Tuesday, February 4, 2014

EXPLORER 2



Explorer: The Lost Islands
Edited by Kazu Kibuishi
Published by Amulet Books
Copyright © 2013
Review by Anthony Kendrick

Kazu Kibuishi, creator of the Amulet Series and the comic strip “Copper”, is back with a second installment of his graphic short story collection “Explorer”; This one is entitled “The Lost Islands”.  Kibuishi edits, and contributes to, this collection in which the premise is that every story should have/use a lost island in some way.

I love the concept of these books. Everyone builds their own story around one theme and then these fantastic graphic illustrators bring it to life as well. So this book is rich with color, texture, and even beauty.

My favorite stories in this edition are “Rabbit Island” By Jake Parker where we visit a island inhabited by personified rabbits who become too reliant on technology. It really hits home in the society in which we live where so few people know how to do anything with their own hands.

…and I also liked “Loah” by Michael Gagné which tells the story of a group of fish that are in terrible danger as their island is about to explode. Of course I love this one most because it is visually colorful, clean, and stunning.

This is a wonderful book if you want to see the way a theme inspires artists differently. It might also be a great to have students write a short story based on the same theme as well. I hope Kibuishi continues to roll out the “Explorer” books.

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