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Monday, July 15, 2019
Sunday, July 14, 2019
Book Review: THE CONFESSIONS OF FRANNIE LANGTON
HARPER (HarperCollins Publishers) – @HarperCollins @HarperBooks
[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]
AUTHOR: Sara Collins
ISBN: 978-0-06-285189-5; hardcover (May 21, 2019)
384pp, B&W, $26.99 U.S.
The Confessions of Frannie Langton is the debut novel of author Sara Collins. This 2019 historical novel and murder mystery, which is set largely in the 1820s and in Georgian London, focuses on a servant and former slave accused of murdering her employer and his wife.
The Confessions of Frannie Langton opens on April 5, 1826 in London, at “The Old Bailey” (the common name for the Central Criminal Court of England and Wales). Frances “Frannie” Langton, a mulatto Black woman, is accused of double murder. London is abuzz with this scandalous case in which renowned scientist, George Benham, and his eccentric French wife, Marguerite “Meg” Benham (the former Marguerite Delacroix), were murdered in their home, Levenhall. Huge crowds pack the courtroom to hear the tawdry details of two White people brutally, repeated, and savagely stabbed by this mysterious Negress to whom the late couple gave a home and a job after she was turned out by her previous master.
But there is always more... more... more to such stories. For that, we travel back in time to the period of 1812 to 1825. Frannie Langton was once a slave on a plantation in Jamaica, called “Paradise.” Her owner, John Langton, had scientific ambitions, and he was determined to prove his theories about race, particularly about Black people and about Black Africans.
Frannie may claim that she cannot recall what happened that fateful evening of the Benhams' deaths – even if remembering could save her life. However, she does have a tale to tell, and it begins with her childhood on that Jamaican sugar plantation. It continues to her apprenticeship under John Langton, cruel master turned debauched scientist, stretching all bounds of ethics. Then, the story moves into the Benhams’ London home, where Frannie finds a wannabe scientist who may be as bad as Langton and where she also finds a passionate and forbidden relationship. The newspapers say Frannie is a seductress, a witch, a master manipulator, and a whore, when she may simply be a Black woman trying to make her own way in a racist world.
When HarperCollins offered a galley review copy of The Confessions of Frannie Langton, I jumped at asking for a copy, especially after reading the cover copy. However, The Confessions of Frannie Langton turned out to be one of the most difficult reads that I have encountered in well over a decade.
The depiction of slavery and of forced servitude in The Confessions of Frannie Langton is so vivid and horrifying. It's like combining the screenplays for 12 Years of Slave and Birth of a Nation (2016 version, of course) squeezed into one heartbreaking novel. What Sara Collins offers in The Confessions of Frannie Langton is certainly a brilliant, searing depiction of race, class, and oppression. This novel, however, offers even more; it is a historical thriller and literary indictment with ambitions to be as entertaining as any other literary thriller.
Collins offers wisdom and insight into the way both the oppressors and the oppressed are forced to live their lives. Such perceptiveness is revealed in lines like “... 'cause you got white hopes. I got Negro expectations.” (as said to Frannie by Sal, her friend and fellow sex worker) or “The very woman who'd spit in your porridge in the morning could be fornicating with your husband at night.” As if she were a venerable, elderly Black woman storyteller, Collins has uncanny insights into the perilous and fraught lives of Black woman who are property or who are technically not property, but are really property for all intents and purposes.
Perhaps, we love people because we view them through a lens of being people who make us feel a certain way. Frannie becomes attached to or falls in love with people who view her as being property that makes them feel a certain way. In order to convey that stark and sometimes subtle difference, a writer needs to be a superior storyteller and also needs to have a command of prose. With her first novel, Sara Collins' mighty storytelling and command of prose take her to the summit of literary heights. I would be surprised if The Confessions of Frannie Langton did not become a staple of college literature courses within five years.
The Confessions of Frannie Langton is an incredible novel with a kind of terrible power. This is the power needed to convey the horrors experienced by Africans enslaved in the Western Hemisphere and also by those forced to inherit the status of their enslaved parents, grandparents and ancestors.
10 out of 10
Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"
The text is copyright © 2019 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for syndication rights and fees.
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Friday, July 12, 2019
Review: Friendly Neighborhood SPIDER-MAN #1
MARVEL COMICS – @Marvel
[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]
STORY: Tom Taylor
PENCILS: Juann Cabal; Marcelo Ferreira
INKS: Juann Cabal; Roberto Poggi
COLORS: Nolan Woodard; Jim Campbell
LETTERS: VC's Travis Lanham
EDITOR: Nick Lowe
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Akira Yoshida
COVER: Andrew Robinson
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Juann Cabal with Nolan Woodard; Joe Jusko
40pp, Color, $4.99 U.S. (March 2019)
Rated “T”
Spider-Man created by Steve Ditko and Stan Lee
“Mother of Exile: Part One”
Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man was a Spider-Man comic book series that ran for twenty-four monthly issues (cover dated: December 2005 to November 2007) and one “Annual.” A new volume of the series recently debuted. The new series is written by Tom Taylor; drawn by Juann Cabal; colored by Nolan Woodard; and lettered by Travis Lanham. Marvel Comics promises that this new series will give readers “the most local Peter Parker ever” (CBR.com; October 5, 2018).
Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #1 opens with Spider-Man saving some neighbors. Peter Parker is doing a lot of that, but his latest neighbor in need, a young woman named Leilani, is in some kind of weird trouble. And the troublemakers hit really hard. Plus, in a second story, Peter's Aunt May is having health issues that she is hiding from her dear nephew.
Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man has potential. I might keep reading just because of the ending of the first story. The art by Juann Cabal is good, but not great, although it does look pretty under Nolan Woodard's smooth colors. Travis Lanham's steady lettering centers the story and gives Tom Taylor's script a little bite and a little edge which it needs.
There is a second story, which is written by Taylor; drawn by Marcelo Ferreira and Roberto Poggi; colored by Jim Campbell; and lettered by Lanham. As for this story: I don't know why we need an Aunt May health scare arc.
6 out of 10
Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You'
The text is copyright © 2019 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.
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Thursday, July 11, 2019
Review: THE GREEN LANTERN #1
DC COMICS – @DCComics
[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]
STORY: Grant Morrison
ART: Liam Sharp
COLORS: Steve Oliff
LETTERS: Tom Orzechowski
EDITOR: Brian Cunningham
COVER: Liam Sharp with Steve Oliff
VARIANT COVER: Frank Quitely
40pp, Color, $4.99 U.S. (January 2019)
Rated “T+” for “Teen Plus”
“Intergalactic Lawman”
The DC Comics superhero, Green Lantern, first appeared in All-American Comics #16 (cover dated: July 1940). Created by artist Martin Nodell with writer Bill Finger, Green Lantern was Alan Scott, a railroad engineer who found a magic lantern from which he fashioned a magic ring that gave him various powers.
In 1959, editor Julius Schwartz, writer John Broome, and artist Gil Kane introduced a new Green Lantern, a science fiction hero rather than a magically powered hero like the Alan Scott-Green Lantern. Introduced in Showcase #22 (cover dated: September-October 1959), Green Lantern was Hal Jordan, who received his green power ring from a dying alien named Abin Sur. Sur was a commissioned officer of the Green Lantern Corps, an interstellar law enforcement agency overseen by the “Guardians of the Universe” (or “Guardians of Oa”). Jordan, upon receiving Sur's ring, took his place as the Green Lantern of the space that Sur had patrolled.
DC Comics has launched a new ongoing Green Lantern comic book series. Entitled The Green Lantern, it is written by Grant Morrison; drawn by Liam Sharp; colored by Steve Oliff; and lettered by Tom Orzechowski. The Green Lantern stars Hal Jordan as Green Lantern and focuses on Green Lantern as an intergalactic policeman rather than as a superhero.
The Green Lantern #1 (“Intergalactic Lawman”) opens as Maxim Tox, the Green Lantern of Sector 2018.2, captures three of the deadliest killers in the galaxy. However, an accident or act of sabotage drops these miscreants in Hal Jordan's lap. Jordan may be estranged from the Guardians of Oa, but they need him now...
If it's Grant Morrison, there is a good chance that it will be weird, and the best Morrison, his 1980's run on Animal Man and his 1989 to 1993 run on Doom Patrol, is deliciously weird. Morrison's references to Hal Jordan-Green Lantern's past might not prepare the reader for the Morrison's new take on the character, but it seems that he is mining both Green Lantern and DC Comics' past (perhaps, especially the Silver Age) for ideas and concepts.
Artist Liam Sharp summons the work of the late artist, H.R. Giger, especially his Oscar-winning work on the 1979 film, Alien, to give The Green Lantern #1 a striking visual appearance and graphic design that is atypical of twenty-first century American comic books. The closest antecedent I can think of is the 1980s work of English comic book artist, Kevin O'Neill (Nemesis the Warlock), and the science fiction and horror comics of 1950s EC Comics, especially the comics drawn by Wally Wood and Al Williamson.
The Green Lantern #1's unique striking graphics would not be so striking without Steve Oliff's colors, which are part subdued and part earthy, but also have a vibrant quality. Tom Orzechowski, one of the best letterers in the history of comic books, adds a stylish touch that completes this comic book's eccentric flair.
I have to admit to being a little put off by The Green Lantern #1, but I am anxious to see how Morrison and Sharp will pull off the intergalactic cop thing. So I'll be back.
7 out of 10
Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"
The text is copyright © 2018 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.
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Wednesday, July 10, 2019
Review: BOOKS OF MAGIC #1
DC COMICS – @DCComics
[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]
STORY: Kat Howard
ART: Tom Fowler
COLORS: Jordan Boyd
LETTERS: Todd Klein
EDITOR: Molly Mahan
CURATOR: Neil Gaiman
COVER: Kai Carpenter
VARIANT COVERS: Josh Middleton
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (December 2018)
“Suggested for Mature Readers”
Timothy Hunter and The Books of Magic created by Neil Gaiman and John Bolton
“What's Past is Prologue”
The Books of Magic was a four-issue comic book miniseries written by Neil Gaiman and drawn by four artists, one for each issue, beginning with John Bolton. This series was published by DC Comics from 1990 to 1991. The Books of Magic told the story of a boy, Timothy Hunter, who had the potential to become the world's greatest magician. DC Comics later published The Books of Magic as an ongoing series that ran for 75 issues from 1994 to 2000.
Books of Magic returns as an ongoing comic book series as part of “The Sandman Universe.” This line of comic books is related to Neil Gamain's work for DC Comics, specifically The Books of Magic and the beloved series, The Sandman. Books of Magic 2018 is written by novelist Kat Howard (Roses and Rot); drawn by Tom Fowler; colored by Jordan Boyd; and lettered by Todd Klein.
Books of Magic #1 (“What's Past is Prologue”) finds Tim Hunter ready to embrace his destiny to become the world's greatest magician. Thus far, however, he seems to be little more than an awkward teenage boy with the talent for being the world's best at embarrassing himself.
So it is fortunate for Tim that one of his high school teacher's knows of his destiny. She informs Tim that he actually has to learn magic from books, but the first book she gives Tim has blank pages. Now, he has to discover a way to read it, even if some books of magic should not be read...
Books of Magic #1 2018 is a good example of how the members of a creative team can come together as one to create high quality comic books. Kat Howard writes a script that has the enchantment of making the readers keep turning pages. Tom Fowler's illustrations deliver a graphical story with intriguing shifts in tone and also in environment, and every environment – from memory to magic and from real world to magical realms – seems equally tangible and real.
Jordan's Boyd's color completes Fowler's illustrations, making them evocative, suggesting atmosphere and especially emotion. Boyd really captures the sense of both frustration and anger that hangs over much of this first issue. And of course, there is letterer Todd Klein. I don't know what I'm supposed to say. Todd Klein is good? His name is like magic to me.
Books of Magic #1 is quite intriguing. I want more, and I actually scoffed at the idea of this book when I first heard about it. Now, I am scoffing at the idea of waiting a month between issues.
8 out of 10
Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"
The text is copyright © 2018 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for syndication rights and fees.
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Tuesday, July 9, 2019
Review: VAMPIRE KNIGHT: Memories Volume 3
VIZ MEDIA – @VIZMedia
MANGAKA: Matsuri Hino
TRANSLATION: Tetsuichiro Miyaki
ENGLISH ADAPTATION: Nancy Thislethwaite
LETTERS: Inori Fukuda Trant
EDITOR: Nancy Thislethwaite
ISBN: 978-1-9747-0515-3; paperback (July 2019); Rated “T+” for “Older Teen”
208pp, B&W, $9.99 U.S., $12.99 CAN, £6.99 UK
Vampire Knight is a vampire romance and shojo manga from creator Matsuri Hino. It was published in the magazine, LaLa, from 2004 to 2013. It has been collected in 19 tankōbon (similar to a graphic novel), and VIZ Media has published the manga in the United States as an English-language, paperback graphic novel series.
A few years after the end of the original series, Hino began producing a series of “special chapters.” These are episodes of Vampire Knight that take place after the events depicted in Vampire Knight Volume 19, which contained the final chapters of original manga. VIZ Media is publishing an English-language translation of the new chapters in a graphic novel series, Vampire Knights: Memories.
Vampire Knight focuses on Yuki Cross, a student at the vampire (the “Night Class”) and human (the “Day Class”) school, Cross Academy. Headmaster Kaien Cross is her stepfather, but Yuki eventually learns that she is a pure-blood vampire. Her first love interest is Zero Kiryu, a human suffering from the curse of the vampire. Yuki eventually falls in love with Kaname Kuran, a pure-blood vampire. At the end of Vampire Knight, Kaname sacrifices his body to create new vampire-killing weapons for the vampire-hunting Hunter Society.
Vampire Knight: Memories, Vol. 3 opens with the chapter, entitled “Bond.” Yuki and Zero encounter old friends, now aged, and new enemies. All that pales next to the strength of their bond, and now, they have decided to become a couple. In “Memories of Those Who Have Gone,” Kaien Cross reminisces about the photographs he took and the memories they recall. Vampires Ruka and Akatsuki become engaged in the story, “Wedge,” and they marry in “Till Dust Do Us Part,” which also finds Yuki and Zero make decisions about their relationship.
[This volume includes the bonus stories, “A Vampire Who Claims that Friendship is the Source of Life” and “What is to Come;” a four-panel manga, “Memories of Little Consequence;” and “Editor's Notes.”]
In general, I enjoyed the Vampire Knight manga, although I was not a fan of the final graphic novel, Vol. 19. I liked the first volume of the Vampire Knight: Memories manga, but I thought the second volume was stronger.
Vampire Knight: Memories Graphic Novel Volume 3 maintains the increase in the quality of drama that Vol. 2 presented. I like that Cross Academy is back in play, but I am also intrigued by the increasing tensions between various factions of humans and vampires. Intrigue will apparently yield acts of terrorism, double-dealing, double agents, and perhaps, some kind of biological warfare.
Best of all about Vol. 3 is the romance. We have a wedding, a beautiful one that occurs at night. The new state of affairs between Yuki Cross and Zero Kiryu promises a resurgence of Vampire Knight. How long will this “sequel” last? Hopefully, it will last several more volumes – if love and war are the order of the Day (Class) with the creatures of the Night (Class).
A
8 out of 10
Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"
The text is copyright © 2019 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for syndication rights and fees.
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Monday, July 8, 2019
BOOM! Studios from Diamond Distributors for July 10, 2019
BOOM! STUDIOS
FEB199063 ANGEL #1 (2ND PTG) $3.99
MAY191212 GHOSTED IN LA #1 CVR A MAIN KEENAN $3.99
MAY191213 GHOSTED IN LA #1 CVR B GRACE VAR $3.99
MAY198052 GHOSTED IN LA #1 FOC ANKA VAR $3.99
MAY191216 GO GO POWER RANGERS #21 CVR A MAIN VIDAL $3.99
MAY191217 GO GO POWER RANGERS #21 CVR B MERCADO VAR $3.99
MAY198053 GO GO POWER RANGERS #21 FOC JOHANNA VAR $3.99
MAR191289 GRASS KINGS TP VOL 01 $17.99
MAY191241 JIM HENSON BENEATH DARK CRYSTAL #11 (OF 12) CVR A MAIN DEWEY $3.99
MAY191242 JIM HENSON BENEATH DARK CRYSTAL #11 (OF 12) CVR B PREORDER P $3.99
MAR191267 MAGICIANS ALICE STORY ORIGINAL GN HC $26.99
MAR191273 STEVEN UNIVERSE ALL-IN-ONE ED HC $74.99
FEB199063 ANGEL #1 (2ND PTG) $3.99
MAY191212 GHOSTED IN LA #1 CVR A MAIN KEENAN $3.99
MAY191213 GHOSTED IN LA #1 CVR B GRACE VAR $3.99
MAY198052 GHOSTED IN LA #1 FOC ANKA VAR $3.99
MAY191216 GO GO POWER RANGERS #21 CVR A MAIN VIDAL $3.99
MAY191217 GO GO POWER RANGERS #21 CVR B MERCADO VAR $3.99
MAY198053 GO GO POWER RANGERS #21 FOC JOHANNA VAR $3.99
MAR191289 GRASS KINGS TP VOL 01 $17.99
MAY191241 JIM HENSON BENEATH DARK CRYSTAL #11 (OF 12) CVR A MAIN DEWEY $3.99
MAY191242 JIM HENSON BENEATH DARK CRYSTAL #11 (OF 12) CVR B PREORDER P $3.99
MAR191267 MAGICIANS ALICE STORY ORIGINAL GN HC $26.99
MAR191273 STEVEN UNIVERSE ALL-IN-ONE ED HC $74.99
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