I Reads You Juniors: June 2025 - UPDATE #23

by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

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TREATS - From AnotherCookie:  There is a new online cookie retailer. It is called "AnotherCookie?" and the cookies are delicious.

NEWS:

DC STUDIOS - From Deadline:  Apparently, Warner Bros. is making a movie starring the classic Batman villain, Clayface.  Now, Welsh actor, Tom Rhys Harries, is been cast in the lead role.  The film will be directed by James Watkins and is DC Studios' next big project after "Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow."

COMICS - From TheBeat:  There is trouble in the comics industry.  BOOM! Studios just initiated another round of layoffs.  Zenescope Entertainment is in turmoil because Diamond Comic Distributors owes them lots of money.

IMAGE COMICS - From CBR:  Robert Kirkman's comic book, "Invincible Universe: Battle Beast #1," is setting sales records.

MARVEL - From GamesRadar:  Marvel officially renamed its new "Thunderbolts" comic book series, "New Avengers."  It will be written by Sam Humphries, drawn by Ton Lima, colored by Rain Beredo, and lettered by Joe Sabino.  The first issue arrived June 11th.

DC STUDIOS - From Deadline:  Warner Bros. Animation and DC Studios have chosen acclaimed comic book writer, Tom King, to be the showrunner of the "Mister Miracle" adult animated series.

DC COMICS - From BleedingCool:  Warner Bros Discover will be split into two companies by next year.  One of the two, named "Streaming and Studios," will apparently have control of DC Comics, and it has a 10-year plan for the brand.

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:  Marvel has announced its latest class of "superstar" artists, the eight "Stormbreakers" who have signed exclusive contracts with the publisher.  The "Stormbreakers 2025" are Alessandro Cappuccio, Netho Diaz, Simone Di Meo, Juan Frigeri, Gurihiru, Jonas Scharf, Geoff Shaw, and Luciano Vecchio.

DIAMOND - From BleedingCool:  In the ongoing saga of Diamond Comic Distributors, the new ownership group has announced that it is cancelling orders comic book publishers that are distributed through Penguin Random House.  That includes Marvel, Marvel Press, IDW Publishing, Dark Horse Comics, and BOOM! Studios, to name a few.  Diamond was a sub-distributor of these publishers through PRH.  

IDW - From BleedingCool:  TV writer and co-creator of the hit comic book, "Killadelphia," Rodney Barnes will write "30 Days of Night: Falling Sun" for IDW Publishing.  The first issue is scheduled for October 2025.

MARVEL - From GamesRadar:  Marvel Comics has announced a new series, "Punisher: Red Band" from writer Benjamin Percy and artist Julius Ohta that Marvel is promising will be the "most violent in Punisher history."

MARVEL/DC - From EW:  Marvel and DC Comics have announced that "Deadpool" and "Batman" will crossover in two one-shot comic books.  First, writer Zeb Wells and artist Greg Capullo will produce "Deadpool/Batman," which is due from Marvel on September 17th, 2025.  Arriving on a later date from DC Comics is "Batman/Deadpool," from writer Grant Morrison and artist Dan Mora. 

COMICS - From THR:  Writer Mark Millar and artist John Romita, Jr. have announced a new three-issue miniseries, "Psychic Sam."  It will be funded via Kickstarter and development on a film adaptation has already begun.

From Kickstarter:  Mark Millar and John Romita, Jr.'s new comics project, "Psychic Sam," includes a "Kickstarter" campaign.

From Vimeo:  There is a trailer for the new comic book project from the team of writer Mark Millar and artist John Romita, Jr. ("Kick-Ass").

MAY 2025 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:

From BleedingCool:  Ahoy Comics for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  Archie Comics for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  AWA Studios for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  Blood Moon Comics for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  BOOM! Studios for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  Cosmic Lion Productions for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  DC Comics "Absolute DC" titles for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  Dstlry Media for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  Free Comic Book Day 2025 titles for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  Keenspot Entertainment for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  Mad Cave Studios for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "One World Under Doom" titles for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "Ultimate Comics" titles for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  Massive Publishing for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  Rebellion / 2000 AD for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics "Conan" and "Solomon Kane" titles for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  Udon Studios for May 2025

From BleedingCool:  Valiant-Alien Books for May 2025

JUNE 2025 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:

From BleedingCool:  Ablaze Comics for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Ahoy Comics for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  AMP Comics for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Antarctic Press for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Archie Comics for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  AWA Studios for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  BOOM! Studios for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Dren Comics for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Dstlry Media for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainent for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Image Comics "Energon Universe" titles for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Image Comics "Spawn" titles for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Keensport Entertainment for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Mad Cave Studios for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "One World Under Doom" crossover titles for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "Ultimate Universe" for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "Ultimate Comics" with "Scarlet Witch" for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics' "Ultimate Spider-Man: Incursion #1" for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Rebellion / 2000 AD for June 202

From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Udon Entertainment for June 2025

From BleedingCool:  Zenescope Entertainment for June 2025

JULY 2025 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:

From BleedingCool:  Abrams for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Afterlight Comics for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Ahoy Comics for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  AMP Comics for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Antarctic Press for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Archie Comics for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  AWA Studios for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Bad Idea for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Bliss on Tap for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  BOOM Studios for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Cosmic Lion Productions for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  DC Comics "Superman" titles for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Devil's Due Studios for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Heavy Metal Magazine for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Image Comics Skybound "Energon" titles for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Image Comics "Ghost Machine" titles for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Image Comics "Spawn" titles for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Keenspot Entertainment for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Mad Cave Studios for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "Bring on the Bad Guys" titles for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "One World Under Doom" tie-in titles for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Massive Publishing for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Midnight Factory for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Rebellion / 2000 AD for July

From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Uncivilized Comics for July 2025

From BleedingCool:  Vault Comics for July 2025

AUGUST 2025 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:

From BleedingCool:  Afterlight Comics for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Ahoy Comics for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  AMP Comics for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Antarctic Press for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Archie Comics for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Aspen MLT LLC for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  AWA Studios for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Bad Ideas for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  BOOM! Studios for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Cambrian Comics for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Cosmic Lion Productions for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  DC Comics "Absolute Comics" titles for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Dren Productions for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Fantagraphics Books for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Image Comics "Energon" titles for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Image Comics "Ghost Machine" for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Image Comics "Spawn" titles for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Keenspot Entertainment for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics' "Bring on the Bad Guys" titles for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics' "One World Under Doom" titles for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "Ultimate" titles for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Panick Entertainment for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Rebellion / 2000 AD for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics "Conan" and "Solomon Kane" titles for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Udon Studios for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Valiant Comics for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Vault Comics for August 2025

From BleedingCool:  Zenescope Entertainment for August 2025

SEPTEMBER 2025 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:

From BleedingCool:  Marvel's "One World Under Doom" titles for September 2025

From BleedingCool:  Marvel's "One World Under Doom #7" for September 2025

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#IReadsYou Book Review: STAR WARS THE HIGH REPUBLIC: Light of the Jedi

STAR WARS: THE HIGH REPUBLIC: LIGHT OF THE JEDI
RANDOM HOUSE/Del Rey

[This review was originally posted on Patreon, and visit the "Star Wars Central" review page here.]

AUTHOR: Charles Soule
COVER: Joseph Meehan
ISBN: 978-0-593-15771-8; hardcover (January 5, 2021)
400pp, B&W, $28.99 U.S., $38.99 CAN

Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi is a 2021 Star Wars novel from author Charles Soule. Star Wars: The High Republic is an all-new storytelling initiative set in the world of Star Wars.  This publishing program will feature interconnected stories that will be told across multiple publishers, including book and comic book publishers, and that will be targeted at multiple age groups of readers.

Star Wars: The High Republic's saga takes place 200 years prior to the events depicted in the film, Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999), in an all-new time period.  The High Republic is set in an era when both the Galactic Republic and the Jedi Order are at the height of their power, serving and protecting the galaxy.  This is a hopeful and optimistic time, and the Republic and the Jedi are noble and respected.

Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi opens in a golden age.  Intrepid hyperspace scouts have expanded the reach of the Republic to the furthest stars and into the Outer Rim.  Worlds flourish under the benevolent leadership of the Senate on the Core world of Coruscant and its leader, Chancellor Lina Soh.  Peace reigns, enforced by the wisdom and strength of the order of Force users known as the Jedi Knights, who are at the height of their power.  The light of the Jedi spreads across the Republic, and every citizen knows that “We are all Republic.”

The Republic has a new project, “the Starlight Beacon,” which will connect the inhabitants and new settlers of the worlds of the Outer Rim to the Mid Rim and Core worlds.  In fact, the “Legacy Run,” a Kaniff Yards Class 4 modular freight transport, is traveling through hyperspace with a full contingent of new setters to the Outer Rim.  Then, a shocking catastrophe in hyperspace tears the Legacy Run apart, and multiple pieces and sections of the ship emerge from hyperspace like a flurry of shrapnel.

These “Emergences” from hyperspace into real space threaten disaster and total destruction for the entire Hetzal System, an Outer Rim system of mostly agricultural worlds.  The Jedi quickly race to the scene, but the scope of what will be called “The Great Disaster” pushes even the Jedi to their limit.  A single mistake on their part could cost billions of lives.

Behind this emergency is a new enemy, a band of marauding and mysterious “space vikings” known as “the Nihil.”  The threat of the Nihil has largely stayed beyond the boundary of the Republic, but this hyperspace disaster is part of a new sinister plan that just might strike fear into this golden age of the Republic.

THE LOWDOWN:  Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi is the first Star Wars novel that I have read in about eight and a half years.  The last one I read was author James Luceno's Star Wars: Darth Plagueis (2012), which was part of the defunct “Star Wars Expanded Universe.”  Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi is the perfect book to welcome a returning Star Wars novel reader to the franchise.

Charles Soule is a novelist and attorney, but I know him as one of Marvel Comics' very best Star Wars comic book writers … ever.  I was surprised to see that he would write one of the novels that would launch Star Wars: The High Republic, but Soule turns out to be one of those perfect choices.

Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi works because Soule's prose and storytelling slowly draws the readers into the narrative.  Then, he forces readers to race through this book that roils like a summer potboiler novel.  The chapters are relatively short; there are 44 of them, plus a prologue, an epilogue, and a few interludes, but almost everyone of them packs a wallop.  Anytime is the right time for a book that you, dear readers, can't put down.

Soule gives readers a good taste of the characters:  Jedi, non-Jedi, and adversaries in Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi, but character writing isn't what Soule does best in this book.  In a way, the characters' personalities, conflicts, histories, relationships, doubts, goals, motivations, etc. seem somewhat allusive.  I think that is partly because these characters are still in a state of development so early in this publishing program.

Still, Jedi like Avar Kriss, Loden Greatstorm, Bell Zettifer, and Elzar Mann promise to be quite interesting and fun.  What is the highest recommendation that I can give Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi?  By the time I reached the end of this book, I really wanted there to be more.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Star Wars novels will certainly want to give Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi a try.

8.5 out of 10

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


https://twitter.com/DelReyStarWars
https://twitter.com/DelReyBooks
http://www.randomhousebooks.com/
https://www.starwars.com/the-high-republic
https://twitter.com/starwars
https://www.starwars.com/
https://twitter.com/CharlesSoule


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

-------------------------------

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#IReadsYou Book Review: Roald Dahl's THE WITCHES

THE WITCHES
PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE/Puffin Books

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

AUTHOR: Roald Dahl
ILLUSTRATOR: Quentin Blake
ISBN: 978-1-9848-3716-5; hardcover with color dust jacket; 5.31 in x 7.75 in; (September 3, 2019)
224pp, B&W, $17.99 U.S.

Ages 8-12

The Witches is a 1983 children's dark fantasy novel written by the British author, the late Roald Dahl.  The book was published with almost 100 full-page and spot illustrations by Quentin Blake (who illustrated many of Dahl's works).  This review is based on a hardcover edition of The Witches published in September 2019 by Puffin Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House.

The Witches is narrated by an unnamed young British boy who recounts his and and his grandmother's experiences battling a society of child-hating witches.  Some people are familiar with The Witches through two film adaptations, director Nicholas Roeg's 1990 adaptation, which starred Anjelica Huston, and the recently released 2020 film directed by Robert Zemeckis.

The Witches opens in Norway where we meet the story's narrator, an unnamed seven-year-old English boy whose parents were Norwegian immigrants to England.  After his parents are killed in an accident, the boy goes to live in Norway with his grandmother, whom he calls “Grandmamma.”  He has already previously spent much time with her, and he loves all her stories, especially the ones about horrific witches who seek to either kill human children or to transform them into animals.  It turns out that Grandmamma is a retired witch hunter, and she tells the boy how to spot witches.  They all look like ordinary women, but they are actually disguising their deformities,  For instance, they have bald heads, have claws instead of fingers, and do not have toes, to name a few of their deformities.

The boy eventually returns to England with Grandmamma in tow, and while on holiday at the grand Hotel Magnificent in Bournemouth, England, the boy has his second experience with witches.  While hiding in the hotel ballroom, the boy discovers that a meeting of the “Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children” (RSPCC) is really the annual gathering of all the witches in England.  At that meeting, the boy sees something that almost no human has ever seen – the Grand High Witch, leader of all the world's witches.  And nothing can prepare the boy for the Grand High Witch's diabolical plan to get rid of all the human children in England.

THE LOWDOWN:  My experiences with Roald Dahl revolve around his 1964 children's novel, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and the two film adaptations of it, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971) and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005).  I read the novel once, sometime after the release of the 2005 film, and I have seen both films a few times.

I remember when Nicholas Roeg's film adaptation of The Witches was originally released, and I planned to see it but never did.  I have been putting off seeing the film ever since, but when I heard about Zemeckis' then-upcoming adaptation of The Witches, I chose the book as one of my Christmas 2019 gifts.  After finally reading it, I wish that I had read The Witches a long time ago.  I feel it could have been a formative reading experience for me when I was young.

That aside, it is a fantastic novel.  I am amazed that Dahl could create such evocative and vivid prose in writing for children.  Well, I guess that's why he is beloved by generations.  From the moment he introduces the unnamed boy, Dahl transports readers into another world, one that is fantastical, but one in which the readers will want to believe.

I also love that Dahl makes both the boy and his grandmother, who is 86 in the book, both plucky and adventurous.  The boy is not afraid of new things, and his child's sense of wonder and nosiness makes him not afraid to try new things and to go new places, as well as to try dangerous things and to go to dangerous places.  The boy is one of those classic characters onto which the readers will graft themselves in order to follow him on an incredible and perilous journey.  The witches of The Witches are unique and scary, but are also a little pathetic and funny, which is enough to make them creepy.

The best thing that I can say about Roald Dahl's The Witches is that when I got to the end of its 200 pages, I could have read another 200 pages.  Also Quentin Blake's illustrations are the perfect accompaniment to the novel.  I feel like the world of The Witches as my mind imagines it should look similar to the way Blake presents it.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Of course, fans of Roald Dahl should read and re-read The Witches, and fans of great children's literature will want to fight The Witches.

[This volume includes a 16-page from another Roald Dahl book, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.]

10 out of 10

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


https://www.roalddahl.com/
https://twitter.com/roald_dahl
https://www.facebook.com/roalddahl
https://www.youtube.com/c/roalddahl
https://www.penguin.com/publishers/puffin/
https://twitter.com/PuffinBooks


The text is copyright © 2020 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for syndication rights and fees.

-------------------------

Amazon wants me to inform you that the link below is a PAID AD, but I technically only get paid (eventually) if you click on the ad below AND buy something(s).

DC Comics from Lunar/UCS Distributors for July 21, 2020

DC COMICS:

Action Comics #1023 (Cover A John Romita Jr. & Klaus Janson), $3.99

Action Comics #1023 (Cover B Lucio Parillo), AR

Amethyst #4 (Of 6), $3.99

Batgirl #47 (Cover A Giuseppe Camuncoli), $3.99

Batgirl #47 (Cover B Terry Dodson & Rachel Dodson), AR

Batman #95 (Cover A Jorge Jimenez), $3.99

Batman #95 (Cover B Francesco Mattina Card Stock Variant), AR

Batman #95 (Cover C Jorge Jimenez Joker Card Stock Variant), AR

Batman Beyond #45 (Cover A Dan Mora), $3.99

Batman Beyond #45 (Cover B Francis Manapul), AR

Batman Beyond Volume 7 First Flight TP, $16.99

Books Of Magic #21, $3.99

Detective Comics #1024 (Cover A Brad Walker & Andrew Hennessy), $3.99

Detective Comics #1024 (Cover B Lee Bermejo Card Stock Variant), AR

Flash #758 (Cover A Rafa Sandoval & Jordi Tarragona), $3.99

Flash #758 (Cover B In-Hyuk Lee), AR

Flash United They Fall TP, $17.99

Green Lantern Green Arrow Space Traveling Heroes HC, $49.99

House Of Mystery The Bronze Age Omnibus Volume 2 HC, $150.00

Joker Harley Criminal Sanity Secret Files #1 (Cover A David Mack), $5.99

Justice League Dark #24 (Cover A Yanick Paquette), $3.99

Justice League Dark #24 (Cover B John Giang), AR

Last God #7, $4.99

Shazam #13 (Cover A Dale Eaglesham), $3.99

Shazam #13 (Cover B Julian Totino Tedesco Card Stock Variant), AR

Wonder Woman Through The Years HC (July 15 per Diamond), $39.99

RANDOM HOUSE BOOKS FOR YOUNG READERS
Wonder Woman Adventures Volume 1 Diana And The Island Of No Return HC, $16.99

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DC Companion Duo Bundle, $34.95

Games - NECA/WIZKIDS
FCBD 2020 DC Comics Dice Masters FCBD Promotional Team Pack Assortment, AR

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Batman Super Powers Robin Maquette, AR
DC Comics Elseworld Series Batman Who Laughs ARTFX Statue, AR
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DC Multiverse Wave 2 Wonder Woman 7 Inch Scale Action Figure, AR
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DC Premier Collection Tas Batman Statue, AR
DC Supergirl Returns Bishoujo Statue, AR
Justice League Animated Aquaman Action Figure, AR
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Justice League Animated Superman Action Figure, AR
Justice League Animated The Flash Action Figure, AR
Justice League Animated Wonder Woman Action Figure, AR


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#IReadsYou Review: THE RUNAWAY PRINCESS

THE RUNAWAY PRINCESS
RANDOM HOUSE/Random House Graphic – @RHKidsGraphic

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

CARTOONIST: Johan Troĩanowski
TRANSLATION: Anne Smith and Owen Smith
ISBN: 978-0-593-11840-5; paperback (January 21, 2020)
272pp, Color, $12.99 U.S., $17.99 CAN

Demographic: Middle-Grade

The Runaway Princess is a new, full-color, paperback graphic novel from Random House Graphic (or RH Graphic).  This is Random House's new imprint that publishes picture books, graphic novels, and other books that use graphics to tell a story.  [For the record, I use the term “graphical storytelling” to describe stories that use graphics (like lettering and sound effects), pictures, drawings, and illustrations (sometimes in sequence) to drive the narrative.  That includes the stories found in comics, comic books, comic strips, graphic novels, manga, etc.]

The Runaway Princess is comprised of three stories.  The first is “The Princess Runs Away (And Makes Some Friends).”  It stars Robin, the princess of the kingdom of Seddenga.  The story opens with the Queen and Elias, a royal household member, searching the royal castle for Robin.  After all, it is time for the princess' etiquette lesson with Elias.  They can't find her, but they are sure that she is nearby.

However, Robin is not a princess who will stay quietly and obediently at home.  This fiery red-haired girl is the kind of princess who will run away to have her own adventures, and this princess can’t resist the lure of adventure.  So Robin leaves the royal city of “Renoir” and heads out for adventure.  In “the Ogre's Forest,” she meets four brothers:  Paul, Matt, Lee, and Omar, and after avoiding the ogre, Robin leads her new friends to the city of “Noor,” where “the Aquatic Festival” is in full swing.  But can this adventurous princess and these lost boys handle all the (mis)adventure and strange beings that will come their way?

In the second story, “The Princess Runs Away Again (By Accident This Time),” Robin, Paul, Matt, Lee, and Omar are frolicking in the castle gardens when Robin falls into a secret passage.  The brothers are determined to find and rescue their friend, but Robin has already made a new friend, Plum, a curious girl with a thing for pumpkins.  But neither Robin nor the brothers realize that they are in “the Kingdom of Darkness” and that there is more to Plum than she has revealed.

In the third story, “The Princess Tries to Stay in One Place (But the Weather Doesn't Cooperate),” Robin finds Paul, Matt, Lee, and Omar playing aboard a small, sea-worthy boat that is land-ridden in a grassy meadow, so she joins them for some play.  When a sudden storm lifts the boat and carries it to an unknown land, the children have to find their way home.  In this adventure, the quintet encounters the eccentric scientist, inventor, and collector, Professor Dandelion; giant trees; the “Doodlers;” and a group of treasure-obsessed pirates that sail aboard a ship-in-a-bottle.

I can unequivocally say that RH Graphic's The Runaway Princess is one of the best kids' graphic novels that I have ever read.  I would probably have to go way out of my way and way overboard to find something wrong with it.  But first some background:

RH Graphic's The Runaway Princess is an English language collection of the French graphic novel series, Rouge.  Rouge is a comics series that began in 2009 and was written and illustrated by Johan Troĩanowski, a French comics and graphic novel creator.  In 2015, French publishing house, Makaka Éditions, published the first book collection (or graphic novel) of Rouge comics, entitled Rouge – Petite princesse punk.  That was followed by Rouge et la sorcière d’automne (2016), and Rouge - Lîle des Gribouilleurs (2017).  In the original comics, The “runaway princess'” name is “Rouge.”

RH Graphic's The Runaway Princess collects all three Rouge books in one handy, gorgeous paperback volume at the very reasonable cover prince of $12.99.  If you, dear readers, are considering purchasing The Runaway Princess, know that it shares characteristics with classic children's literature such The Wizard of Oz, Alice in Wonderland, and The Wind in the Willows, to name a few.  The three stories contained in this book also recall the stories of the Brothers Grimm and other classic fairy tales, especially the ones that Walt Disney turned into beloved animated feature films.

Johan Troĩanowski is a hugely imaginative and inventive storyteller.  I remember a writer once saying that The Wizard of Oz is such a perfect children's tale because things just happen without explanation, as if children were imagining the story.  The Runaway Princess works that way.  Troĩanowski imagines so many wonderful things and places and characters, and they do not seem frivolous or like throwaway characters.  Each thing and every person seems to have some back story – his, hers, or its own tale outside of Robin, Paul, Matt, Lee, and Omar's story.

The illustrations are doused in bright, vivid colors that make the art and story almost seem to leap off the page, as if the story contents of The Runaway Princess are coming to life.  There are also a few times in each of these three adventures when Troĩanowski asks the readers to help move the adventure forward.

The Runaway Princess is aimed at “middle-grade” readers, which I guess means readers ages 8 to 12, but over the decades, children have learned to read by reading comic books.  I think a child younger than eight who wants to tackle The Runaway Princess can handle it.  So yeah, The Runaway Princess might be the first great children's graphic novel of 2020.  I highly recommend it to readers young, older, and young at heart.

[This book also includes a back section featuring Johan Troĩanowski's preliminary art for the series, such as character sketches and story page sketches.]

10 out of 10

Website: https://www.rhkidsgraphic.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RHKidsGraphic
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rhkidsgraphic/

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2020 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for syndication rights and fees.


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Comics, Magazines and Books from Diamond Distributors for March 14, 2018

COMICS & GRAPHIC NOVELS

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Review: Charles Burns' SUGAR SKULL

SUGAR SKULL
PANTHEON BOOKS – @PantheonBooks @AAKnopf @doubledaypub

CARTOONIST: Charles Burns
ISBN: 978-0-307-90790-5; hardcover (September 16, 2014)
64pp, Color, $23.00 U.S.

Charles Burns is the American cartoonist and illustrator best known for his graphic novel, Black Hole, which was originally published as a comic book series, first by Kitchen Sink Press, and finally by Fantagraphics Books.  His comics short stories have been collected in such book collections as Big Baby and Skin Deep.

His most recent comics work is a graphic novel trilogy that began in X'ed Out and continued in The Hive and now, comes to an end in Sugar Skull.  The long strange trip of a guy named Doug comes to an end that is both mind-bending and heart-wrenching (or pathetic, depending on how you look at it).

In X’ed Out, Burns introduces Doug, a photographic artist who has a head injury of some kind.  One night, he awakens and sees his cat, Inky, who is supposed to be dead.  Doug follows Inky through a hole torn in a brick wall, where he discovers a place called The Hive.  This place is likely an alternate reality that has been induced by the trauma Doug experienced and by the prescription medications he uses.  In the Hive, Doug's persona becomes that of “Johnny,” a version of Nitnit, his performance art alter-ego.

In The Hive, Doug begins working in that nightmarish alternate world as a lowly employee who carts supplies around the Hive.  He also strikes up a friendship with a breeder named Suzy, and that new relationship is almost like another Doug previously had.  Meanwhile, back in reality, Doug slowly transforms from an ambitious young artist into a guy who merely drifts through life, bereft of his hopes and dreams.

As Sugar Skull begins, Doug-as-Johnny is back in the the Hive.  After a troubling encounter with a sow-life creature and her thing-lets, he reunites with a his Hive-chick, Suzy.  However, she is about to undergo a bodily function that disturbs and freaks-out Johnny.  Meanwhile, back in reality, Doug is now fully a lost and ambivalent man, but he lives with Sally, a woman who clearly loves him

Doug has regrets and questions.  What does the Hive represent?  What happened to him? Where is his former girlfriend, Sarah?  As he digs for answers, he seeks out Sarah, who has a surprise for him.  We also finally learn how Doug received the head injury that has put his reality into a crazy, mind-bending, dream/nightmare loop.

I have enjoyed Charles Burns' trilogy of graphic novels.  [I don't know whether to call this “The Hive trilogy” or the “X'ed Out trilogy” or even the “Nitnit trilogy.”]  I like the publishing format for these comic books:  hardcover, large-sized at 8.9 x 11.8 (which is similar to a French album or graphic novel), with a cloth-covered spine and beautifully illustrated end papers.

I found X'ed Out to be especially intriguing and captivating; I could not help but be taken in by the mystery and reality-warping, which seemed straight out of a David Lynch movie.  The Hive was vague and sometimes seemed like filler material, which can be a problem with the middle installment of a trilogy.  I was somewhat frustrated with it.

Four years after I read X'ed Out, Sugar Skull rewards my patience.  Suddenly, the answers pour forth, and they will break your heart.  For all the surrealism of much of story prior to the final volume, this ending is surprisingly human.  Burns depicts the melancholy nature of a promising life that has decided to settle for the mundane.

This trilogy operates on so many levels and layers, and Doug and perhaps a few other characters exist in different persona.  Time, symbolism, and metaphor exist in multiple layers.  Sugar Skull is more grounded than the other books.  It forces reality and consequence, even in the alternate reality.  A “sugar skull” or calavera is a representation of the human skull made out of clay or sugar and is used in the Mexican celebration, Day of the Dead (which takes place over three days beginning on October 31st).

Is Doug dead?  Is he an unreliable narrator?  I don't think that Doug is a deceased character, who is narrating the last of his life.  Rather, he is forced to confront the truth about himself, and that can be more painful than a blow to the head.  Sugar Skull justifies this entire enterprise undertaken by Charles Burns, and it proves that Burns' stories may be strange and intense, but they are not impersonal.  They are unique depictions of the human condition, and, as Sugar Skull shows, they are deeply personal.

A

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Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux


The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for syndication rights and fees.

#IReadsYou Review: Bryan Lee O'Malley's SECONDS

SECONDS
RANDOM HOUSE/Ballantine Books – @randomhouse

CARTOONIST: Bryan Lee O’Malley
ART ASST: Jason Fischer
COLORS: Nathan Fairbairn
LETTERS: Dustin Harbin
COVER: Bryan Lee O’Malley
ISBN: 978-0-345-52723-3; paperback (July 15, 2014)
336pp, Color, $25.00 U.S.

Born in Canada, Bryan Lee O’Malley is a cartoonist and comic book artist and letterer.  He is best known as the creator of the bestselling graphic novel series, Scott Pilgrim, which began in 2004 with Scott Pilgrim’s Precious Little Life.  The series was adapted into the 2010 film, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (directed by Edgar Wright).

O’Malley’s first original graphic novel since Scott Pilgrim ended is entitled Seconds.  A full-color, hardback (6.2” x 8.2”), Seconds was just released by Ballantine Books (a division of Random House).  Seconds is the story of a talented young chef who misuses the magic that allows her to correct a blunder.

Seconds focuses on Katie Clay.  She is 29-years-old, and her 20s have been very good to her.  Once upon a time, she opened a restaurant with some friends; named “Seconds,” the place was successful.  Four years later, though, Katie is ready to move on and open a new restaurant, and she wants to name it “Katie’s.”  She has even found what she thinks is the ideal location, an old building that seems to have a magical charm about it (at least to her).

All at once, however, progress on the new location bogs down.  Seconds still calls to her – it doesn’t help that she lives in a room above the restaurant.  Her ex-boyfriend, Max, starts showing up again.  Katie is having a fling with Andrew, the 25-year-old chef she chose to replace her at Seconds, but that relationship seems to be souring.  Then, Hazel, a gorgeous young waitress at Seconds, is hurt in an accident caused, in some measure, because of Katie’s actions.  Katie’s life seems not to be so very good anymore.

If only she could have a second chance…

A mysterious girl named Lis suddenly appears in Katie’s room in the middle of the night.  Lis has simple instructions that will magically allow Katie a second chance to change a bad thing that happened into something much better.  And it works!  The problem is that Katie is only supposed to use that magic once.  Katie’s drive to fix everything will take her down the road to hell.

I am a huge fan of filmmaker Guillermo del Toro, and I have enjoyed the work of cartoonist and comic book creator/theorist, Scott McCloud.  I received a review copy of Seconds from Ballantine Books, and it came with a one-page press release for the book that included one-line quotes from both Del Toro and McCloud.  I don’t know if they actually read Seconds in its entirety or just parts of it, but neither of quotes conveyed what a truly unique comic book Seconds is.  With that said, let’s see if I can do some conveying.

Ever since I first came across the phrase “great read” in a book review I have used it in many of my reviews to let the reader know what fun I had reading a particular book.  Seconds is a great read.  I found myself going back over many pages, which is why I am a little late with this review.  Seconds is the kind of graphic novel that keeps me reading comic books, knowing that this medium can and does deliver unique and rewarding works like this.  Seconds is exemplary of that kind of supremely entertaining and imaginative work that only comic books can do.

Seconds is an uncanny mixture of magical realism and the fairy tale.  It is as if Bryan Lee O’Mally makes Katie’s story both a realistic drama and a Grimm-like cautionary, timeless in that it can be retold for any period.  Thematically, Seconds is about regret, the cycle of creation and dissolution in relationships, the ambivalence of change, and the yearning for supernatural (especially if it can solve our problems), among others.

The story suggests that trying to exert total control of the perceived chaos in our lives only brings actual terrible chaos instead of order.  Katie’s frantic desire to fix every problem, blunder, setback, etc. seems to make her more frantic.  The chaos that ensues drives this narrative, making it simmer like a potboiler.  It’s fun for us, but not for her.  Still, Seconds is more than just a thrill ride through Katie’s mounting problems.  It is also a funny, beautiful, and haunting examination of the human desire to make things work out just the way we want them to be.

Fans of Bryan Lee O’Malley and readers look for exceptional comic books will want to ask for Seconds.  This is a truly exceptional comic book.  And it’s a great read!

A

www.ballantinebooks.com

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux


The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for syndication rights and fees.

Review: A GAME OF THRONES: The Graphic Novel, Volume 3

A GAME OF THRONES: THE GRAPHIC NOVEL, VOL. 3
BANTAM BOOKS/RANDOM HOUSE – @randomhouse
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT – @dynamitecomics

WRITER: George R.R. Martin
ADAPTATION: Daniel Abraham
ART: Tommy Patterson
COLORS: Ivan Nunes
LETTERS: Marshall Dillon
ORIGINAL SERIES COVERS: Mike S. Miller, Michael Komark
COVER: Tommy Patterson with design by Charles Brock, Faceout Studio
ISBN: 978-0-440-42323-2; hardcover (March 11, 2014)
226pp, Color, $25.00 U.S., $29.95 CAN

A Game of Thrones is a 1996 novel from science fiction and fantasy author, George R.R. Martin.  The novel is the first book in Martin’s best-selling A Song of Ice and Fire series of high fantasy novels.  The series is also the basis for the award-winning and popular HBO television series, "Game of Thrones."

Dynamite Entertainment is currently producing a comic book adaptation of A Game of Thrones, the novel.  The adaptation will run for 24 issues, at about 29 pages of story per issue.  The writer responsible for adapting George R.R. Martin’s prose into comics form is science fiction and fantasy novelist, Daniel Abraham (who sometimes collaborates with Martin on fiction).  The artist is Tommy Patterson, who has drawn comic books for Boom! Studios and Zenescope Entertainment.  Mike S. Miller is the series’ regular cover artist.

Bantam Books collects Dynamite’s comic book adaptation as A Game of Thrones: The Graphic Novel.  A Game of Thrones: The Graphic Novel: Volume 3 collects A Game of Thrones, issues #13 to 18.  Vol. 3 includes “The Making of A Game of Thrones: The Graphic Novel: Volume 3” which presents almost 40 character sketches rendered by Tommy Patterson for this series.

A Game of Thrones: The Graphic Novel: Volume 3 opens in the aftermath of the attack on King Robert Baratheon (Lord of the Seven Kingdoms).  Now, Lord Eddard Stark of Winterfell, the Hand of King Robert and in charge of protecting the King, finds himself surrounded by enemies in King’s Landing.  Eddard’s most miserable source of irritation is the House Lannister, to which Queen Cersei belongs.  Many of his other enemies hide behind smiles, pretending to be friends.

Meanwhile, far to the north, Jon Snow, Eddard’s bastard son, is newly sworn to the Night’s Watch, though not in the position he coveted.  As he takes the first steps to his destiny, he finds two dead bodies – two strangely dead bodies.  Across the Narrow Sea, Daenerys Targaryen must finally deal with her brother, Prince Viserys, the Dragon.  Her husband, Khal Drago, Lord of the Dothraki and the father of her unborn child, makes a crucial decision.  And a character innocently reveals his tremendous male endowment.

Prior to reading A Game of Thrones: The Graphic Novel: Volume 1, I was not familiar with A Game of Thrones, although I had heard of the television series.  I did not even know that the novel was being adapted into comic book form until Random House sent me a review copy of the first graphic novel in early 2012.  I did not expect much from that first experience with A Game of Thrones, but I ended up thoroughly enjoying it.  Luckily, Random House also sent me A Game of Thrones: The Graphic Novel Volume 2 and recently sent me a copy for review of Vol. 3.

If one considers A Game of Thrones the novel to be a masterpiece, then, it only makes sense that only the best talent should try to adapt the novel into a medium.  It is debatable as to whether writer Daniel Abraham and illustrator Tommy Patterson are among the best of their chosen fields – Abraham in science fiction and fantasy fiction and Patterson in comic books.  I am not familiar with their work outside of this adaptation of A Game of Thrones (nor have I yet read the original novel).

Judging strictly by their work on A Game of Thrones the comic book, I think writer Daniel Abraham and illustrator Tommy Patterson are just super duper.  I start reading this book and I’m reading it as fast as I can, unable to read as fast as my eyes want to scan across the page.  I lose track of how fast I’m flipping pages.  Before I know it, I have finished one entire chapter/issue, and I am half-way through another.

So you can also make an argument that the best, Daniel Abraham and Tommy Patterson, were indeed chosen to adapt George R. R. Martin’s beloved fantasy classic into a graphic novel.  After reading the previous two collected volumes of the comic book, I think this is a stunning fantasy comic book series.

Abraham scripts a sumptuous character drama, in which his storytelling crawls into every character.  Patterson’s art in combination with Ivan Nunes’ luxurious colors create the graphical storytelling expression and appearance that is perfect for the kind of detailed, historical fiction and high fantasy story A Game of Thrones is.  However, this masterful comic book is more than just good fantasy comics; it’s simply superb comics.

A

www.bantamdell.com

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux

The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

Review: The DC Comics Guide to Creating Comics

THE DC COMICS GUIDE TO CREATING COMICS
WATSON-GUPTILL PUBLICATIONS/DC Comics – @CrownPublishing and @dccomics

WRITERS: Carl Potts
COVER:  Jim Lee, Bill Reinhold
ISBN: 978-0-385-34472-2; paperback (October 8, 2013)
192pp, Color, $24.99 U.S., $27.95 CAN

Forward by Jim Lee

Comic book writer, artist, and editor, Carl Potts joined Marvel Comics’ editorial staff in 1983.  Potts co-created Alien Legion, a comic book series published by Marvel’s Epic imprint, and he helped develop The Punisher as the character went from supporting/guest player to title character.

Potts may be best known for working with numerous comic book artists early in their career, including Jon Bogdanove, Whilce Portacio, and Scott Williams, among many.  Potts also helped Jim Lee and Art Adams break into the comics industry.  Potts’ work as an editor and his work with young comic book creators make him the perfect author for books about creating comics.

Potts is the author of The DC Comics Guide to Creating Comics: Inside the Art of Visual Storytelling, the latest book in the DC Comics Guide series.  The series previously focused on drawing comic books:  The DC Comics Guide to Pencilling Comics, The DC Comics Guide to Inking Comics (both authored by Klaus Janson), and The DC Comics Guide to Digitally Drawing Comics (by Freddie Williams II).

With such a pedigree and with so many accomplishments, it should be no surprise that The DC Comics Guide to Creating Comics is not a book for beginners.  It is not that this book is highly technical; it actually goes into great detail about the art and craft of creating comics.  It discusses everything from the goals and principles of “visual sequential storytelling” to how a creator can affect the comics reader’s experience.

To me, at least, the people who can get the most out of The DC Comics Guide to Creating Comics are writers and artists, especially the latter, who have created comics.  Those writers and artists who have some professional experience or who have produced comic books (even if they have had to self-publish) will get the most out of this because they already either already understand comics (either by theory or practice) or have attempted to make comics.

The DC Comics Guide to Creating Comics is generously illustrated book, but this is not about pretty pictures and slick comic book art.  It is about teaching and guiding.  Potts makes his points with covers, whole pages, thumbnails, pencils, inks, details from larger pieces, etc.  I think my favorite part of the book is Chapter Twelve: Watching the Pros Work.  Three artists:  Whilce Portacio, Bill Reinhold, and Phil Jimenez take the same three-page script and provide breakdowns or thumbnails and then, turn those into pencil art.  Seeing how three veteran artists interpret the same script in ways that are both graphically and visually similar and different is a joy for a comic book fan and will likely be of use to someone wanting to learn the DC Comics’ way of drawing comic books.

So readers wanting to learn more about creating superhero comic books will want The DC Comics Guide to Creating Comics: Inside the Art of Visual Storytelling.  Carl Potts is a good teacher, and this is one good looking book.

A-


An incomplete list of the artists and writers whose work appears in this volume:
Arthur Adams, Joe Bennett, W.H. Haden Blackman, Brett Booth, Doug Braithwaite, Rick Bryant, Greg Capullo, Nick Cardy, Tony Daniel, John Dell, Steve Ditko, Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez, Dave Gibbons, Russ Heath, Adam Hughes, Klaus Janson, Phil Jimenez, Geoff Johns, J.G. Jones, Joe Kubert, Andy Lanning, Jim Lee, Francis Manapul, Mike Mignola, Grant Morrison, Kevin Nowlan, Yanick Paquette, George Perez, Whilce Portacio, E. Potts, Bill Reinhold, Ivan Reis, Eduardo Risso, Alex Ross, P. Craig Russell, Walter Simonson, Scott Snyder, Ryan Sook, Ardian Syaf, Bruce Timm, Alex Toth, J.H. Williams III, Scott Williams, and Jorge Zaffino

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux

The text is copyright © 2013 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.