non all'altezza di unastoria e di LMVDM ( )

The art is breathtakingly good. The story is compelling, but unfortunately, with a protagonist who is removed from his feelings in many ways, we wind up being removed from caring as much about the characters as we might. I have to say, too, that the small panels meant VERY small print which was hard to read--the book could have been about an inch bigger in all dimensions. A good read if you're in to graphic novels. ( )

In a country torn apart by war, three young boys are left to fend for themselves. Cold, hungry, and homeless, they struggle to survive in a world that is crumbling all around them, their youth and inexperience preventing them from fully understanding what exactly is happening to their home. Like so many young boys with few options in life, they turn to crime, and their life improves dramatically...for a little while, anyway.

This is pretty much exactly why I think the graphic format is so viable as a means of expression. The author is able to evoke emotions and convey a strong message with simple drawings and plain-stated text. The boys really come to life during the short duration of this book, and I the book packs a pretty strong punch considering how small and how quickly you will finish reading it. This is my second novel by this author, the other being Garage Band, and think both are terrific. ( )

(Full review available here)

"The story itself can be a little hard to get into, but it quickly picks up and becomes a rather easy, though emotionally-detached read. The characters are designed with sketchy, awkward lines that succeed in illustrating the scene while generating feelings of unease. I appreciated how the protagonists looked like teenagers, even when their mood shifted from scared to sinister and points inbetween." ( )

This graphic novel is the bleak tale of three young drifters making their way across the war-torn landscape of an unnamed Balkan country. The protagonist Giuliano provides the narrative as he traces his path through the devestating results of war as the day-to-day struggle to find food and shelter while avoiding the occasional stray bullet begins to deaden his existing sense of morality. Giuliano and his companions falling in with Felix, a sleazy criminal boss,soon become the muscle for Felix's extortion racket and later move up the underworld food chain into endeavors in a city removed from the hardships of the war, petty thuggery slowly escalating to murder. The war is never seen, instead the conflict is allowed to show its effects upon the young men to play out in numb, soulless detail, a storytelling depressingly realistic. While not a comfortable read, the story is made even more powerful by the understated execution. ( )