The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare adapted by Gareth Hinds Review # 13

Product Details from Amazon.com
Reading level: Young Adult

Paperback: 80 pages
Publisher: Candlewick (May 22, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 076363025X
ISBN-13: 978-0763630256

Synopsis from BarnesandNoble.com
With elegant, contemporary artwork and a faithful but succinct adaptation, this graphic novel casts a classic drama in a provocative new light.

Here is the tale of young Bassanio, who, to win the love of fair Portia, entangles his dearest friend, Antonio, in a dangerous bargain with the moneylender Shylock. Only Bassanio’s heartfelt efforts — and a clever intervention by Portia — will save Antonio from paying Shylock "a pound of flesh." Moody and mesmerizing, this graphic novel adaptation of one of Shakespeare’s more controversial plays boasts a chic modern cast, high drama, and all the dark, familiar beauty of Venice.


My Review:

I liked this book for what it was. A nice introduction to Shakespeare. This is not to be used for a test but it does help in understanding the basic concepts of the play. The author notes that he has cut out many scenes and characters so this should not be used to study for test. This does help the reader to have a basic understanding of this play.

I really liked the graphics and how they alternated colors for different acts of the play. The time period of the play was updated to around the 1930s which a lot of adapters do in graphic novels and movies.


I rate this book a 3/5. Recommend as an introduction to Shakespeare.


FCC. Disclaimer: I borrowed this book from the library and I am an Amazon associate. I was not compensated in anyway for this review and opinion expressed is solely my own.

The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka adapted by Peter Kuper Review #7

Product Details
Hardcover: 80 pages
Publisher: Crown (August 5, 2003)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1400047951
ISBN-13: 978-1400047956

From the Inside Cover:
Acclaimed graphic artist Peter Kuper present a brillian, darkly comic reimaging of Kafka's classic tale of family, alienation, and a giant bug. Kuper's electric drawings- which merge American Cartooning with German expressionism- bring Kafka's prose to vivid life, reviving the orginial story's hmor and poignancy in a way that will surprise and delight readers of Kafka and graphic novels alike.

My review:

This book is one of the mosting interesting books I read. It is totally different from what I imagined. This is a story of a salesman named Gregor Samsa who wakes up from a dream to discover he turned into a dung beetle. With this metamorphosis he learns his life has changed forever. He can not go to work nor can he position himself in a different ways to get comfortable. All this eventually leads to depression. He is scorned by his family members because of his state.
This is a comic book with a hint of sadness. It really makes you think of how people treat others who are different. A teenager who is assigned to Kafka will find it easy to understand. The illustrations do the story a great justice. One day I hope to read the original.

I rate this a 4/5

FCC Disclaimer: I borrowed this from my local library. I am an Amazon associate. The opinions expressed in this review are solely my own and I was not influenced from publishers or people other than myself.

Coraline The Graphic Novel by Neil Gaiman Review #5

Product Details
Reading level: Ages 9-12
Paperback: 192 pages
Publisher: HarperCollins; Reprint edition (May 5, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0060825456
ISBN-13: 978-0060825454




Summary from the back cover:

When Coraline steps through a door in her family's new house, She finds another house stragely similar to her own(only better). But there's another mother there and another father, and they want her to stay and be their little girl. They want to change her and never let her go.


My review:

I had the seen the movie before reading this so I knew what this was about. This graphic novel was totally different from the movie but with some similarities. I have never read the original adaption to this book so I can not compare the two.

In this version it starts out with Coraline in her normal life where her parents are too busy with their jobs to entertain her. She is bored because she has nothing to do but interact with her wacky neighbors. One day Coraline decides to explore and then her life changes..

I really loved the illustrations in the book. They were well done. I found myself entranced in this graphic novel that I hardly put it down in the 2 hour sitting. While I can not compare it to the original I really enjoyed this and I think kids will too.

I rate this a 4/5.


FCC. Disclaimer: I checked this book out at my local library. I am an Amazon affiliate and I was not influenced in any way to write a positive review. All the opinions above are solely my own.