Enjoyable and rich in themes and execution.
An anti-colonialist tale that’s also a love letter to the natural world.
The story unfolds on a rocky, isolated island where necessity and ingenuity have led to the creation of Kerpathics, messengers who make the dangerous trek between two villages separated by a waterfall. Sable has trained for a decade with her dad to become a Kerpathic, and she knows the island like the back of her hand. She’s counting on Blade, her goat best friend, to help her rescue lost travelers and bring people “news, medicine, and food.” But even though Sable saves a child during her first solo mission, she learns that her work comes with real risks. Meanwhile, on the mainland, people have heard rumors about the island. Naturalist Antone Krill and ship’s captain Smith take advantage of the king’s support for expeditions and set sail in search of the “distant island where they spin gold.” Krill is obsessed with naming a new species and views wildlife behavior through his biased understanding of power dynamics; he clearly wants to hunt and trap unusual species. When the foolish, arrogant men arrive, the villagers are welcoming, and Sable gets roped into being their guide. Still, the forest is a dangerous place, especially for those who don’t respect it. Boucher’s dynamic, original illustration style contains sharp angles that convey energy. The compelling story, illustrated in grayscale art, embraces a message of living harmoniously with all creatures. Characters present white.
Enjoyable and rich in themes and execution. (Graphic adventure. 12-18)Pub Date: Oct. 22, 2024
ISBN: 9781772621044
Page Count: 152
Publisher: Emanata
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2024
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in.
Black is back with another dark tale of Faerie, this one set in Faerie and launching a new trilogy.
Jude—broken, rebuilt, fueled by anger and a sense of powerlessness—has never recovered from watching her adoptive Faerie father murder her parents. Human Jude (whose brown hair curls and whose skin color is never described) both hates and loves Madoc, whose murderous nature is true to his Faerie self and who in his way loves her. Brought up among the Gentry, Jude has never felt at ease, but after a decade, Faerie has become her home despite the constant peril. Black’s latest looks at nature and nurture and spins a tale of court intrigue, bloodshed, and a truly messed-up relationship that might be the saving of Jude and the titular prince, who, like Jude, has been shaped by the cruelties of others. Fierce and observant Jude is utterly unaware of the currents that swirl around her. She fights, plots, even murders enemies, but she must also navigate her relationship with her complex family (human, Faerie, and mixed). This is a heady blend of Faerie lore, high fantasy, and high school drama, dripping with description that brings the dangerous but tempting world of Faerie to life.
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in. (Fantasy. 14-adult)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-316-31027-7
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Sept. 25, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2017
A fast-paced dip into the possibility of a world without human emotions.
A teenage girl refuses a medical procedure to remove her heart and her emotions.
June lives in a future in which a reclusive Scientist has pioneered a procedure to remove hearts, thus eliminating all “sadness, anxiety, and anger.” The downside is that it numbs pleasurable feelings, too. Most people around June have had the procedure done; for young people, in part because doing so helps them become more focused and successful. Before long, June is the only one among her peers who still has her heart. When her parents decide it’s time for her to have the procedure so she can become more focused in school, June hatches a plan to pretend to go through with it. She also investigates a way to restore her beloved sister’s heart, joining forces with Max, a classmate who’s also researching the Scientist because he has started to feel again despite having had his heart removed. The pair’s journey is somewhat rushed and improbable, as is the resolution they achieve. However, the story’s message feels relevant and relatable to teens, and the artwork effectively sets the scene, with bursts of color popping throughout an otherwise black-and-white landscape, reflecting the monochromatic, heartless reality of June’s world. There are no ethnic or cultural markers in the text; June has paper-white skin and dark hair, and Max has dark skin and curly black hair.
A fast-paced dip into the possibility of a world without human emotions. (Graphic speculative fiction. 12-18)Pub Date: June 13, 2023
ISBN: 9780063116214
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: April 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2023
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