moxiedoll's review against another edition
4.0
This book is absolutely exquisite, very reasonably priced and the perfect way to pay homage to such a quirky, talented musician. The forward by Gaiman is really touching and many of the stories are creative and reflect a real understanding of the heart of Tori's music. Definitely worth owning.
emosheeran's review against another edition
3.0
I expected the stories to be more tied with the songs, majority of the stories I had no idea what they are meant to mean, and struggled to understand the connection to the lyrics. None the less it was cool to see all the different art styles, and some stories I did enjoy a lot. Some tho were just plain huh?? (Leather and especially Upside Down). I’d recommend Tori fans pick this up and give it a go.
Goddamn this book is so huge and heavy it’s so awkward to read lol. Sending my best wishes to everyone who wants to read this, especially the hardcover
Goddamn this book is so huge and heavy it’s so awkward to read lol. Sending my best wishes to everyone who wants to read this, especially the hardcover
renatasnacks's review
2.0
I FINALLY FINISHED IT. I had to use all of my library renewals. Whew. IDK, this book was OK? It's like a bunch of people trying to be all Tori Amos-style dreamy-introspective, but none of them are as good at it as Tori Amos and it all felt very heavy-handed. Also the book is literally very heavy.
I doubt anyone besides a die-hard Tori fan would even want to pick this up. But if they did, I don't think they would make it through to the end.
SIGH.
I doubt anyone besides a die-hard Tori fan would even want to pick this up. But if they did, I don't think they would make it through to the end.
SIGH.
bookdingo's review against another edition
5.0
So much variety! This book is huge, and I love it! So many different artists expressing their appreciation for the music of Tori Amos by "creating their own mythologies". It's lovely, fun, tragic, and whimsical all over the place. I'm not sure I understand other reviews saying that the stories don't directly reflect Tori's lyrics, but why would they? These are stories INSPIRED by the lyrics, not direct narratives that have to match perfectly. That would kind of defeat the purpose, wouldn't it? Anyways, for any lover of graphic novels and/or Tori lyrics, I recommend this large tome. Seriously, it's coffee table book sized.
lmm6758's review against another edition
3.0
I liked this, but I think I would have like it more if I was a bigger Tori Amos fan.
tiamatq's review against another edition
2.0
First, I am a Tori Amos fan. I grew up listening to her and she's always been one of my favorite artists. As someone who's also a Sandman nut and enjoyed Tori's appearances in those stories, I had some high expectations for this collection. And I did not like this book.
This felt too scattered. I don't think many of the stories were well-told... I would've rather that a few songs had been cherry-picked for this book, and then given more depth. It's all very pretty to look at, for the most part, and there are some good stories mixed in there. But they really begin to blur, even when I tried to space out reading the book. I didn't care about the majority of the stories, and several felt very conventional and basic (Precious Things, Beauty of Speed, or Siren for example). Some explore the stories within the songs, and others just go for surface meaning (Boo to Bouncing Off Clouds!). And others are just plain confusing (Toast, Sugar, Leather, Ribbons Undone).
Stories I liked were Take To The Sky, Little Amsterdam, The Waitress (this is a great example of a story that actually took some time to be told and it worked out for the better), Winter, Baker Baker, I Can't See New York, and Cornflake Cirl. Pandora's Aquarium was one of the funnier, more literal translations of a song and its goofiness worked.
And cheers for Paul Maybury's story for Crucify. A personal story with the song as background really worked... at least to me!
This felt too scattered. I don't think many of the stories were well-told... I would've rather that a few songs had been cherry-picked for this book, and then given more depth. It's all very pretty to look at, for the most part, and there are some good stories mixed in there. But they really begin to blur, even when I tried to space out reading the book. I didn't care about the majority of the stories, and several felt very conventional and basic (Precious Things, Beauty of Speed, or Siren for example). Some explore the stories within the songs, and others just go for surface meaning (Boo to Bouncing Off Clouds!). And others are just plain confusing (Toast, Sugar, Leather, Ribbons Undone).
Stories I liked were Take To The Sky, Little Amsterdam, The Waitress (this is a great example of a story that actually took some time to be told and it worked out for the better), Winter, Baker Baker, I Can't See New York, and Cornflake Cirl. Pandora's Aquarium was one of the funnier, more literal translations of a song and its goofiness worked.
And cheers for Paul Maybury's story for Crucify. A personal story with the song as background really worked... at least to me!
karmakat's review against another edition
3.0
Really 2.5 stars. This book is a compilation of 51 comics by various artists/authors, all based on Tori Amos songs. Out of those, I really liked 2 (Here in My Head and Space Dog), enjoyed 5 more (Caught a Light Sneeze, Little Amsterdam, Teenage Hustling, Cornflake Girl, and Demons & Gods), and thought one more (Waitress) was ok, if rather predictable. The rest ranged from bad to worse. Or just too odd to rate. The only reason it's even getting 2.5 stars is that much of the artwork was pretty good.
mara_miriam's review against another edition
4.0
My favorites: Merman by Jason Horn & Dean Trippe, Snow Cherries from France by Irma Page & Mark Buckingham, and 1,000 Oceans by Jonathan Hickman; while enjoyed the comics with structured stories, I preferred once that contained limited dialouge and were more about telling the story of the song. Plus, I really wish that there would have been a comic to accompany Tear in Your Hand.
moreadsbooks's review against another edition
3.0
I'm torn between three stars & two & 1/2. I'd rather've read this as just graphic tales rather than interpretations of Tori Amos's music, because while I enjoy the concept, I ended up being disappointed in the results. Maybe just read the book without the songs & then go listen to some Under the Pink.
weeta's review against another edition
4.0
I love the idea of this book, but its almost frustrating to see someone else's interpretations of some of the songs. I found some of the artwork (Marianne!!) amazing and some of the stories intriguing...but again, I'm fiercely, stubbornly holding on to my own personal interpretations & memories associated with each song.