Graphic Novel Review: Escape to Gold Mountain : A Graphic History of the Chinese in North America by David H.T. Wong

Article first published as Graphic Novel Review: Escape to Gold Mountain : A Graphic History of the Chinese in North America by David H.T. Wong on Blogcritics. About: Escape to Gold Mountain : A Graphic History of the Chinese in North America by David H.T. Wong is a graphic novel telling the story of the Chinese immigration to the United States and Canada. Mr. Wong is an Asia Canadian activist and an architect in Vancouver. 256 pages Publisher: Arsenal Pulp Press Language: English ISBN-10: 1551524767 My rating for Escape to Gold Mountain – 4 Buy this graphic novel from Amazon.com Thoughts: The graphic novel Escape to Gold Mountain : A Graphic History of the Chinese in North America by David H.T. Wong (website) is laden with dishonor and misery as is the history of Chinese immigration to North America. The Chinese encountered lynches, subjugation racial, cultural and legal discrimination from both countries. I do remember learning in school (but mainly on my own) about Chinese railroad workers in the United States. I did not realize how badly they were treated after they finished working and that the same thing happened in Canada. The graphic novel shows very clearly how badly these workers were mistreated as well as…

Thoughts on: The Art of War from SmarterComics: How to be Successful in Any Competition by Sun Tzu, illustrated by Shane Chester
4 Stars , Graphic Novels , Latest Posts / June 18, 2012

Article first published as Graphic Novel Review: The Art of War from SmarterComics: How to be Successful in Any Competition by Sun Tzu, Illustrated by Shane Chester on Blogcritics. About: The Art of War from SmarterComics: How to be Successful in Any Competition by Sun Tzu, illustrated by Shane Chester is a graphic novel of the famous book. Many think that this famous book is only about war, but truth be told, its lessons could be applied to management and management styles. 80 pages Publisher: Writers Of The Round Table Press; 2nd Edition edition Language: English ISBN-10: 1610660102 My rating for The Art of War from SmarterComics –4 Buy this graphic novel today Thoughts: The Art of War from SmarterComics: How to be Successful in Any Competition by Sun Tzu, illustrated by Shane Chester depicts Sun Tzu’s masterpiece by highlighting the main teachings of the classic guide. The artist portrays Sun Tzu as he guides the reader through the pages and applies the principles of the Art of War to modern life and management issues. While some folks have issues with this book (see the comments section of my post), I feel that the teachings are timeless. The situations in…

Thoughts on: The United States Constitution: A Round Table Comic Graphic Adaptation by Nadja Baer (Adapter), Thomas Jefferson (Author), John Adams (Author), Thomas Paine (Author), James Madison (Author) and Nathan Lueth (Illustrator)

Article first published as Book Review: The United States Constitution: A Round Table Comic Graphic Adaptation Nadja Baer (Adapter) and Nathan Lueth (Illustrator) on Blogcritics. About: The United States Constitution: A Round Table Comic Graphic Adaptation Nadja Baer (Adapter), Thomas Jefferson (Author), John Adams (Author), Thomas Paine (Author), James Madison (Author) and Nathan Lueth (Illustrator) is an adaptation of the supreme law of the land in these United States. Dr. Katie Monnin, assistant professor of literacy at the University of North Florida, produced a curriculum guide (target towards 8th grade level) to supplement the comic book which is available free of charge at http://maupinhouse.com/constitutioncurriculum 80 pages Publisher: Writers Of The Round Table Press (April 16, 2012) Language: English ISBN-10: 1610660250 Buy this Comic Graphic Adaptation in paper or in elec­tronic format. Thoughts: Right off the bat I liked that the author included the Founding Fathers in the title of this comic graphic adaptation. The United States Constitution: A Round Table Comic Graphic Adaptation by Nadja Baer (Adapter | website | Twitter), Thomas Jefferson (Author), John Adams (Author), Thomas Paine (Author), James Madison (Author) and Nathan Lueth (Illustrator | website | Twitter) takes the US Constitution and, using the original text, presents it in an easy to understand graphical format. This is a short book…

Graphic Novel Review: Petrograd by Philip Gelatt (art by Tyler Crook)

Article first published as Graphic Novel Review: Petrograd by Philip Gelatt (art by Tyler Crook) on Blogcritics. About: Petrograd by Philip Gelatt (art by Tyler Crook) is a graphic novel about an assassination. The graphic novels tells about an international conspiracy behind the murder of Gregorii Rasputin. 264 pages Publisher: Oni Press ISBN: 1934964441 My rating for Petrograd – 5 Get a great price on this book through the Man of la Book Affil­i­ate Account More books by Philip Gelatt More books by Tyler Crook Thoughts: The graphic novel Petrograd by Philip Gelatt (art by Tyler Crook) is more of a historical thriller than anything else. The death of Gregorii Rasputin has generated much controversy at the time and many more conspiracy theories which are always fun and supply fodder for authors. The story, while fictional, seems realistic enough to have actually happen (almost). Somehow Mr. Crook took the blighted atmosphere which authors try very hard to create and drew it. While I’m sure that many creative licenses were taken, as they are in every historical novel, I still enjoyed the story immensely. But don’t let the words “graphic novel” fool you. Petrograd takes historical facts (as seen by Americans) and re-tells the story in the format of an…

Thoughts on: The Coldest City by Antony Johnston (art by Sam Hart)
4 Stars , Fiction , Graphic Novels , Latest Posts / January 7, 2012

About: The Coldest City by Antony Johnston (art by Sam Hart) is a graphic novel taking place during the Cold War in Berlin, Germany. Mr. Johnston has worked on several high profile comic book projectsincluding Daredevil, Queen & Country,Wasteloand, Wolverine and more. 176 pages Publisher: Oni Press ISBN: 1934964530 My rating for The Coldest City – 4 Great price on this graphic novel from Amazon through the Man of la Book Affil­i­ate Account Check out this & more World War II books on Man of la BookStore Thoughts: The Coldest City by Antony Johnston (website | Twitter) with art by Sam Hart(website) takes place two weeks before the Berlin Wall came down. The graphic novel is a spy thriller and uses the pictures to tell a story which is exciting and well paced. The art and dialogue of the book is done in a noir style, one could almost hear the music blazing in the background. The panels are full of shadows, as is the story, and the eeriness of Soviet controlled Berlin comes through. The story telling is very good, I don’t know if I had the final version since the publisher sent me an ARC. The art was in black and white which, I felt,…

Thoughts on: Absolute Kingdom Come by Mark Waid and Alex Ross
5 Stars , Graphic Novels , Latest Posts / January 1, 2012

Kingdom Come by Mark Waid and Alex Ross was the mega comic book event of the 1990’s. The story is complex and has multiple layers upon layers opened to interpretation by the reader. The artwork is breathtaking, which shows almost every DC character that has existed before 1990, the gauche paintings could be looked at for hours. They are, in fact, so complex that a separate guide of characters had to be created.

Thoughts on: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller
5 Stars , Fiction , Graphic Novels , Latest Posts / October 31, 2011

About: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller is a graphic novel originally published in 1986. The graphic novel, written and drawn by Miller, was originally released in a four-issue limited series called Batman: The Dark Knight. 224 pages Publisher: DC Comics; 10 Anv edition ISBN: 1563893428 My rating for The Dark Knight Returns – 5 Buy & Save on The Dark Knight Returns through the ManOfLa­Book affil­i­ate account on: Ama­zon | Book Depos­i­tory US | Book Depos­i­tory UK More books by Frank Miller Thoughts: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller, a best seller and rightly so, is a story of ideologies and how they skew people’s perceptions of what is right and what is wrong. With those ideologies and perceptions comes the sense of justice and punishment no matter how they might not fit the crime. However, for me, the major point of the book was how we decide what our role in society will be. The book is a scathing commentary on the political system at large. How boobs elected into office are being handled behind the scenes, wielding unimaginable power (nuclear warheads and Superman in this case) and how the idiotic talking heads on TV shape public…

Book Review Blog Carnival

The Picket Line reviews Among the Dead Cities by A.C. Grayling “Grayling meticulously describes how the policy of destroying cities developed and what goals it was meant to serve” Man of la Book reviews Citizen Soldiers by Stephen Ambrose “a fas­ci­nat­ing book about the Euro­pean the­ater in World War II, as told by the men on the front lines” Life As I Know It pontificates about re-reading The Dark Tower series by Stephen King “Because each book was better than the last” Man of la Book reviews A Death in Vienna by Daniel Silva “The plot is full of twists and turns, a won­der­ful cast of char­ac­ters ” Wifely Steps reviews The Dolce Vita Diaries by Cathy Rogers, Jason Gibb “I think we’ve all had that desire to just jump out of our day jobs and pursue a passion, an interest, a wish we know would just make our lives more exciting and meaningful if it came into fruition.” Addicted to Media reviews The Dragon Book, edited by Jack Dann and Gardner Dozois “This is a magical collection of stories and one that I am glad to have on my bookshelf.” Frontier Psychiatrist reviews Eaarth; Making A Life on a…

Graphic Novel Review: Last Pict by Rick Boven
5 Stars , Graphic Novels , Latest Posts / May 14, 2011

About: “Last Pict” by Rick Boven is a short story in graphic novel form. Mr. Boven is a very talented artist, actor and filmmaker who worked as a TV director and for high profile dot com companies. 21 pages Pub­lisher: Nan Bu Nan Publishing Language: English ASIN: B004UM95PU My rating for Last Pict – 5 Thoughts: “Last Pict” by Rick Boven is short but delivers a powerful message. While the story is short, it is also sad and reflects deeply on a father/son relationship. I actually felt sad after finishing to read, there are no good and bad people in the story. The father and the principle are both well meaning adults but at the end, to me, it was clear their good intentions are not enough. The father, a hardworking man, is not proud of his talented boy and does not take the bullying incident seriously. One needs to read between the lines to get the message which is built very subtly into the panels. As a father myself, I realize what great burden I carry. I can still remember something from age five-six that I felt was a huge part of my upbringing – for the positive or…

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