baba Yaga's Assistant Review

Baba Yaga's Assistant. Marika McCoola and Emily Carroll. 2015. Candlewick. 136 pages.

Rating: 3/5

This is a good book for younger readers. It has a fairy tale vibe that works really well. It addresses some social issues too.

Baba Yaga is an interesting character. She's a witch from Russian folklore with a lot of different elements tied to her. I only know some of the stories that inform this book, but that gap didn't deter from my reading. I am more interested in seeking out other stories featuring Baba Yaga after reading this.

The art is well done, but doesn't quite fit my style. Makes sense as this is targeted at a different audience.

I found myself rooting for the main character. The end works nicely given the context of the story.

Lady Killer Volume 1 Review

Lady Killer. James S. Rich and Joelle Jones. 2015. Dark Horse Books. 136 pages.

Rating: 4/5

What would it look like if a 1950s housewife also worked as a trained assassin? Lady Killer is just about what you would expect. Josie Schuller has to juggle her job with her family - including a suspicious mother-in-law. I enjoyed the organization that employs Josie. It is equal parts cold efficiency and run down sleazebags.

The best part of the book is the art. It captures the setting perfectly. There are a lot of little details that give a feeling for the time period, while poking some fun at it simultaneously. The switch between gore and cleanliness that the cover hints at works really well. The colors are fantastic. Just spot on for the premise.

It drifts into ridiculousness at times. This isn't necessarily a bad thing. However, it makes the idea that this assassination organization could exist just a little too implausible. On the flip side, it allows for the book to end where it did with no complaints from me. I thought the way it wrapped up was great. It's a quirky book that is very enjoyable. I would pick up the second volume in a heartbeat.

The Golem and the Jinni Review

The Golem and the Jinni. Helene Wecker. 2013. Harper. 496 pages.

Rating: 5/5

This book is fantastic. I absolutely loved it. The ideas behind the title characters go back a long time, but Wecker really makes them her own. They come from Jewish and Arab folklore, which makes their meeting and relationship so wonderful. Each of them had the potential to make the book cold. Wecker's writing superbly makes them relatable and enjoyable to read about, even when they are doing mundane tasks.

The Golem and the Jinni are tied to their natures. They develop in fun ways over the course of the book. Yet, given their origins, they have to integrate those changes into a specific mindset. It is interesting how human they become when they should be detached from everyone around them. Obviously, I loved the main characters. They drive the book along. The supporting cast is just as strong. We don't get to see quite as much about them, but their impact is just as important on the story.

The writing itself is wonderful. Wecker gives life to a late 19th century Manhattan. I could picture the world the characters moved in very easily. The characters are the strongest fixtures, although the structures, sounds, and scents that are evoked round things out. And the pacing is great. I kept wanting to read more of the book. I can't recall any points where it lost my interest. Despite the fantastic elements, this book is about the lives of the characters. It does round itself out in a way that is satisfying. I wish I could read more, but I'll have to settle for rereading it sometime.

Love Volume 4 Review

Love, Volume 4: The Dinosaur. Frederic Brremaud and Federico Bertolucci. 2017. Magnetic Press. 80 pages.

Rating: 3/5

I've read one other book in this series and I think the concept is great. Each book follows an animal over a period of time, depicting its natural environment. The entire story is told using illustrations; there are no words used in the book at all.

Given the format of the book, the illustrations need to be fantastic. I feel that is accomplished in this book. The creators have an opportunity to draw a lot of different dinosaurs in this short work. Those depictions are amazing. They take something that is both familiar and foreign and breathe life into it. The natural surroundings are used wonderfully to highlight the animals and give a sense of the environment.

This volume fell a little short for me because the sequence of events shown in the illustrations didn't always make sense. It's not that they weren't put in the right order, but they jumped around at times where I lost sight of the little guy that is central to the book. These tangents just made it feel less cohesive to me.

The book is all about the art and should be picked up for that alone.

Kindred: A Graphic Novel Review

Kindred. Octavia Butler, Damian Duffy, and John Jennings. 2017. Harry N. Abrams. 240 pages.

Rating: 5/5

Disclaimer: I received a free ecopy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book is amazing. It is an adaptation of Octavia Butler's novel, which I have wanted to read for a long time. The adaptation has given me more incentive to sit down and read it. This is the story of a black woman named Dana that suffers from a unique problem. She finds herself transported from her life in the 1970s to a plantation in the early 19th century. This happens multiple times throughout the book, which takes a huge toll on her.

I think the visual nature of this work makes it so powerful. The reader can see Dana deteriorate both physically and mentally as the book progresses. It gives life to the horrors of slavery in a way that other books I've read just haven't been able to capture. Dana's confusion and fear are relatable, even if it comes from a fantastic situation. The art is perfect for showing these elements of the story. I didn't love the style, but that doesn't detract from the book in any way. The use of color helps to accent things rather than taking center stage.

The cast of characters in this book are part of what made it so great to me. There is just enough of what one would expect to be able to identify certain character types, but Butler adds little things that make them feel fresh. I don't want to say much about the plot, but it does follow events on that 19th century plantation throughout the life of the plantation owner's son. This, along with the jumps in time, give a view of how things changed. It makes the book dynamic in a way. I can't recommend this book highly enough.

Spider-Man Blue Review

Spider-Man: Blue. Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale. 2011. Marvel. 168 pages.

Rating: 5/5

This is the second time I've read Spider-Man Blue and it was better than the first. I think I was a little less critical about some elements, particularly the villains. The art is reminiscent of older comic styles, which doesn't always appeal to me. It worked pretty well in this context.

The book is basically a retelling of how Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy fell in love. I love the way the story is told. Peter Parker is recording the story of how he and Gwen met, but he is speaking directly to her. This is done years afterward, so there is a tinge of nostalgia that feels appropriate. There are points where he rewinds, records something multiple times, or just doesn't know what to say. Those elements make it feel more natural.

This book introduces a lot of classic Spider-Man characters without being overwhelming. It feels like it was created to help bring on new readers. It sets things up for further reading really well. Even though it doesn't tell the whole story, it is a powerful book. Peter Parker's life is full of tragedies, but the loss of Gwen might be the biggest one of all.

Code Red, Volume 1 Review

Grimm Fairy Tales Presents: Code Red, Volume 1. Patrick Shand and Vincenzo Riccardi. 2014. Zenescope. 160 pages.

Rating: 3/5

I like the blending of the fairy tale elements within a modern setting. The characters are contemporary individuals who have taken on the role of fairy tale heroes, known as Realm Knights. Agent Red is based on Little Red Riding Hood and works for the US government. I like the wolf based elements that surround her throughout the story.

But the story didn't thrill me. Agent Red is after a powerful artifact that could destroy the world, yet that part of the story held no interest for me. The villains and that part of the plot almost seemed like filler. The information about Red's past and the appearance of Robyn Hood are much more appealing. Their interactions and personal histories are the strongest parts of this book by far. That is where they shine because they are relatable and fantastic.

I'm a little split on the art. Most of it is decent, although there are some cheesecake moments, i.e. scantily dressed women in odd poses. In a book featuring strong female characters, it seems kind of backward to include art like that.

Agent Red piqued my interest in the Realm Knights stories. Given an opportunity, I would check out some of the earlier books in this setting. This book doesn't feel like the best place to jump into it. An action packed, fast paced book that represents the setting well.

Alex + Ada Volume 3 Review

Alex + Ada, Volume 3. Jonathan Luna and Sarah Vaughn. 2015. Image Comics. 136 pages.

Rating: 5/5

I felt that volume 3 was a great end to this series. It continues the wonderful relationship between Alex and Ada. There is a split in the story though, with part of it focusing on that relationship and part of it dealing with the consequences of their actions throughout the series.

The social commentary throughout the series is one of my favorite aspects. This volume takes it to the extreme, which makes it both potent and potentially off-putting. Rather than blending into other parts of the story, it takes center stage for a large portion of the book. I enjoy the way the book wraps up. It was a natural way to conclude this story and is rather touching.

I loved the art again. One thing I particularly enjoyed was looking back over the series and seeing how certain sequences are reconstructed throughout. They aren't exact reproductions, but they are very similar and add to the tone of the series.

Anyone that has made it through the first two volumes should pick this up.

Norse Mythology Review

Norse Mythology. Neil Gaiman. 2017. W.W. Norton & Company. 304 pages.

Rating: 5/5

Disclaimer: I received a free copy via Goodreads Giveaways in exchange for an honest review.

I love Neil Gaiman's writing. I don't think I've come across a single one of his books that I have not enjoyed immensely. His book on Norse mythology is wonderful. The main reason I liked it so much is because of the writing. As I read the stories, I could imagine them being told aloud. It was like they were written to follow the oral tradition, which is how these stories would have been related in the beginning.

Now, I don't know if he took much liberty with the content. The introduction admits that there are gaps of information for many of the characters/gods present in Norse mythology. This book focuses on three of the gods: Loki, Odin, and Thor. I feel like these are the most familiar characters, which goes a long way to drawing the reader into the stories. It's accessible for readers that don't know these characters; the ideas and traits they represent will be recognizable.

This is really a collection of short stories all written by Gaiman around a single subject. They connect to each other and tell a common story, yet it isn't necessary to read them in a particular order (except maybe the first and last stories, which sort of bookend the whole mythos). If something is significant that occurs in another story, he gives you the basic information you need. These tales were fun for me because I had no expectation for them to reflect reality. So when one of the gods does something amazing or ridiculous it doesn't pull me out of the story or make me question it. I could just let things be.

Alex + Ada, Vol. 2 Review

Alex + Ada, Volume 2. Jonathan Luna and Sarah Vaughn. 2015. Image Comics. 128 pages.

Rating: 5/5

Volume two is a natural progression in this series. In the first volume, Alex received a robot, Ada, as a present, but he was dissatisfied with the situation. He took steps to unlock the programming that kept her from being sentient. This volume deals with Alex and Ada adapting to this change in her programming.

My favorite parts deal with her "birth".  Ada spends time exploring foods, textures, scents, imagery, and eventually romance. This sequence is both odd, partly because it happens in such rapid succession, and natural. The romantic relationship between Alex and Ada provides most of the tension for the book. I found it interesting the way that the characters part and reconcile.

The book explores some similar themes to the first volume. Yet, it goes beyond those and starts to address some social issues that feel very timely. And the art is an extension of the first book too, which I rather enjoyed. It can be repetitive, but that is part what makes the book work. It extends some moments to elicit an emotional response or to highlight changes in the environment. The coloring is great. I'm a huge fan of the choices in that regard.

There are sci-fi aspects to this story, but they are more a vehicle for the themes that the creators want to tackle than being sci-fi for its own sake. This should appeal to readers, whether they are fans of sci-fi or not.

Batgirl, Volume 2: To the Death Review

Batgirl, Volume 2: To the Death. Kelley Puckett, Damion Scott, and Robert Campanella. 2016. DC Comics. 320 pages.

Rating: 2/5

I am not sold on Cassandra Cain as Batgirl. I don't have a problem with Barbara Gordon giving up the role to someone else (she does show up as Oracle in this book anyway). Cain just isn't an interesting character to me. She was raised to be the perfect assassin, and is trying to turn over a new leaf. She doesn't talk much and she can't read.

This book is loaded with action, but what's the point? It takes half way through before Batgirl is doing anything that seems to matter. The rest of the time she is stumbling through Gotham beating up random goons. Eventually, it leads into more of her background and her surrogate father shows up, which creates some tension. The end is satisfying though. Everything leads up to an encounter with Shiva, who challenged Batgirl to a fight to the death. Their relationship is probably the best part of the story.

I wasn't a huge fan of the art either. Given that the book is full of action, there are lots of lines to depict movement. However, I felt like this muddled the illustrations. I might have enjoyed this more if I had read the first volume featuring Cassandra Cain, but I don't think I would have gotten to this volume based on the art alone.

Revival, Vol. 2 Review

Revival, Volume Two: Live Like You Mean It. Tim Seely and Mark Norton. 2013. Image Comics. 128 pages.

Rating: 4/5

Volume two digs into the characters of this series. The zombie-esque quality of the Revived remains an important point throughout the book. Yet, the focus is more on the relationships between the different characters. Where volume one introduced the setting and the main themes, volume two takes a shift to the people involved and why the reader should care about them.

That means the book progresses at a slower pace, but it never feels bogged down. The situation becomes more complex with people trying to get into the quarantine zone, some people trying to get out, and a few getting into trafficking body parts. This section of the story is tied together wonderfully, although it isn't beat you over the head obvious while reading it. My favorite characters to follow are the police officers because there is just so much on their plates at this point.

The art is great once again. The revival aspect lets the creators do some messed up stuff to their characters, which provides for some great illustrations. There isn't anything here that feels out of place from the first volume either. I can't wait to see where they take this story.

The Grownup Review

The Grownup. Gillian Flynn. 2015. Crown. 64 pages.

Rating: 4/5

This is a nice little ghost story. It starts off a bit odd, but it makes sense for the scope of the book. I found it a little off-putting. Stick with it. It gets better. The main character is odd because she admits to being manipulative. Everything she does should lead to her being very unlikeable. Flynn's writing is strong enough to get the reader to side with her though.

The crux of the story centers around a haunted house and a disturbed young man. The mother comes to the protagonist for help, not knowing what she is getting into. I think the family dynamics are the most disturbing part of the story. The end twists around itself in a way that leaves everything ambiguous. I loved that because it fits the rest of the story. It  may leave other readers unsatisfied.

The Sultan and the Queen Review

The Sultan and the Queen. Jerry Brotton. 2016. Viking. 352 pages.

Rating: 4/5

Disclaimer: I received a free copy via Goodreads Giveaways in exchange for an honest review.

This was an interesting read. It covers the period from around the mid 16th century to the beginning of the 17th century. Of course, the focus is on the relationship between England and the Ottoman empire. It goes beyond that to some degree by going into detail about some interactions with the Persians and the Muslims in Morocco. With the rise of Protestantism, England became cut off from much of Europe. This led to them seeking alliances in other areas.

The writing was a little mixed in my opinion. Most of it is very good. However, there are times where the book gets very dry. There were only a couple instances that I can think of, but they dragged on because they were full of dates and names with little insight. Most of the book does not fall into that category though. It became great when the author delved into the plays that were created during this time. They provide insight into the relationships between these kingdoms and the English people. The analysis of some important Shakespeare plays in light of the events discussed in this book is wonderful.