Book Review: Legends of Oz: Dorothy’s Return (graphic novel) by Denton J. Tipton

This illustrated story tells of the next villain to plague the colorful lands of Oz: The Jester. He’s the long-lost brother of the Wicked Witch of the West (WWotW), and he seeks to rule over the entire land of Oz by controlling the troupe of flying monkeys and threatening the villages across the land. Once the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and (no-longer-cowardly) Lion hear of his evil plan and witness the havoc he’s already wreaked, they devise a plan to bring the only thing that could save Oz: Dorothy Gale. They traipse across Oz, encountering new fantastical beings and lands, all while magically surviving attacks and setbacks. It ends with a cliffhanger, a mystery of what will happen to Oz and Dorothy–destined to be revealed in the upcoming animated film.

I think the colorful and minimalist illustrations meld well with the stories of Oz, and capture a small sense of how the mystical world would be, just as the movies and books have. It reminds me of Lisa Frank and the colorful, over-the-top girly-ness of it all. While the dark and evil colors of the Jester’s scenes do wonderfully juxtapose the bright and cheeriness of Oz, the Jester’s stupidity is slightly off. Since he is the brother of the WWotW, it seems like he would be just as evil (which he is). Yet, on the other hand, he is no where quite as bright. He has a method worked out for his evil plan, but fumbles and makes things almost comical. This is probably a good idea for a children’s book–lends to the lightheartedness of it and doesn’t seriously scare the living daylights out of a child. Reminds me of an extremely PG version of the Joker from Batman comics. A neat version of the L. Frank Baum stories; I’m definitely looking forward to the upcoming sequel to the story, Legends of Oz.

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Book Review: Clara’s Crazy Curls by Helen Poole

I enjoyed this book; Clara is unique, colorful, and an independent child who knew what she wanted. Her desire to have the biggest, tallest, and curliest hair in the world comes true after she snags some of her mother’s hair cream. Clara soon discovers, though, that having the biggest and tallest hair might not necessarily be all that she imagined. Soon, others are grumpy about her hair getting in their way, and Clara back into the corner in several occasions.

Nobody puts Clara in the corner!

So she chops it off, and it is magically whisked away to become a planet’s rings. Very odd, but distinct and unique. I liked the portrayal of her curly hair being her “purse” or book bag of sorts, and how she stored everything in among the curls. It’s refreshing to see a young child manifested into one who knows what she wants, and is completely confident about what cards she’s been dealt. This would be a wonderful book to give to girls who aren’t as confident about their awesome curly hair. Would also be a good choice for a story time about loving yourself. The illustrations were gorgeous and colorful–not overly girly with pinks and purples, but a nice mix of bright, flamboyant colors. Nice!

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Book Review: I am Pusheen the Cat by Claire Belton

I absolutely adore Pusheen. I’ve seen the cat illustrations in several places online and in the workplace over the last year, and love the quirks and truths that the author captures with Pusheen. Cats are positively fabulous and self-centered, but even their odd and frustrating behavior is endearing at times. Belton conveys this with typical cat activities as well as cat thoughts (which are most likely “exactly” what they think). Cute beyond all imagination, and insightful to cat behavior that only true cat-lovers will fully appreciate. Adorable!

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Book Review: Big Cat, Small Cat by Ami Rubinger

Big Cat, Small Cat is a comparison book of different types of cats’ moods, colors, locations, cleanliness, weight and more; some with open questions for kids to fill in their own idea of what is happening. The illustrations are very basic, but very colorful–all cats are featured on tall or short hills with random colors for the background and various objects placed in the scene.   Almost all the cats feature Cleopatra-like eyes and Cheshire cat grins, which was on the verge of being disturbing and a tad creepy. While I enjoyed the text and think this would be excellent if used in Story Time or Toddler Time, the illustrations were extremely distracting and juvenile. It was almost too plain, with weird lines and unsettling stares from the cats. I think small children would enjoy the text and colorful pages, but slightly older children might just be as creeped out as I was. Okay book, terrible illustrations.

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Book Review: Courtney Crumrin Vol. 1-The Night Things

Courtney Crumrin and her parents move in with her great-uncle Aloysius to “look after” him and take care of his estate. His home and property are the rumored “haunted house” of the community, and have caused gossip amongst town people for years. Courtney soon discovers she can do magic, and that the house and surrounding woods are home to many different things, non-human things. Her parents continue to live in the house, unaware of anything but their social endeavors and attempts to get invited to wealthy parties. This compilation includes several “books”, which tell of Courtney’s various encounters with magic and dark things surrounding her uncle’s home. She uses magic to gain popularity, to deal with a town bully, and relies on her own wiles when dealing with an intrusive doppelgänger.

This book was brought to my attention from a co-worker; I had seen this book on our “New” shelves, but not really paid any attention except to note its beautiful cover and illustrations. So my co-worker brings this to me and mentions that it, “Looks just like you!” I admit, the purple cover, dark illustrations, and beautiful font and curlicues all were definite catcalls for my attention.  So I checked it out to give it a shot. The house that is the main setting for the story is absolutely perfect–a direct replica of the typical “haunted house” found in many horror stories. It is a beautiful old Victorian, which are always the most bad ass-looking houses. Courtney has a unique look as well–a mix of a both blonde, regular girl with a little bit of Emily Strange.

Emily the Strange

She quickly figures out how things are without too much indecision, and is very clever. She doesn’t even bat an eye at the fact that her uncle is magical, or that she can accomplish fantastical things with spells or incantations found in her uncle’s books. She creates solutions for day-to-day problems that any “new-kid” might encounter, and preserves her independence as her parents blunder through each encounter. A truly likable and, tricky, young girl.

I like how books nowadays are considering main characters as real people, not the “ideal” person society would prefer. For example, Courtney is an outcast of sorts, and seems to be okay with it and all it entails. While she does attempt to use magic to get more praise, attention, and popularity, she quickly realizes that it isn’t exactly as she had dreamed.  She then seems to revel in her personality, and develops more as her own person (despite her crazy parents) with encouragement from her peculiar uncle. She is brave, occasionally vengeful, and generally has a good heart. It was a new combination I haven’t seen as much in Juvenile/middle grade literature, but that I appreciate greatly.

Check this book out! I know I plan to continue the series 🙂