A Tale of Two Cities (Classics Illustrated Notes) by Charles Dickens. © 1997 Acclaim Books. ISBN 1-57840-003-1. Paperback. Classics/Young Adult/Graphic Novel. $4.99 US. [ Purchase ] Source: local library

** This review is part of the 2010 Graphic Novels Challenge and the Classics Graphic Novels Mini-Challenge. **

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times …
it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.

Who could ever forget those haunting opening lines?

Back in middle school, A Tale of Two Cities was my first taste of Dickens (I’m excluding A Christmas Carol here as what child wasn’t exposed to that *grin*). I first saw it as an adaptation on the PBS television show, Wishbone, and from there I knew I had to read the book. To this day, it is still one of my favorite classics, so when I saw it at my local library as graphic novel format, I couldn’t resist grabbing it up for this challenge.

For a book of so little pages, I think Evelyn Goodman did a marvelous job of adapting and chipping away such a dense tome and pulling out the main scenes and plotlines one needs to grasp an overall story of hidden identities, family, love, vengeance, war, sacrifice, and redemption. While I don’t think a student could use this alone to pass a test or write an essay, it would definitely help one to follow along with the story if Dickens’s book proves a tedious read. Read the rest of this entry »

As part of the Graphic Novels Challenge 2010, I’ve decided to host a mini challenge from 01 January — 31 January 2010 right here on Read All Over.

We all know that the classics are not for everyone. They can be rather daunting and downright tedious at times to read, however, missing out on the wonderful stories they contain is such a shame. So, I thought what better way to spread the classics love than to read them in graphic novel form! That is my challenge to you all: read at least one classic novels in graphic form within the month of January 2010.

To help you out, here’s some great lists to give you some ideas of what to read: The Book Palace, Harris County Public Library, The Complete Guide to Classics Illustrated, and Barnes & Noble. Read the rest of this entry »

Yay, my first challenge! *jigs* I’m fairly new to the whole graphic novel scene, to be honest. I’ve only read one so far in life, to my shame and dismay.

However, I’ve decided I will change that in 2010 and that I will participate in the Graphic Novels Challenge under the Intermediate level. Right now I’m planning on reading the following books, but will probably add more as I come across them.

1. In The Small by Michael Hague
2. Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky
3. The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
4. Beowulf by Gareth Hinds
5. Supernatural: Rising Son series by Peter Johnson
6. The Tenth Doctor Collected Comics by Jonathan Morris

Read the rest of this entry »