Dengan pendekatan sinematik dan sedikit sentuhan realisme magis, novel grafis ini cukup berkesan. Mengisahkan pergumulan tokoh utamanya dengan ra4.2/5
Dengan pendekatan sinematik dan sedikit sentuhan realisme magis, novel grafis ini cukup berkesan. Mengisahkan pergumulan tokoh utamanya dengan rasa bersalah dan trauma, novel grafis ini juga mengulas tema-tema lain seperti kesetiaan dan pemulihan.
Simon, si tokoh utama, menyaksikan dua insiden traumatik yang menyebabkan dirinya mengalami depresi berat. Sebagai saksi, ia dihantui rasa bersalah dan penyesalan. Di saat yang sama, toko buku warisan ayahnya terancam bankrut. Namun Simon berkeras tidak mau menjual toko buku tersebut. Masalah finansial ini mengganggu hubungan Simon dengan istrinya. Di saat ini Simon bertemu seorang gadis muda yang tertarik dengan sastra dan buku. Kehadiran gadis ini seperti menjadi titik balik baru dalam kehidupan Simon.
Analogi ornitologi yang dihadirkan di buku ini cukup menarik dan poetik, relevan dengan pergumulan Simon untuk bertahan hidup. Format cerita yang tidak terlalu panjang juga terasa pas dan tidak bertele-tele. Cukup mudah membayangkan buku ini diadaptasi jadi film atau animasi pendek.
Ini adalah buku terjemahan Rotasi ketiga yang saya baca. Di satu sisi, Rotasi berjasa menghadirkan novel grafis terjemahan di luar arus utama komik superhero dan manga, ditambah tema-tema yang menarik. Di sisi lain, kualitas terjemahan penerbit ini cukup mengecewakan karena memuat beberapa typo dan gaya bahasa yang cenderung kaku dan kurang enak dibaca. Secara kualitas cetakan pun lumayan buruk, ada beberapa gambar yang belum bersih dan beberapa halaman dengan resolusi cetak rendah dan pecah. Mudah-mudahan Rotasi bisa berbenah di terbitan-terbitan ke depan....more
Steampunk + alternate history + mythology are the staples of Clark, but this time it's late 19th century New Orleans4.5/5
P. Djèlí Clark did it again!
Steampunk + alternate history + mythology are the staples of Clark, but this time it's late 19th century New Orleans where the Civil War had turned out differently.
Creeper, a street urchin living in New Orleans, was carrying a part of Oya, the goddess of storm, death, and rebirth from Orisha pantheon. As an orphan, she survived the streets by stealing things and selling information. One day, she overheard an upcoming secret deal regarding the Black God's Drums, a divine weapon used by Orishan god of thunder Shango during the war back in the Caribbeans.
Creeper tried to hustle and sell this information to Ann-Marie, captain of sky pirate airship Midnight Robber for the price of her recruitment into the crew. However, the Black God's Drums was eyed by multiple interested factions, a brewing conflict that might bring destruction to the whole New Orleans.
Like in Fatma el-Shara'awi series, Clark breathed so much life and vibrancy to the streets of New Orleans. Like a huge pot of hearty gumbo, he mixed all the delicious classic ingredients of historical fiction and urban fantasy, with a dash of his own brand of spice: quirky steampunk and humour. Like his version of Cairo, New Orleans was vivid and exuberant with diverse people and rich culture; from a multicultural bordello to a murderous nunnery, from the airship port to the bayou.
And unfortunately, like any good and hearty bowl of gumbo, there's this inevitable, ultimate complaint, "Where's the second bowl?"
Merged review:
4.5/5
P. Djèlí Clark did it again!
Steampunk + alternate history + mythology are the staples of Clark, but this time it's late 19th century New Orleans where the Civil War had turned out differently.
Creeper, a street urchin living in New Orleans, was carrying a part of Oya, the goddess of storm, death, and rebirth from Orisha pantheon. As an orphan, she survived the streets by stealing things and selling information. One day, she overheard an upcoming secret deal regarding the Black God's Drums, a divine weapon used by Orishan god of thunder Shango during the war back in the Caribbeans.
Creeper tried to hustle and sell this information to Ann-Marie, captain of sky pirate airship Midnight Robber for the price of her recruitment into the crew. However, the Black God's Drums was eyed by multiple interested factions, a brewing conflict that might bring destruction to the whole New Orleans.
Like in Fatma el-Shara'awi series, Clark breathed so much life and vibrancy to the streets of New Orleans. Like a huge pot of hearty gumbo, he mixed all the delicious classic ingredients of historical fiction and urban fantasy, with a dash of his own brand of spice: quirky steampunk and humour. Like his version of Cairo, New Orleans was vivid and exuberant with diverse people and rich culture; from a multicultural bordello to a murderous nunnery, from the airship port to the bayou.
And unfortunately, like any good and hearty bowl of gumbo, there's this inevitable, ultimate complaint, "Where's the second bowl?"...more
This was a rather short but compelling sapphic science fantasy. Yang reappropriated Le Guin's ansible into a living magic songstress tasked for 4.25/5
This was a rather short but compelling sapphic science fantasy. Yang reappropriated Le Guin's ansible into a living magic songstress tasked for long-range communication and logistics. The inclusion of hanzi lyrics/poem is also such a nice literary addition to the story. This is such a high concept eclectic tale about forbidden love, tryst, rebellion, and sacrifice. Like Max Gladstone's Angelus Guns I'd love to read more about this world in a longer format.
Merged review:
4.25/5
This was a rather short but compelling sapphic science fantasy. Yang reappropriated Le Guin's ansible into a living magic songstress tasked for long-range communication and logistics. The inclusion of hanzi lyrics/poem is also such a nice literary addition to the story. This is such a high concept eclectic tale about forbidden love, tryst, rebellion, and sacrifice. Like Max Gladstone's Angelus Guns I'd love to read more about this world in a longer format....more
This could've been an easy progression fantasy masterpiece deserving a place among my favourites, however, Kraken Rider Z is riddled with several3.5/5
This could've been an easy progression fantasy masterpiece deserving a place among my favourites, however, Kraken Rider Z is riddled with several writing issues.
To begin with, the premise is actually quite interesting. Not often you'd see a water elemental-based protagonist with a Kraken sidekick. However, the initial underdog premise crumbles when the main characters Zee and Jessup are shown as hypercompetent and super strong. There are some scenes where the pair easily beat up people several tiers above them. It doesn't help that the rest of the supporting cast is constantly hyping up Zee and Jessup as a very special pair.
Second, the book is peppered with typos and jargon inconsistencies (lava vs ambergris, Monday vs. Firstday). There are also weird portmanteau/mish-mash naming conventions (Zepiter, Postune, Daimyo General) as a major part of the worldbuilding. Objectively, I understand what Ashton and Estes were aiming for, especially knowing Ashton's previous eclectic mythology fantasy work (Paternus). Personally, these conventions simply take me out of the world and story. Furthermore, there are a lot of real-life fantasy authors and reviewer cameos as characters in the book, and some of them play quite big roles. It's kinda hard to take the book seriously while recognising those names.
The last major writing issue is the repetitions. Everyone is either laughing, chuckling, or grinning at any given time. Again, I understand the lighter tone of the book, but when virtually every single scene in this book features a combination of those words, it's quite immersion-breaking. It feels like Estes and Ashton tried too hard to make Jessup the Kraken a jokester.
I feel Kraken Rider Z deserves to be in the pantheon tier of progression fantasy if it's filtered and distilled through several more rounds of strict editing and trimming....more
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