Re-Gifters is an involving coming-of-age story with a distinct sense of place. Writer Mike Carey introduces the elements of his story quickly, beginning with a sparring match. Dik Seong Jen — better known as “Dixie” — is a promising hapkido student preparing for an upcoming tournament, but she’s distracted by her crush on classmate Adam, which leads her to make stupid decisions, both financially and emotionally. The art is by Sonny Liew and Marc Hempel. With Carey, the three previously […]

Minx was DC’s imprint aimed at teen girls, first announced in 2006. It ran for two years before being shuttered in fall 2008 due to distribution struggles (not reaching the bookstores they aimed for) and potentially, lack of interest. I thought I’d sum up its history and releases, now that it would have been old enough to have read itself. DC was somewhat late to the party, since Scholastic had already launched Graphix and there were tons of girls reading […]

Aaron Alexovich both writes and draws Kimmie66 (the first Minx book that has allowed a writer-artist to do both), a near-future tale of a world lived in virtual reality. Telly, the goth teen girl lead, has received a suicide note from her best friend, a person she never knew in real life, which leads her to ponder the nature of existence and how you really know a person. Her conclusion: It’s such a pain in the butt when you don’t […]

The every-other-book-is-good Minx pattern continues. Good as Lily is not the best book in the line (that would be Re-Gifters), but it’s a close second. Derek Kirk Kim (Same Difference and Other Stories) writes and Jesse Hamm draws this story of Grace, a girl just turning 18 who magically encounters herself at the ages of 6, 29, and 70. Why now? Because Grace is unsure of where her life is going to take her, and her other selves aren’t very […]

Wow. The first-ever Andi Watson book I’ve been disappointed in.1 I thought the premise of Clubbing — London goth gets sent to stay with her grandparents in the country; she sees it as punishment, we know it’s a chance for her to grow up and learn core values — had potential. Goodness knows it’s well-worn and -loved in a certain kind of teen novel. But both the plotting and the art are mediocre. Artist Josh Howard is apparently only capable […]