Review: Bloodshot, Volumes 1-5 by Multiple (L)

Synopsis: Bloodshot, a bioengineered weapon by Project Rising Spirit, has the powers of regeneration and meta-morphing made possible through nanites injected into his blood. After having his memory wiped numerous times, Bloodshot is out to discover who he really is and get vengeance on those who did this to him. Through his journey, he will attempt to right wrongs, save innocents, find redemption, and learn the truth about himself. And always, Blood matters. 

Authors: Christos Gage, Joshua Dysart, Emanuela Lupacchino, Brian Reber Duane Swierczynski, Barry Kitson, Stefano Gaudiano Manuel Garcia, Arturo Lozzi,, Matthew Clark. Crisscross, Bart Sears

Review: We know this story. Bad guys turn good man into a weapon, man escapes, joins group of good guys to find revenge and the truth about himself.

Bloodshot is not that story. It starts that way. But it quickly digresses from black and white to shades of gray. Are the bad guys really bad? Are the good guys really good? Are they both and neither? What if both did evil things in the name of good?

The duplicity and constant questioning the motives of the people Bloodshot knows, the fact that good people die or lose, that he isn’t perfect, gives the characters and story complexity and depth that rise above your average superhero story.

My only complaint is that the story moved too quickly, skimming or skipping connections that seemed important. This gave the story a jerky feel, as if I walked out of the movie and missed a crucial scene. Less action crammed into the issues and a little more explanation would have made the story perfect.

I highly recommend if you are looking for something a bit different from the normal DC or Marvel superhero stories. Worth reading!

Bookmarks: 4 of 5 / 4 of 5 / 4 of 5 / 3.5 of 5 / 4 of 5

Awards: None  

ISBN: 9780979640964 / 9781939346032 / 9781939346124 / 9781939346193 / 9781939346315

Year Published: 2013 / 2013  / 2013 / 2014 / 2014
Date Finished: 5-9-2018 / 5-20-2018
Pages: 132 / 131 / 127 / 143 / 137

Review: Black Magick: The Awakening, Part I by Greg Rucka, Nicola Scott, et al (Volume 1)

Synopsis: Collecting the first five issues of the critically-acclaimed new series from creators GREG RUCKA (Lazarus, Star Wars: Shattered Empire) and NICOLA SCOTT (Secret Six, Earth-2). Rowan Black is a detective with the Portsmouth PD... and a witch, two aspects of her life she has struggled to keep separate. Now someone is targeting Rowan, someone who knows her secrets and means to expose her... or worse. (from the online description)

Review: While out during FCBD 2018, I was loitering near the new comic books waiting from my best friend to finish flirting with the cute guy behind the counter, when this comic book caught my eye. I’m a sucker for story including Witches. Partly due to an odd fascination, and partly because I was raised in a conservative home and reading about witches feels a bit rebellious.  And then I saw it was written by Greg Rucka, who authored Lazarus, my current most favorite, and I was sold.

This is a Witch-Story at its finest. Rowan Black is a detective in the public world – and a witch in private. Her power is great but it will be tested as old and new enemies seek her death. With allies, both magical and lawful, she will need all her power to confront the deadly darkness coming for her.

Using mostly shades of gray, with tints of red, bold lines, and shadowed lines, the story starts with a ritual…and a murder. Intrigue, spooky characters, murder, strange symbolism, and a hint at deadly mythology make this a fantastic read.

If you enjoy dark fantasy and witch-based stories, READ THIS! You will not regret it!

Bookmarks: 4 of 5

Awards: None

ISBN: 978-1-63215-675-4
Year Published: 2016
Date Finished: 5-6-2018
Pages: 132

Review: Old Ramon by Jack Schaefer

Synopsis: Old Ramon tells the timeless coming-of-age story of a young boy who spends a summer with an old shepherd in the Mojave Desert. He leaves his textbooks behind for real life lessons with Ramon as his mentor. He learns not only how to care for the sheep but how to overcome fear, how to face death and responsibility, and the difference between being alone and being lonely. Written in Schaefer’s charming and engaging style, the novel details a boy’s discovery of both the value of friendship and the hardship of life. (from the online description)

Review: Set in the west during a different time, this is a slow and gentle story. As Ramon and the boy journey with their flock, Ramon speaks to the boy about life. In particular, the boy's misconceptions about how Ramon leads the flock - and, Ramon speaks about his own mistakes. Ramon is not perfect. He is still learning how to teach and how to lead. As he teaches the boy, he learned.

Having said that, I will remark - this is a slow book. Slow and boring. Perhaps it is because of the subject matter, perhaps the era when the book was written - but it was extremely tedious to read. The lesson of the story was important but it was hard to get to as the story was slow. It might be too slow for children of the modern age.

Spoiler: Animals die. Beware of this if you are reading it to young or tender-hearted readers (or, like me, cry when all the animals die)

Bookmarks: 3 of 5

Awards: Newbery Honor (1961)

ISBN: 978-0826-3-5764-9
Year Published: 1960
Date Finished: 5-6-2018
Pages: 102

Review: X-O Manowar: Enter Ninjak by Robert Venditti, Lee Garbett, Stefano Gaudiano, Moose Baumann (Volume 2) (L) and X-O Manowar: By the Sword by Robert Venditti, Lee Garbett, Stefano Gaudiano, Moose Baumann (Volume 1) (L)

Synopsis: Born during the reign of the Roman Empire, Aric of Dacia, heir to the Visgoth, knows nothing but war. When his beloved wife is taken captive by the Romans, Aric takes a band of men and sets off to find her. Instead, they are kidnapped by an Alien race and taken as slaves by cruel masters. During a revolt, Aric bonds with the mystical, and powerful, armor worshipped by his Alien captors. With the power granted him by the armor, he frees himself, and travels to earth - only to realize he has been gone for 16th Centuries! In a strange world, with his captors coming to find him, he will take on new allies and find old enemies.

Review: From an interesting premise, this story takes the readers on a strange and exciting journey.  From the plains of Italy, to the starships of the Vine, we walk with Aric as he transforms from a Visgoth warrior to the welder of Shanhara, the sentient X-O Manowar armor.

Told in a classic comic style, with bright colors and bold lines, the story has excellent twists and turns, fast-paced plot, exciting fight-scenes, and complex characters.  As with many Valiant characters, there are no black and white people, all good or all bad. They are multifaceted, with flaws and bad habits. They make mistakes. They make evil choices. This gives the story a depth and intricacy the sets the story above your average superhero tale.

If you are looking for something different or have grown tired of the constant rehash published by DC and Marvel, try this! You won’t be disappointed!

Note:  This is not suitable for younger children. There is graphic violence and some nudity. There are also complex themes that will be too complex for young readers. 

Bookmarks: 4.5 of 5 / 4.5 of 5

Awards: None

ISBN: 978-0-9796-4-0940 / 978-0-9796-4-0995
Year Published: 2012 / 2012
Date Finished: 5-3-2018
Pages: 132 / 124

Review: I am Alfonso Jones by Tony Medina, ill. by Stacey Robinson and John Jennings

Synopsis: Alfonso Jones can't wait to play the role of Hamlet in his school's hip-hop rendition of the classic Shakespearean play. He also wants to let his best friend, Danetta, know how he really feels about her. But as he is buying his first suit, an off-duty police officer mistakes a clothes hanger for a gun, and he shoots Alfonso. When Alfonso wakes up in the afterlife, he's on a ghost train guided by well-known victims of police shootings, who teach him what he needs to know about this subterranean spiritual world. Meanwhile, Alfonso's family and friends struggle with their grief and seek justice for Alfonso in the streets. As they confront their new realities, both Alfonso and those he loves realize the work that lies ahead in the fight for justice. (from the online description)

Review:  Tony Medina wrote this graphic novel as part of the Black Lives Matter movement. He based the fictional Alfonso Jones on several of the young men shot by law officers in the last few years.

I specifically asked for this book to review because I’m white and I’m a racist. As the Black Lives Matter grew to prominence, I reacted with contempt and scorn, pushing aside the movement as the petulant rantings of a self-victimizing people.

It was through speaking with a friend several years ago, that I began to question this attitude. Maybe…I was wrong.

I decide to explore the racism in my heart, a journey which has lead me to get involved in my community, listen to voices I previously ignored, contemplate thoughts I previously considered stupid, and – to read books that challenge my own experience and education.

Medina’s book is just such a book. With thick bold lines and dynamic art, Medina weaves the tale of the fictional Alfonso Jones into a narrative of black lives taken through police action. I did not agree with everything Medina said – but I can’t tell if that is because he was actually wrong or because of my own racist perceptions. It seemed as if he was saying that everyone killed by police was innocent of any crime. That isn’t true. But perhaps, that isn’t the point? Guilty or not, every American is entitled to a fair trial and the expectation of safety while under police management. As a white American, I take that expectation as fact. I am learning that for black Americans, it is a lie.

This book did not magically change my thinking. Instead, it is another valuable step in my own journey to understand the struggle of Blacks in America, and my own contribution to that injustice.

I would recommend it as part of any library dedicated to understanding the condition of black Americans and particularly, I recommend this work to anyone looking to understand a perspective outside their own.

Note: I received this free from LibaryThing’s Early Review Program, in exchange for my fair and honest opinion

Bookmarks: 4 of 5

Awards: 2018 Top Ten Great Graphic Novels for Teens list (Young Adult Library Services Association) and the New York Public Library's list of Best Books for Teens.

ISBN: 978-1-62014-263-9-51895
Year Published: 2017
Date Finished: 5-1-2017
Pages: 166

Review: Annie and the Old One by Miska Miles

Synopsis: Annie is a young Navajo girl who refuses to believe that her grandmother, the Old One, will die. As she struggles to left go, she learns about life and death.

Review: Sweet story of a young girl learning to deal with the death of a loved one. Her attempts to prevent it are child-like, and remind me how child conceive the world. It was sweet and heart-breaking. An excellent book for young children, perhaps for those who are struggling to understand death.

Bookmarks: 4 of 5

Awards: Newbery Honor

ISBN: 0-316-57120-2
Year Published: 1971
Date Finished: 4-30-2018
Pages: 44

Review: The Ladies of Missalonghi by Colleen McCullough

Synopsis: Sometimes fairy tales can come true-even for plain, shy spinsters like Missy Wright. Neither as pretty as cousin Alicia nor as domineering as mother Drusilla, she seems doomed to a quiet life of near poverty at Missalonghi, her family's pitifully small homestead in Australia's Blue Mountains. But It's a brand-new century-the twentieth-a time for new thoughts and bold new actions. And Missy Wright is about to set every self-righteous tongue in the town of Byron wagging. Because she has just set her sights on a mysterious, mistrusted and unsuspecting stranger ... who just might be Prince-Charming in disguise. (from the online description)

Review: It is impossible to read this book without comparing it to The Blue Castle by L. M. Montgomery. Indeed, McCullough has to answer charges of plagiarism when this was published.

The back-bone of the stories are the same: a spinster, poor among wealthy relatives, who finds out she is dying and decides to take charge of her life. From there, the details are different. McCullough version has a bit more drama, a few more villains, and several direct references to sex.

It makes sense, given that this book was published in 1987 and The Blue Castle was published 1926, when references to sex would have been taboo in proper books. McCullough’s work would not have been constrained by such laws or social rules.

That being said, I liked most of the details of McCullough’s work. Except the sex. It seemed crass, too crass for the story. It ruined the Hero for me.

It’s a sweet fun story and worth reading, preferably on a beach or by a pool. 

Bookmarks: 3.5 of 5

Awards: None

ISBN: 0-380-70458-7
Year Published: 1987
Date Finished: 4-29-2018
Pages: 189