A review by asiaklg
Abbott by Saladin Ahmed
5.0
I was a little unsure about Abbott before reading it, unsure if I would like how supernatural forces would be worked into a world where people of color are already targeted by real-life forces of violence in 1970s Detroit. But it definitely surprised me and the real-life tensions aside from the sci-fi/magical/horror elements were given realistic weight and prevalence.
The art and colors were perfect for the horrific creatures in the series. And the elements of horror, way more than I expected! My library classified Abbott as a YA graphic novel so I expected toned down and low-stakes creepiness, but there’s blood and body horror and true devastating evil in this book.
Elena Abbott as a character is very strong and has a sense of duty as a journalist to tell stories some people don’t want to hear. She’s not interested in sugarcoating anything to cater to those who approach instances of racial violence with skepticism. I imagine that even today her articles would face criticism for their bluntness and for her unwillingness to soften accusations toward those in power.
My ONLY real complaint is that there were an unnecessary number of former relationships and flings to keep track of. And since it’s a relatively short run, we don’t even really get enough backstories on each former love interest to warrant knowledge of the history at all. I wouldn’t complain about there being love-interest elements in the series overall, but I don’t know why we needed to know about three of Abbott’s romantic relationships.
The art and colors were perfect for the horrific creatures in the series. And the elements of horror, way more than I expected! My library classified Abbott as a YA graphic novel so I expected toned down and low-stakes creepiness, but there’s blood and body horror and true devastating evil in this book.
Elena Abbott as a character is very strong and has a sense of duty as a journalist to tell stories some people don’t want to hear. She’s not interested in sugarcoating anything to cater to those who approach instances of racial violence with skepticism. I imagine that even today her articles would face criticism for their bluntness and for her unwillingness to soften accusations toward those in power.
My ONLY real complaint is that there were an unnecessary number of former relationships and flings to keep track of. And since it’s a relatively short run, we don’t even really get enough backstories on each former love interest to warrant knowledge of the history at all. I wouldn’t complain about there being love-interest elements in the series overall, but I don’t know why we needed to know about three of Abbott’s romantic relationships.