X-Tinction Agenda

 X-Men: X-Tinction Agenda by Chris Claremont, Louise Simonson, Jon Bogdanove, John Caponigro, Jim Lee, Rick Leonardi, Rob Liefeld, Marc Silvestri, Guang Yap, and others, 316 pages

The X-Men are not dead.  This seemingly unremarkable fact comes as a considerable surprise to some of their closest friends, including their old teammates in X-Factor and their former charges in the New Mutants, who, along with the rest of the world, believed they had been killed battling the Adversary in Dallas.  Life means they must continue to evolve - their leader, Storm, is trapped in the body of a child, the Cajun thief Gambit has joined the team, and the New Mutants are now led by the mysterious man known only as Cable.  

They will not have the leisure to work these issues out.  The apartheid state of Genosha, where mutants are genetically indoctrinated into becoming servants of the human population, launches an audacious raid against the X-Mansion, kidnapping a handful of young mutants.  As the American government and the international community consider their responses to this attack on US soil, the X-Men make their own assault on the island nation, little suspecting that the Genoshan forces are led by a brainwashed Havok, Cyclops' younger brother.  Worse, the entire crisis is being orchestrated by Cameron Hodge, Angel's former friend and business manager, who used the Worthington fortune to bankroll an anti-mutant militia and was ultimately responsible for the amputation of Angel's wings.  Now equipped with a monstrous cyborg body as hideous as his twisted soul, Hodge has manipulated the Genoshan government into open war with the X-Men, a war only one side can survive...

Despite being a crossover "event", X-Tinction Agenda feels much less like an interruption of ongoing storylines than most of the species, and this may, in fact, be part of the reason it is not as well-remembered as it deserves to be.  The strong continuity is no doubt largely due to the strength of the storytelling partnership between Claremont and Simonson.  Unfortunately, the art is a different story.  Lee's work is consistently excellent, but Bogdanove's is uneven and Liefeld proves here that his much-maligned later work was actually an improvement.  The trade paperback also includes the three issue arc which introduced Genosha, a serviceable story centered on Rogue with little hint of the many transformations the fictional nation would undergo in the ensuing decades.

The Great Sugar War

The Great Sugar War (The Land without Color Book 2) by Benjamin Ellefson; illustrated by Kevin   168 pages

In this second book in The Land Without Color series, Brandon finds himself in lots of trouble. He has defied his teacher, stating that the history she is teaching about the Great Grayness” is wrong, and he can prove it.

He is sent to the Principal’s Office, but instead sneaks out of school to prove his point. He runs to Grandpa Alvin’s house, but when he arrives, the house is empty. When the doorbell rings, Brandon knows he has been caught by Officer Reed, the school’s truant officer.  He manages to elide Officer Reed and heads toward the Color Factory.

One inside, Brandon finds the remains of the infamous General Droww clutching a book titled “The Great Sugar War.”  Brandon sits down to read and is soon immersed in his great-great-grandfather Otto’s adventure.

Otto is on a sea voyage, trying to make his way home. Instead he comes upon a sea battle and rescues the General, who begs Otto to help him defeat the Kingdom of Shapes.

What follows is a highly imaginative action and adventure story where the Kingdom of Color is up against the Kingdom of Shapes, where soldiers are created from sugar bubbles that form on the Earth’s surface and where giant grasshoppers are unwilling participants in the great war. Nice surprise at the end.

 “The Great Sugar War” receives 5 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

Calamity

Calamity by Brandon Sanderson, 421 pages

“When Calamity lit up the sky, the Epics were born. David's fate has been tied to their villainy ever since that historic night. Steelheart killed his father. Firefight stole his heart. And now Regalia has turned his closest ally into a dangerous enemy. David knew Prof's secret, and kept it even when Prof struggled to control the effects of his Epic powers. But facing Obliteration in Babilar was too much. Once the Reckoners' leader, Prof has now embraced his Epic destiny. He's disappeared into those murky shadows of menace Epics are infamous for the world over, and everyone knows there's no turning back. . . . But everyone is wrong. Redemption is possible for Epics--Megan proved it. They're not lost. Not completely. And David is just about crazy enough to face down the most powerful High Epic of all to get his friend back. Or die trying.” I loved this book.  This was a fantastic ending to the series.  Any teen who likes fantasy, science fiction, or books about superheroes will need to read this series.

Wonder Woman at Super Hero High

Wonder Woman at Super Hero High by Lisa Yee     237 pages

Wonder Woman's desire to become a superhero takes her to Super Hero High, where she juggles new friendships, intensive training, and a roommate obsessed with social media.

This was a cute story about DC superheroes as young teens. This book is part of a series, but the main superhero in this story is Wonder Woman. It follows her first year at Super Hero High, where young superheroes are taught how to use their powers effectively and for the greater good. I tagged this as middle-school, because that's how old I perceived these young supers to be, even though their school appears to be a high school. Part of what made this book a bit difficult to read as an adult is that they way the characters act seem very juvenile, certainly on the tween side. I thought the story was okay, though I struggled a bit to see Wonder Woman portrayed in such a naive way, despite her not having ever lived off of Paradise Island before. Much of what goes on the story focuses on her adapting to a new way of living, especially her interaction with her peers. The friction between her and the "villains" of this story is quite catty and, again, juvenile, but I can understand the reasoning behind this, since this book is geared toward someone much younger than me - I am not the target audience. That being said, the writing style is just so-so for me. It certainly didn't wow me. Otherwise, I think this is a fun, quick read for kids looking for a book that has a lot of action, especially if they're fans of superheroes. All the major DC characters are there to represent.

X-Men: Storm

X-Men: Storm by Warren Ellis & Terry Dodson, 112 pages

“Storm is abducted by the mutant villain Mikhail Rasputin and brought to an alternate dimension, where she must battle the next generation of Morlocks, bitter over Storm's failings as their leader.” I wanted to give the typical comic book format another chance because I used to love them when I was a teen.  Storm was always one of my favorite characters.  This particular one didn’t hold up as well as I would have hoped.  Storm’s character seemed flat, and I know they want to give the characters flaws to make them more human, she just seemed to weak and kind of whiny.  This wasn’t the woman I remembered and I didn’t enjoy it very much.  However, I will probably try again with something different.  In the meantime, I still think this will probably appeal to teens who like graphic novels about superheroes.

Dreadnought

Dreadnought by April Daniels   276 pages

Teenage Danny is minding her own business when famed superhero Dreadnought crashes to the ground in front of her. As his last act, he passes his powers on to Danny. Said powers include strength, flight, and an idealized superheroine body, which is great except for one thing: Danny’s transgender and closeted, and wasn’t planning to have the “By the way, I’m a girl” conversation until she was well out of high school.
Danny’s parents want their “son” back. Her best friend turns out to be kind of a creep. The local superhero league, still mourning the death of their friend, doesn’t know what to do about her. And on top of all that, the murderous villain responsible for Dreadnought’s death is still out there, planning another attack.
Though the coming-of-age part of Danny’s story can be grim, the narrative is firmly on Danny’s side and stays blessedly far away from the misery lit territory too often explored in books about trans people. Ultimately, Dreadnought is a classic hero origin story done well. Exciting, heartwarming, recommended.

Not Your Sidekick

Not Your Sidekick by C.B. Lee    283 pages

High-schooler Jessica Tran rebels against her superhero parents by getting an internship with their archenemy. Along the way she faces normal high school troubles, like a crush on her coworker Abby, and not-so-normal troubles, like a government conspiracy out to  destroy heroes and villains alike.
This is a classic YA superhero story with a refreshingly diverse cast. While the climax is marred by confused pacing and a few awkward loose ends, I enjoyed the book overall and am glad for its inclusion in the library’s collection.

My Hero Academia, Vol. 8

My  Hero Academia, Vol. 8, by Kohei  Horikoshi   182 pages

In  a world where 80% of the population has some sort of superpower called a Quirk, Izuku Midoriya was born Quirkless. He still has dreams of being a hero, though, and with the help of the world’s greatest superhero All Might and an education at Japan’s top hero academy, he just might make it.
This volume’s fight scenes are as exciting and explosive as expected when students face off against teachers in a superpowered final exam. Intriguing but sadly neglected side character Momo Yaoyorozu finally gets some of the attention she deserves, while the villains’
 schemes creep forward in the background. Though it’s not as bad as volume seven’s, this volume does end on yet another cliffhanger—I’m not sure if the publisher’s doing this intentionally or not, but I want the next book already.

Jupiter's Legacy

Jupiter's Legacy, by Mark Millar, 120 pages

This is one of those comics where I heard the plot and thought, "That sounds interesting"; then the copy arrived and I saw the cover and thought, "This does not look promising"; then I read it and thought, "Meh. It was... alright." Here's the general idea: a group of people discover a mysterious island and then become the world's first superheroes, with superpowers and all.  Then they have children who also have superpowers but are basically entitled and resentful of their parents.  Infighting happens, the families kind of break apart, and then there's a dramatic conclusion that paves the way for the second book that I will not be reading.  It wasn't bad- just not for me.  I was hoping more for an Astro City sort of non-canon superhero comic.

Reckoners series books 1 and 2

Steelheart and Firefight by Brandon Sanderson, 386 and 419 pages

This is quite an excellent series that was recommended to me by Nathan. Basically an event they call the Calamity gave some people superpowers. But in what I see as a more realistic superpowers novel, these supers, or epics as they are called, use their powers to rule others. While most of the population either dies or subjugates there are those that are called Reckoners that have made it their mission to kill the Epics and give the world back to humanity.

I really liked this series. It seems quite realistic, more so than a lot of the young adult stuff I read. If you like comic books and or superheroes then I recommend you read this.

Firefight

Firefight by Brandon Sanderson, 419 pages

The sequel to Steelheart in The Reckoners series, David is excited to be a member of the Reckoners, fighting the Epics who have terrorized the cities for so long.  Several Epics have come to Newcago since David killed Steelheart, trying to subdue the group, apparently, but the Reckoners have killed all who came.  Now, the Prof with David and Tia plans to go to Balibar to confront Regalia, the Epic in charge there.  David hopes to find Megan, the Epic known as Firefight, and prove that she is actually good, like the Prof, but the Prof simply plans to kill her, along with Regalia and any other Epics that are currently in Balibar.  Their plans become even more complicated when they realize that Obliteration, the Epic who destroyed Houston, Albuquerque and San Diego, has arrived in Balibar.  This is an exciting adventure fantasy story that has enough action and uncertainty to keep teen readers engaged until the end.

Power Girl

Power Girl: Power Trip by Justin Grey, 392 pages

When I picked up this book I thought it was a graphic novel and not just a super heroine comic. Not that I looked to closely at the inside of the book when I picked it up but it was an honest mistake.

When I started reading it I was disappointed that it was only a comic book. While I have reviewed a couple of series on here like Hellblazer and Preacher which are certainly more comics than graphic novels they at least have a grittiness to them that helps me enjoy them. With more of the main stream comics, which I am not sure this truly is but bear with me, there is never that feeling of danger to either the planet or any characters you really care about. Sure the planet might be destroyed for an episode or two, or someone will be dead for a couple issues but eventually everything will be magically fixed. Or if fixing it would be too confusing or take too much time that just becomes an alternate dimension. It is predictable and at times seems overly repetitive. I mean why does every villain come to this town that has a superhero protecting it? Why not pick a city in the middle of nowhere? It is like these villain's want to be caught.

Since this appears to have been the first issue with Power Girl there is a brief origin story that explains her life up to present day. It even explains why she has that hole in her costume. From there it delves into a couple different plots to steal her body or control her mind. Nothing Earth destroying per say but a super genius's mind trapped in a gorilla threatens to destroy Manhattan (standard superhero stuff). Of course everything ends how we suspect and everyone is happy.

Death Sentence

Death Sentence by Montynero, 192 pages

Death Sentence is about brief super heroes and villains that are springing up after getting infected with the G+ virus. I guess to make it more relevant or more graphic the G+ virus is only transmittable through sex. Unlike most superhero graphic novels where the weak underdog gets all of these awesome powers they don't know what to do with, G+ just amplifies what you are good at. If you are good at convincing people to buy stuff you might get mind control. If you are a guitarist you might now be able to write perfect music that everyone loves. It is also very random how far these abilities will be magnified.

In this volume two marginally good guys are tasked with stopping a super villain who is using his telekinetic powers to take over England.

Death Sentence is obviously for mature audiences only. When I first picked it up I thought that it was relying on the skimpily dressed women and sex to sell copies but it actually had a decent back story and underlying plot as well. I think people that like the darker comics would also like this.

Black Canary and Zatanna: Bloodspell

Black Canary and Zatanna: Bloodspell, by Paul Dini, ill. by Joe Quinones, 144 pages


The story is thus: Black Canary went undercover to break up a heist, but things are getting scary now that everyone else involved is mysteriously dying.  She calls on the only person she can trust- her good friend Zatanna, who tries to use her powers of magic to figure out what dark powers are working and how to save her friend.  I'm not very well-versed in my caped superhero stories, but I'm always happy to see strong, female superheroes not depicted as sexual objects.  As usual, there is a fair amount of objectification, regardless, but at least these are two strong female characters who save each other instead of calling in the Avengers all of the time.

X-Men: Magik Storm & Illyana

X-Men: Magik Storm & Illyana by Chris Claremont, 123 pages

This was originally a four part series in the Uncanny X-Men universe. It explains how Illyana, Colossus’s younger sister aged seven years in Limbo although only seconds passed for the X-Men. Illyana was lured into Limbo by the demon, Belasco. When the rest of the X-Men tried to find her they were also drawn into Limbo. They were able to escape but Illyana was accidentally left behind. Illyana was trapped in Limbo for another seven years. She was trained by Storm and Cat, formerly Kitty Pryde, who were part of a group of X-Men from another dimension. When that group of X-Men came, they were trapped in Limbo while Illyana escaped. This time the reverse happened and Illyana needs to learn how to defeat Belasco and escape Limbo. Any fan of the X-Men will probably like this side trip into Illyana’s history.

The Darkest Minds

The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken, 488 pages

Mix one part Steelheart, one part Fallout 3 and one part Legend, and well... you still don't really have The Darkest Minds, but you're getting in the right ballpark. This is dystopia, except things haven't completely fallen apart, this is X-men where powers are just one step more believable, this is an outbreak story, but... not really.

It's pretty amazing that in today's age of YA dystopian saturation (particularly trilogies involving love triangles), that a book squarely in that wheelhouse can feel this fresh. For once, it feels like the author is not simply parroting the same basic rules and story structures from other similar novels, but instead had her own story to tell. Whereas many of the recent dystopian novels feel like they're checking off ingredients on a list, The Darkest Minds doesn't really care if it follows the rules or not, nor how it gets typecast. If you ignore it because of its contemporaries, you're doing so at your own peril, because you're missing out on a really standout book.
 
I shouldn't oversell it though. If this genre of YA doesn't appeal to you, The Darkest Minds isn't going to change your mind. But if the genre hasn't entirely burnt you out, then this is a bit of a gem in the rough.

The biggest problem here, is likely not Bracken's fault at all. There's quite a few grammatical and spelling errors that somehow slipped through the cracks during the editing process. Like... a surprising enough amount that it can feel a bit unfinished.

Also Ruby, the protagonist, is not nearly as cool as Suzume. Fact.

And SLPL doesn't have the sequel even thought it's already been released, so I had to buy it myself, boo. Wink, wink, nudge, nudge YS staff

Black Orchid

Black Orchid by Neil Gaiman, art by Dave McKean, 176 pages

Black Orchid is largely the back story of a superhuman plant-woman who fights crime and corruption in Gotham City. Because it's rooted in the DC universe, the reader meets (or at least gets passing glimpses of) several of the heroes and villains therein. While Gaiman has said that this is his favorite graphic novel that he's written, I don't know that I agree. It seems like there are seeds of a great story there, but confining it to a single volume doesn't allow it to become as fully realized as I'd like to have seen. It is, however, a flat-out GORGEOUS book. McKean's artwork is astounding. Read it for that reason, if for no other.

Flora & Ulysses

Flora & Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo, 231 pages

Ulysses is a squirrel who was nearly killed by a vacuum cleaner. The experience gave him super powers. He can type and fly and defeat evil, in the form of Mr. Kline, a cat. Flora, who rescued and named Ulysses, is a cynic but she believes in Ulysses. Flora’s parents are divorced and Flora lives with her mom but she thinks that she would rather live with her dad, since her mom seems to like her shepherdess lamp better than she likes Flora. An odd but sweet story, partly told in comic book form, lots of kids would enjoy this light fantastical tale of a girl and her squirrel.

Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson

Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson, 386 pages.

I brought this book with me for a flight to Europe.  It was so awesome, I'd read it by the by the time I'd reached my first stop-over in Houston.  Ever watched a movie or read a book, and thought, "mmmm, if this had ninjas, or pirates, or dinosaurs fighting Nazis, then this movie/book would be perfect".  Well, for me, this book was that perfect storm. 

The book starts after an event called the Calamity - a huge explosion in the sky.  For unknown reasons, the Calamity gives a select number of people super powers.  These powers run the gamut - invincibility, luck on steroids, ability to control night and day, you name it, someone has it.  But, just like I've always suspected these "superheroes" don't use their powers for good.  I've always suspected if Superman was real, he'd be a tryanical fascist or government lackey.  Some commit petty crimes, others go on mass rampages, and a select few decide to take over the world.  The story starts in a world 10 years after the Calamity, most governments have fallen to the might of the Epics, and the human race lives as slaves.  All except the Reckoners, a group of humans whose sole purpose is to study, then assassinate these fascist superheroes.

Steelheart is an action-packed ride.  It has Epic (no pun intended) battles, car chases, and a multitude of villianous superheroes.  It has a deeper message that explores power and its effect on those who gain it.  My only gripe is that it's a trilogy, and the second book doesn't drop until Q4 2014 - damn you, Brandon Sanderson.

If you like your superheroes served up with a healthy dose of fascism, with a sprinkle of assassinations, and a dollop of blockbuster action - then Steelheart is right-up your alley.  Also, I have no idea why I used food analogies to sum up this book - go figure!

Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures

Flora & Ulysses:The Illuminated Adventures by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by K.G. Campbell, 231 pages

Kate DiCamillo has written books in almost every kid lit format imaginable: picture books, early readers, chapter books.  For her latest work, she tackles the hybrid comic book/illustrated novel format popularized by Jeff Kinney’s Wimpy Kid series.  The result is the charming Flora & Ulysses, a tale of unexpected friendships, a superhero squirrel and the joy of poetry (and giant donuts!).  The plot is adorably absurd - Ulysses the squirrel gains his superpowers and loses most of his fur after an unfortunate encounter with a rogue vacuum cleaner - but also explores the ways that different characters cope with loneliness and feeling unwanted.

The comic book/illustrated novel format presents a great hook for reluctant readers and the short chapter length breaks the story up into easily digestible chunks.  Flora’s expansive vocabulary may present issues for some young readers, but DiCamillo assists by seamlessly sprinkling in context clues.  K.G. Campbell’s illustrations are presented in comic panels in a style that favors soft shading over the traditional bold lines of comic books.  The pictures compliment the sweetness of the story nicely; my favorite illustration comes toward the end of the book and shows Flora hugging Ulysses (it may even have caused me to tear up a bit).  

Flora & Ulysses made the National Book Award Longlist for Young People’s Literature in September and is garnering a lot of Newbery Award buzz in the kid lit blogosphere – check out some other reviews:

Fuse8 - Review of the Day: Flora and Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo

Heavy Medal - Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures (or, The Pictures Question)