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mat_tobin's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this graphic novel which is possibly aimed at UKS2+. A play on the phrase itself, Abadzis has created a world of anthropomorphic pigs who dream of reaching into the skies. It is a world partly of magic and science and both are in conflict as Lily finds the warthogs beyond the mountains looking to attack her country.
Dye's packed panels accompanied by a well-paced, humorous and gripping narrative provided by Abadzis makes for an exciting and rich lead with plenty of strong female characters. Not sure why it's average on Goodreads is so low, I thought it was of a high standard in both style and story.
Dye's packed panels accompanied by a well-paced, humorous and gripping narrative provided by Abadzis makes for an exciting and rich lead with plenty of strong female characters. Not sure why it's average on Goodreads is so low, I thought it was of a high standard in both style and story.
suzannedix's review against another edition
4.0
A wise student told me not to judge a book by its cover ... and he was so right! This was a great graphic novel with a plunky female main character. This is a combination of magic and science giving kids a wonderful fantasy story to follow. And based on the final frame, it definitely looks like a book two is forthcoming.
3dotsforme's review against another edition
3.0
A coming of age pig story. Lily has managed to create a plane that flies by science alone - no magic, but is it enough to keep the Warthogs from invading Pigdom Plains?
A good premise but all of the pig, swine and hog talk felt contrived. I like pigs, don't get me wrong, but everyone's name and every location was a variant on a porcine word.
A good premise but all of the pig, swine and hog talk felt contrived. I like pigs, don't get me wrong, but everyone's name and every location was a variant on a porcine word.
meubanks's review
adventurous
inspiring
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
3.5
kailey_luminouslibro's review against another edition
4.0
Lily is the daughter of a famous inventor in the Pigdom Plains. She dreams of inventing her own flying machine, succeeding where her father could not. Although she has access to magic, Lily wants to use science to create an engine that will stay aloft on its own power. When a mysterious squadron of attack flyers begin to harass the countryside, Lily scrambles to finish the prototype of her airplane and she takes to the skies to protect her neighbors. But if her father finds out what she has done, Lily will be in big trouble.
I loved this graphic novel! Lily is such a spunky main character. She is so intelligent and brave. I was cheering for her through the entire book! I loved seeing how she interacts with her father, her aunt, and her young cousin. That family dynamic was very dramatic, as they sometimes fight or disagree, but always protect each other. Each of these characters have strong personalities and are very intelligent and independent, so that makes for some great character development.
I really appreciated the depth of the world-building for this pig country. There's history, religion, behavior norms, music, cuisine, politics, and all the elements for a vibrant culture unique to the pigs. And as if that wasn't enough, then we get a glimpse of the religion and history and politics of the boars and warthogs outside of pigland in their own separate culture! And all this information is seamlessly woven into the story, making it an exciting and rich experience.
The artwork is vibrantly colored throughout the entire book. I really loved the art style and the character designs. The panels are easy to follow, and make the action clear.
Loved everything about this book!
I loved this graphic novel! Lily is such a spunky main character. She is so intelligent and brave. I was cheering for her through the entire book! I loved seeing how she interacts with her father, her aunt, and her young cousin. That family dynamic was very dramatic, as they sometimes fight or disagree, but always protect each other. Each of these characters have strong personalities and are very intelligent and independent, so that makes for some great character development.
I really appreciated the depth of the world-building for this pig country. There's history, religion, behavior norms, music, cuisine, politics, and all the elements for a vibrant culture unique to the pigs. And as if that wasn't enough, then we get a glimpse of the religion and history and politics of the boars and warthogs outside of pigland in their own separate culture! And all this information is seamlessly woven into the story, making it an exciting and rich experience.
The artwork is vibrantly colored throughout the entire book. I really loved the art style and the character designs. The panels are easy to follow, and make the action clear.
Loved everything about this book!
naomiysl's review against another edition
3.0
Love the combination of science and magic, uneasily coexisting. Plus, so many pig puns!
westerdrumlins's review against another edition
4.0
4.5⭐
I bought this extremely discounted so didn't have high expectations for it, especially as it's not the kind of art style I would normally gravitate towards.
However, I loved the map on the first page and enjoyed trying to identify the pig-ified place names
I bought this extremely discounted so didn't have high expectations for it, especially as it's not the kind of art style I would normally gravitate towards.
However, I loved the map on the first page and enjoyed trying to identify the pig-ified place names
jesse_post's review against another edition
4.0
What a remarkable book, with unexpected things at every step of the way. The pastoral rural scenes are gorgeous and the pre-flight historical setting is so realistic that it just winds up making sense that it also has magic and anthropomorphic pigs. Abadzis is skilled at not drawing too much attention to his cool ideas and being cute about it — he takes it seriously and just presents an episode in a lived-in fantasy world. The characters driving it could use a little more space for us to get to know them and understand what they want, but whatever shortcoming that is is more than made up for with the exciting magic aerial combat period piece story. If you like The Rocketeer, this is a good one for you.