Reviews with content warning for Violence - Squire

Reviews tagging 'Violence'

Squire, by Nadia Shammas, Sara Alfageeh

27 reviews

melhara's review against another edition

adventurous reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

I loved the illustrations (the characters, the setting, and the colours) of this graphic novel which is heavily inspired by historical Turkish and Jordanian architecture, fashion, and culture.

The story itself was quite simplistic (appropriate for middle grade and the younger spectrum of YA) - it's about a young girl from a minority group who enlists to become a Squire with the hopes of one day being regarded as a hero.

The book deals with themes of war, patriotism, colonization, Arab representation, and the manipulation of historical narratives.

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some_random_person_hi's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful informative sad

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

Review to come when harpercollins strike is over.

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clarabooksit's review

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adventurous inspiring fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Absolutely fantastic. The art is beautiful and filled with life and movement, and the story is gripping and powerful. I loved Aiza and her band of would-be squires and how the story interrogates history, who writes it and what truth actually is or isn’t.

I do think more exposition would have helped at some parts and the pacing was a little too fast, but overall I loved it. It’s full of depth and nuance, and the touches of humor added a lot, too. Highly recommend this one.

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kaypringle's review

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adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

This was hands down one of the most moving and incredible tales I’ve had the chance to read. “Squire” is has an astonishing impact through its nature of being dually remarkable in both its storyline, characters and visuals along with a stunning yet meaningful underlying message about the narrative in which history paints western war torn minority along with the underlying meaning of how the historical narrative of eastern countries is impacted by the “victors” and ones with most influence. As Aiza’s actions demonstrated, we should never stop fighting for change because if we don’t stand against it, what will end the cycle? Please make sure you read this book folks, I hope it touches you as it has me!

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anniereads221's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful medium-paced

4.0

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emily_mh's review

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adventurous challenging medium-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

3.75

I really liked the art style of this graphic novel, in particular the use of lighting and the extraordinary amount of detail in the illustrations. I loved the discussion it held on colonisation, both on its effects and on the narratives that fulfil it and what creates and sustains those narratives. I particularly liked the exploration of military and history as tools of colonialism; the illustration of how the military is romanticised so it can exploit vulnerable people as recruits was also excellent. However, I thought Aiza's character development from pro- to anti-colonisation was a little rapid, and the fact that

Spoiler

half the recruits changed their mind on colonisation after one discussion was downright unbelievable

. I think telling this story as series or even a duology would have provided the space for these developments occur without being rushed. Another criticism I had is that while the sense of the world I got from the art was strong, the worldbuilding was lacking in the actual narrative. Regardless of these two critiques, I did enjoy reading this story and following Aiza in her journey!

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pikitat's review

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fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

There were some cool concepts, but I felt like a lot there was a lot more that could've been done with them. The quality of the art was alright, but it didn't particularly blow my mind.

Spoiler

I wish they'd made the twist with General Hende less obvious. I wouldn't say this book was subtle about any of its upcoming plot twists, but the reveal with Hende was so unsatisfying because there was absolutely no build-up.

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moonytoast's review

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adventurous fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

A little thing you may not know about me: I love a girl with a sword.

Squire is exactly that and more—a story about a girl who feels out of place due to her identity, a coming of age tale, and a deconstruction of colonialism set against the backdrop of a pseudo-medieval fantasy world inspired by Jordan and other areas of the Middle East.

I could honestly gush about the illustration for this entire review, but I will try to keep it brief in the interest of word count. The world of Squire is infused with a gorgeous palate and I love how the illustrations of the main character, Aiza, give her such vibrant expressiveness. There was clearly a good amount of research that went into creating this comic, particularly on the aspect of architecture, which I loved.

The story, at its core, is pretty simple. I think that the comic format manages to elevate this story in a great way, but for those who might be expecting more complexity from its plot elements, this will probably not be the book you are looking to read. As many graphic novels, this story flies by quickly and you can probably read it all in one sitting.

I appreciate the more open but hopeful ending—the problem is clearly not resolved by the conclusion, but we have witnessed these characters learn and grow and they’re on the path towards a better future. Nothing is wrapped up in a simple bow, because war is never that simple.

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mnerd63's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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luckykosmos's review

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adventurous emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

The blurb on the cover says the reviewer wanted to live in the world here, and while I agree that the worldbuilding is beautiful, this story itself is firmly about colonialism and the pain in the colonized identity, fighting against that. The author and artist did an amazing job, and I hope we see where these characters end up next.

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