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A review by panda_incognito
School Trip by Jerry Craft
3.0
This story felt disjointed and frequently implausible, and there were lots of elements that felt forced in just to make a social point. I really enjoyed the previous two graphic novels in this series, but the heavy-handed social values in this one felt tacked on with all the subtlety of an after-school special teaching kids to be NICE! to each other. Also, while the other books tackled racism in ways that were integral to each story, this book frequently brings up the topic in random asides that have nothing to do with what is happening.
The story jumps around a lot, and multiple things happen that defy plausibility. I wondered if this was supposed to be over-the-top for laughs, but the story takes itself so seriously at other times that this isn't supposed to be satirical. I couldn't suspend disbelief because so many elements of the travel story and character dynamics were unrealistic, exaggerated, and over-the-top.
I did laugh at many of the clever puns and amusing moments, and I liked how Maury took a more prominent role in this one, since I felt that he was underrated in the previous books. I really like his character and was glad that he was a major player here. I also enjoyed some of the international travel elements, but I couldn't help negatively comparing this to [b:A First Time for Everything|60316970|A First Time for Everything|Dan Santat|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1654481332l/60316970._SX50_.jpg|95090775]. It's not a fair comparison, especially since the latter is a memoir, but that book also stars a person of color, and it feels totally realistic, authentic, and meaningful all the way through.
This book is okay, but it didn't live up to my expectations based on the author's previous work. I wouldn't read it again or particularly recommend it, even though I wouldn't encourage someone not to read it. It's fine, but I hope that there will be future installments in this series that bring it back to the previous level of quality.
The story jumps around a lot, and multiple things happen that defy plausibility. I wondered if this was supposed to be over-the-top for laughs, but the story takes itself so seriously at other times that this isn't supposed to be satirical. I couldn't suspend disbelief because so many elements of the travel story and character dynamics were unrealistic, exaggerated, and over-the-top.
I did laugh at many of the clever puns and amusing moments, and I liked how Maury took a more prominent role in this one, since I felt that he was underrated in the previous books. I really like his character and was glad that he was a major player here. I also enjoyed some of the international travel elements, but I couldn't help negatively comparing this to [b:A First Time for Everything|60316970|A First Time for Everything|Dan Santat|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1654481332l/60316970._SX50_.jpg|95090775]. It's not a fair comparison, especially since the latter is a memoir, but that book also stars a person of color, and it feels totally realistic, authentic, and meaningful all the way through.
This book is okay, but it didn't live up to my expectations based on the author's previous work. I wouldn't read it again or particularly recommend it, even though I wouldn't encourage someone not to read it. It's fine, but I hope that there will be future installments in this series that bring it back to the previous level of quality.