Review: I Kill Giants

I Kill Giants by Joe Kelly


My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I Kill Giants is an impressive graphic novel. A bittersweet tale of a teenage girl, who's also a D&D geek, dealing with the impending lost of a parent succumbing to cancer. While there's a mix of fantasy and reality in the tale, the story is still grounded in the realities of life, and how one deals with life and lost. Done in black and white, the art is dynamic and simply quite fantastic. A must read.

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Review: Brownsville

Brownsville by Neil Kleid


My rating: 2 of 5 stars
It's unusual to read about a mob story featuring Jewish gangsters. But other than the unique story, the graphic novel has nothing much else going for it. The story gets confusing, characters get introduced without background and you get lots of names which makes the tale hard to follow.

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Review: Spider-Man: Blue

Spider-Man: Blue by Jeph Loeb


My rating: 5 of 5 stars
The Peter Parker/Gwen Stacy story has always been my fave tragic love story in comics. There's just something about the tragedy that moved me. Spider-Man: Blue is a retelling of that tragic story, but one that does not goes into the specifics of what happened. Instead, it focuses on Parker's reminiscing how he got together with the love of his life, and the other one whom he eventually married. The storytelling, together with the bold colourful art style, comes together to form a bittersweet tale that is beautiful and sad. By the time I reached the final pages, I am not ashamed to say that tears were welling up in my eyes. Lovely, brilliant, read it.

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Review: The Waiting Place

The Waiting Place by Sean McKeever


My rating: 3 of 5 stars
About a group of teens growing up in a small suburban town. Starts off rather confusingly, but gets better when you know the characters. A tale about relationships, longing, heartbreaks, friendship, sprinkled with doses of pop culture references from the 90s.

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Review: Epileptic

Epileptic by David B.


My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Epileptic is David B's chronicle of his life and dealing with his brother's epilepsy. Intense and deeply personal, the book plunges deep into the author's psyche and the art reflects the wild and sometimes primitive rumblings in his mind. It is not really an easy book to read through due to the melancholic nature of the story which permeates through the black and white panels filled with surrealistic and raw pictures. Still, one cannot deny that this memoir is a remarkable and highly imaginative graphic tour de force.

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Review: Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic

Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel


My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Fun Home is an autobiographical graphic novel about growing up and discovery. In seven chapters, Bechdel digs into her childhood and teenage memories of her own life and her relationship with her dad. The result is a touching and intensely personal journey. It is also affecting in the way which she handles the discovery of her dad's homosexuality, and eventually her own. The literary approach also makes this book a truly intellectual achievement.

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Review: Essex County

The Complete Essex County by Jeff Lemire


My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Lemire is a great story teller and Essex County is perhaps one of the best graphic novels I've ever read. It reminds me of Craig Thompson's Blankets with its black and white art style and heart-wrenching story. In Essex County, the focus is on a number of individuals who're in some ways related to one another. It is a collection of memories and tales about the human emotion at its most simple and raw. Lost, love, family, regret, pain, grief, joy... all these are rendered in a minimalistic manner that tags at your heartstrings. Simply brilliant.

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Review: Wonderland

Wonderland by Tommy Kovac


My rating: 4 of 5 stars
A surreal romp through Wonderland. Instead of a typical Alice story, this graphic novel centers on Mary Ann, a housemaid whom Alice wad mistaken for in the original story. The story jumps all over the place, perhaps as it should given the mad nature of Wonderland. Standout is the beautiful artwork and you can certainly see the cute 'manga' styling of Mary Ann in many of the panels. A delightful read.

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Review: The Nobody

The Nobody by Jeff Lemire


My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Touching tale of the Invisible Man as a drifter appearing in a small town. It is also about a girl who discovers herself from the encounter. Lemire's style has a calming quality to it and that perfectly blends the desolate small town and the sad story of a man who has become a Nobody.

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