Tag: graphic novels
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Star Wars: Rebel Jail (Volume 3) – A Book Review
Marvel Comics’ Star Wars continues to thrill with the third installment entitled Rebel Jail. The premise is that Princess Leia and Han Solo’s former flame, Sana Starros, must deliver Dr. Aphra to a secret prison run by the Rebels. If you’re unfamiliar with Dr. Aprha, she is a breakout character from the Darth Vader series and…
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Books To Win Over Your Reluctant Reader
I have the privilege of teaching a reading class primarily aimed at seniors in high school. It is by and large a free-choice reading class, meaning students choose to read whatever they desire. If a student doesn’t like a book, they are welcome to put it down and pick up a different one. Some of…
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Descender: Tin Stars by Jeff Lemire and Dustin Nguyen – A Book Review
Because this title has enjoyed great buzz, I thought I’d give it a try. Descender is a an interesting science fiction book that explores the meaning of family, humanity, consciousness, and morality. Of course, these universal topics are unfolding in a universe filled with robots, aliens, and gargantuan mechanical world destroyers. Tim-21 is an android…
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Star Wars: Darth Vader (Volume 1) by Gillen and Larroca – A Book Review
Recently released by Marvel Comics, this first collected volume of the Darth Vader comic book series is everything a Star Wars fan desires. Focusing solely on Darth Vader following the events of A New Hope, the dark lord must learn who destroyed the Death Star even as the Emperor seemingly seeks to replace him. Vader…
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Teen Titans: Earth One by Lemire and Dodson – A Book Review
Jeff Lemire is always hit or miss with me, but when I saw that Teen Titans: Earth One received positive criticism and when I found it at my local library, I had to give it a shot. I’m glad I did. The Earth One concept is an interesting one at DC Comics. They’ve had success…
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Wytches by Snyder and Jock – A Book Review
The hype for this book may have set it up to disappoint. After all, MTV News called it, “The most terrifying comic you’ve ever read” and USA Today said, “Dark and brutal, Wytches are like nothing horror fans have ever seen.” I’m a Scott Snyder fan. I enjoy his work on Batman, love American Vampire,…
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East of West: Volume 4 by Hickman and Dragotta – A Book Review
East of West continues to be one of my favorite series. In this fourth volume, HIckman and Dragotta continue to expand their complex world, even going so far as providing maps and timelines. This series is a little bit western, a little bit alternate history, a little bit science fiction, a little bit near-apocalyptic dystopia,…
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Prophet: Joining (Volume 4) – A Book Review
Joining is gloriously indecipherable. I’ve followed this series since the beginning, and its utter disregard for the audience’s sensibilities and needs are refreshing. This is science fiction at its frustratingly best. When you open a volume of Prophet, you are doing so on the narrator’s terms. You are entering a universe you do not recognize, and,…
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Brother Lono by Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso – A Book Review
It’s not necessary to read Azzarello and Risso’s Eisner award-winning series 100 Bullets to understand Brother Lono, but it would certainly help. Lono proved a breakout character from that hard-boiled serial, so it’s no surprise that years after 100 Bullets fired its final shot, Lono should make a reappearance. Azzarello and Risso tell a classic…
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Revival: You’re Among Friends by Seeley and Norton – A Book Review
Don’t call this a zombie book, because it’s not. In Revival, a relatively small number of recently deceased people in a small Wisconsin town inexplicably return to life. They can now recover from virtually any injury, and range from remaining exactly the same as when they lived in the conventional sense to, well, odd. Right…