MIDDLE GRADE GRAPHIC NOVEL REVIEWS : Green Lantern: Legacy by Minh Le and Shadow of the Batgirl by Sarah Kuhn & Nicole Goux
ABOUT THE BOOK
Thirteen-year-old Tai Pham lives in the apartment above his grandmother's store, where his bedroom is crammed with sketchpads and comic books. But not even his most imaginative drawings could compare to the colorful adventure he's about to embark on.
When Tai inherits his grandmother's jade ring, he soon finds out it's more than it appears. Suddenly he's being inducted into a group of space cops known as the Green Lanterns, his neighborhood is being overrun by some racist bullies, and every time he puts pen to paper, he's forced to confront that he might not be creative enough or strong enough to uphold his Ba's legacy.
Now Tai must decide what kind of hero he wants to be: will he learn to soar above his insecurities or will the past keep him grounded?
REVIEW
I was excited when I first discovered this new DC Comics series for middle grade readers. Many middle grade readers love superhero stories and I'm excited to be able to hand this book and others in the series to them for their enjoyment. I also appreciated the fact that the hero is a thirteen-year-old Vietnamese American boy. It was cool to see elements of Tai's family culture shared as a part of the story without being the focus of the story. Tai is shocked when he inherits his grandmother's ring. He's even more shocked when he discovers the possibilities that the ring offers to him. He struggles to balance his excitement at having superpowers with his grandmother's wisdom, especially when a wealthy business approaches him as a possible mentor. The story is an exciting superhero story, but it's also a story of a young man not yet comfortable in the shoes he's being asked to fill. A fun graphic novel perfect for young superhero fans.
ABOUT THE BOOK
Cassandra Cain is the daughter of super-villains and a living weapon trained from birth to be the ultimate assassin. But that doesn't mean she has to stay that way, right? She'll have to go through an identity crisis of epic proportions to find out. But how do you figure out who you're supposed to be when you've been trained to become a villain your entire life?
After a soul-shattering moment that sends Cass reeling, she'll attempt to answer this question the only way she knows how: learning everything she possibly can about her favorite hero--Batgirl. But Batgirl hasn't been seen in Gotham for years, and when Cass's father threatens the world she has grown to love, she'll have to step out of the shadows and overcome her greatest obstacle--that voice inside her head telling her she can never be a hero.
Sarah Kuhn, author of Heroine Complex and I Love You So Mochi, takes on her favorite hero of color for a new audience of readers. Featuring the edgy art style of Nicole Goux, Shadow of the Batgirl tells the harrowing story of a girl who overcomes the odds to find her unique identity.
REVIEW
Cassandra Cain is her father's greatest weapon. She's a trained assassin. But after a hit goes awry, Cassandra is left wondering about her past and her future. Hiding in a public library, she struggles to come to terms with who she's been and who she wants to be. With the assistance of restaurant owner Jackie Fujikawa Yoneyama, a librarian named Barbara Gordon, and a friend named Erik with a passion for romance novels, Cassandra tries to figure out a world that is very foreign to her. Her efforts to mimic her newfound hero, Batgirl, aren't so smooth at first, but as she starts to accept that maybe she can be a hero, she finds that first she'll have to deal with her past. There is plenty of action, a touch of romance, and an identity crisis. The art works well and moves the story along in an appealing way. The book works best for older middle grade readers and YA readers. In terms of content, there is a little bit of bad language, a reference to nudity, a brief kiss, and plenty of violence.
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