Reviews

Superman Smashes the Klan by Gene Luen Yang

butchorpheus's review

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emotional inspiring reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

beautiful and powerful book, truly understands who superman is 

clarkkent's review

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5.0

this is a really important and emotional read. it has a lot of heart. I love the way Superman is portrayed here and how we get to see his identity conflict. superman is so cool, I love that now I get to see parts of myself in him as a chinese american. sometimes in other stories, the fact hes from a different planet gets completely overlooked; I love his self-exploration in this one. ahh i just love this story, the whole thing about his powers is so cool, the art is amazing, all the main characters feel fleshed out by the end, I like all the different character dynamics and I relate to a lot of them. the mom speaking mostly Cantonese, the dad trying to fit in more, an increasing pattern of acceptance. per the time, most of the people in the story still have a stereotypical image of chinese people (despite being corrected), which is accurate.

livlamentloathe's review

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adventurous dark hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

Me, the entire time I was reading this: Kal, you dumbass, why don’t you just fly?! 

Me, reading Gene Luen Yang’s short afterward about Superman’s history: oh.

It makes me bananas that today’s right-wing comic readers are always whining about comics “going woke” when they feature queer or racially diverse characters, but Superman’s first two foes were literally bigots: first nazis, then the KKK. Superman has always BEEN woke, dummies. 

Anyway, I thought this was a great book! I loved Roberta and her little jacket. I loved that she never stopped criticizing her brother for his overly tolerant jokes and quips. And I loved Kal and his cute little crush on Lois. 🥰🥰 What a cutie. OH! And the Flying Grayson’s cameo??? I died. 
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aclopez6's review

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5.0

I would recommend this book for readers who enjoyed Ms. Marvel (2014) by G. Willow Wilson or those who want a longer read than the Teen Titans (2019) series by Kami Garcia. Also a great option for students who may be reluctant readers, but enjoy anime and superhero movies.

This book is also appropriate as a class novel or independent reading book in both middle school and high school classrooms. There are great moments for close-reading and discussion (ex. pg 50 when Roberta's dad put on his lab coat as a status symbol in the middle of a crisis, or pg 180 when Uncle Matt is attempting to explain the Klan's message of "unity", lot to draw on here!)

kaiclaywall's review

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dark medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? N/A
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

happy_ness_honey's review

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adventurous challenging dark hopeful informative reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.5

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jammasterjamie's review against another edition

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5.0

Everything you want out of a Superman story, and the art was really fun and enjoyable. I wasn't expecting to enjoy this one as much as I did because it's aimed at a young adult audience, but this is great entertainment with a great message for everyone regardless of age.

novelerachavela's review

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adventurous challenging funny hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

heatherbermingham's review

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5.0

Part of DC's series of YA graphic novels, this is just a great, quintessential Superman story. There's been some complaining in the last few years that comics have gotten too political (but don't people say that about *everything*?), and this was a straight-forward, heartfelt reminder that Superman's story is, at its very core, the story of an immigrant. Gene Luen Yang is consistently great, but yowzers, the art in this book is *gorgeous.* Clean and classic.

biblioemily's review

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4.0

3.5 stars. There's a lot to like here, but the members of the KKK are just written too much like Boris & Natasha from Bullwinkle or a Scooby Doo villain. And it's all just a bit too easy for their plots to be taken down. But, I like how it centers the daughter of the family, and the pieces about Superman discovering who he really is. Just a bit more cookie cutter/racism is bad but we can overcome it easily than I was hoping for. There just isn't any nuance. I guess Ms. Marvel spoiled me, or Yang was going for a vintage vibe to honor the original radio play that didn't work for me.