ohnoflora's review against another edition
3.0
Read for the Kate Greenaway Award 2015
A frustrating read but not one that I regret.
The book wears its influences on its sleeve, from William Blake to 2000 AD. It also owes more than a small debt to Alan Moore: the mysticism and bold black and white line art of From Hell, the Fascistic government of V for Vendetta.
However, I really admire its ambition. It may not quite come off in the end but the art is striking, the world is well-realised and the William Blake and Biblical quotations and references throughout (not to mention the Wizard of Oz) create something truly mythic and strange. I think this may find its audience among the more thoughtful of older High School pupils.
A frustrating read but not one that I regret.
The book wears its influences on its sleeve, from William Blake to 2000 AD. It also owes more than a small debt to Alan Moore: the mysticism and bold black and white line art of From Hell, the Fascistic government of V for Vendetta.
However, I really admire its ambition. It may not quite come off in the end but the art is striking, the world is well-realised and the William Blake and Biblical quotations and references throughout (not to mention the Wizard of Oz) create something truly mythic and strange. I think this may find its audience among the more thoughtful of older High School pupils.
stephee's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed this dark, dystopic tale...but I'm pretty sure all of the literary allusions went over my head (not being much of a poetry reader)!
bookwomble's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
acascadeofbooks's review
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
exoxe's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
What little world-building there was was good.
piperbunny's review against another edition
3.0
A very dark book. The illustrations were amazing. Set in a very oppressive future in England. Some unique ideas but very dark, not too dark that I didn't enjoy it. I don't know if it was the visual element that made it more real to me because I could see what was happening rather than have my imagination conjure it up for me?
nwhyte's review against another edition
2.0
https://nwhyte.livejournal.com/3092770.html
I picked this up on a whim, and I have to say that I wasn’t hugely impressed. It’s a story of a future radiation-raddled England literally flooded by rising sea levels (there is an effective frame showing Trafalgar Square awash) and under threat from religious fanatics threatening to take over the government, opposed only by one brave biker girl and her assorted companions. I found the politics heavy-handed and the prose rather simplistic, and the monochrome drawing style didn’t appeal to me at all, giving little room for chatacter or setting to be properly explored. There are a wealth of literary references, particularly to the Bible and Blake, but the depth of these didn’t make up for the lack of surface polish for me.
I picked this up on a whim, and I have to say that I wasn’t hugely impressed. It’s a story of a future radiation-raddled England literally flooded by rising sea levels (there is an effective frame showing Trafalgar Square awash) and under threat from religious fanatics threatening to take over the government, opposed only by one brave biker girl and her assorted companions. I found the politics heavy-handed and the prose rather simplistic, and the monochrome drawing style didn’t appeal to me at all, giving little room for chatacter or setting to be properly explored. There are a wealth of literary references, particularly to the Bible and Blake, but the depth of these didn’t make up for the lack of surface polish for me.
itske's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 stars
My thoughts about this book are that the writers had an idea and somebody just said like: 'Okay, that's a cool idea. Now get that done in one book in less than 200 pages.'
The reason why I think that is because everything happend so fast. There was a problem and in a space of 1 to 2 pages it was fixed. It was happening so fast that I sometimes forgot what was going on.
I did like the art style and the idea behind the story but I just think that they shoudn't have tried to put it in one book.
My thoughts about this book are that the writers had an idea and somebody just said like: 'Okay, that's a cool idea. Now get that done in one book in less than 200 pages.'
The reason why I think that is because everything happend so fast. There was a problem and in a space of 1 to 2 pages it was fixed. It was happening so fast that I sometimes forgot what was going on.
I did like the art style and the idea behind the story but I just think that they shoudn't have tried to put it in one book.
massie38's review against another edition
3.0
A badass retelling of the Wizard of Oz with great art from cover to cover. The story drags you in and makes you think about its largest theme of religion, specifically how religion impacts our individual lives, thoughts, and feelings. Since the story takes place in the not too distant future it reads like a warning of what is to come if we let large organisations, like True Church, use faith to control politics and the dangers of blind faith with the saying:
Belief + Doubt = Sanity
Encompassing a lot of what the graphic novel is about.
However, it loses 2 stars because characters aren't particularly fleshed out, I would have liked to see more of the main 4 characters. Also, the inevitable romance that came from the novel was kind of annoying and unnecessary.
All in all, a pretty good graphic novel.
Belief + Doubt = Sanity
Encompassing a lot of what the graphic novel is about.
However, it loses 2 stars because characters aren't particularly fleshed out, I would have liked to see more of the main 4 characters. Also, the inevitable romance that came from the novel was kind of annoying and unnecessary.
All in all, a pretty good graphic novel.