A review by abomine
The Katurran Odyssey by David Michael Wieger, Terryl Whitlatch
4.0
Perfect Musical Pairing: Great Spirits by Phil Collins (from Disney's Brother Bear)
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Like most things that I read and enjoyed as a kid and return to again many years later, this wasn't quite as good as I remember. The story, which I thought so epic and inspiring as a wide-eyed youth, seems a bit simplistic and hampered by plot holes now that I'm reading this as an adult. Still, it's a fairly solid retelling of a set of tried-and-true fantasy tropes that certainly appeal to the child in all of us.
The illustrations, though, are what REALLY sell this book. Rich and colorful, with a marvelous attention to detail, and with more substantial world-building than the actual story itself. I deeply wish that The Katurran Odyssey ended up being a series (as I assume it was originally planned) because I want to keep on exploring this magnificent world. It's not often that I want to actually live in the books I'm reading, but I definitely wanted to live in this one.
In short, three stars for the fairly decent story, five stars for the illustrations, averaging out to four stars for the book as a whole. If you're looking for a unique picture book that both you and your child will enjoy, this will make for some pretty epic bedtime reading.
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Like most things that I read and enjoyed as a kid and return to again many years later, this wasn't quite as good as I remember. The story, which I thought so epic and inspiring as a wide-eyed youth, seems a bit simplistic and hampered by plot holes now that I'm reading this as an adult. Still, it's a fairly solid retelling of a set of tried-and-true fantasy tropes that certainly appeal to the child in all of us.
The illustrations, though, are what REALLY sell this book. Rich and colorful, with a marvelous attention to detail, and with more substantial world-building than the actual story itself. I deeply wish that The Katurran Odyssey ended up being a series (as I assume it was originally planned) because I want to keep on exploring this magnificent world. It's not often that I want to actually live in the books I'm reading, but I definitely wanted to live in this one.
In short, three stars for the fairly decent story, five stars for the illustrations, averaging out to four stars for the book as a whole. If you're looking for a unique picture book that both you and your child will enjoy, this will make for some pretty epic bedtime reading.