Space Chicken sounds like the name of a new wave band

Space Dumplins by Craig Thompson utilized all of the keywords that normally make me sit up and take notice: space adventure, hi-jinks, talking chickens... I absolutely loved the super colorful illustrations but as far as the story...it didn't completely blow me out of the water. Our main character, Violet, is a little girl living in the Roids which is a space community comprised of members of the working classes (classism is an issue). Her father is employed in a dangerous (and morally suspect) line of work gathering space whale nuggets (poop) which are manufactured to be used as fuel. Things have become increasingly dangerous especially for those living on the fringes as the whales have started to invade populated areas of space and cause massive damage in their wake including Violet's school. So when Violet's mom is offered a swanky job in fashion at the space station (where the extra swanky live) she snaps it up without hesitation and takes Violet with her hoping to earn more money and get her daughter a high class education. But things go from bad to worse in the Roids while they're away and Violet's father is somehow all mixed up in it. With the aid of her friends Zacchaeus (looks like a talking bean) and Elliott (actually is a talking chicken) Violet sets off on a mission to save her father and bring an end to the destruction and terror wrought by the wild space whales. Why are they on a path of devastation and mayhem? And what exactly does her father have to do with all of this? If you're interested in finding out the answers then check out Space Dumplins. My take: 4/10 mostly for the awesome illustrations.

Slightly spoiler-y warning: There are vivid depictions of animal cruelty in this book so if you can't deal with that (and I don't blame you because I had a lot of difficulties) then give this book a pass.

Source: Amazon

An example from the inside of the book. [Source: Craig Thompson Books]

What's Up Next: Sanity & Tallulah by Molly Brooks

What I'm Currently Reading: Tales from the Inner City by Shaun Tan

**If you're interested in buying this book or any books really, you can click here or here. The first will re-direct you to AbeBooks and the second will re-direct you to The Book Depository. These are great websites for purchasing books (AbeBooks carries inexpensive used and out-of-print books and The Book Depository ships free everywhere in the world). Full disclosure: I will receive a commission on all sales made by following either of these links. I wouldn't recommend a site that I didn't use and you are under no obligation to purchase anything. :-) **

Too much hype

Raise your hand if you kept hearing about the epic graphic novel Blankets by Craig Thompson. Chances are that the majority of you have at the very least heard of this book. It's continually touted as a must-read and so I finally grabbed it anticipating something that would knock me off of my feet. What I got instead was a thoroughly uncomfortable coming of age story that I didn't find particularly compelling. The art was not at fault. There were some truly lovely illustrations and I think the choice of keeping everything fairly muted in various shades of blue, black, and white was a good one. However, I couldn't get past how uncomfortable I found the story. Blankets is the true childhood tale of the author, Craig Thompson. The way that religion and relationships were depicted was problematic at best and psychologically troubling at worst. Craig grew up in a rural town as the oldest of two sons. The story starts with the two boys sharing a bed (not by their choice) and the arguments that ensued over the less than ideal situation. From the very start, I wondered if the cathartic writing of this book was the reason that Thompson wrote this. I say this because I think perhaps the author should seek professional help. As you know, I steer clear of spoilers here but I do feel that you should be forewarned that there are copious instances of child abuse in this book. The cruelty he and his brother faced disturbed my sleep while I was reading it and there were several times that I almost quit the book entirely. However, my hope that the end would prove worthwhile kept me turning the pages (and ultimately left me disappointed). If you're feeling particularly brave (or curious), then I can only wish you the best of luck with your quest. For me, the art alone wasn't worth it in the end. 3/10


**If you're interested in buying this book or any books really, you can click here or here. The first will re-direct you to AbeBooks and the second will re-direct you to The Book Depository. These are great websites for purchasing books (AbeBooks carries inexpensive used and out-of-print books and The Book Depository ships free everywhere in the world). Full disclosure: I will receive a commission on all sales made by following either of these links. I wouldn't recommend a site that I didn't use and you are under no obligation to purchase anything. :-) **