I Kill Giants
by Joe Kelly
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Book Summary Information
Author: Joe KellyIllustrator: J. M. Ken Niimura
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2009-05-26
ISBN: 1607060922
Number of pages: 184
Publisher: Image Comics
Book Reviews of I Kill Giants
Book Review: Review; I Kill Giants [...]
Summary: 4 Stars
I Kill Giants, by Joe Kelly and JM Ken Niimura was originally released as a seven issue self-contained series from July 2008 to January 2009 and it is one of the best books for all ages I have ever read.
The story follows Barbara Thorson, a pre-teen girl in a smallish coastal town. She has the same problems that every young girl has (Or so I am told. I have never been a young girl before, so I have nothing to base the comparison on. I DO feel kind of pretty sometimes though...), bullies, stupid teachers, Principals and a complete feeling of isolation in a very crowded world. It is very quickly that we learn that she also kills giants. With her war hammer named Coveleski, so named for the giant killer ballplayer from the early days of baseball. She has imaginary friends in the form of tiny piskies and elves and a plentiful lack of social skills. Much of the time her family does not understand her or her obsession with role playing games and her odd behavior, and there is a clearly stressful family dynamic at work that slowly reveals itself. She has a friend that tries hard to understand her and a school counselor that is trying to get her to open up and deal with the personality issues that are developing.
Much of the story relies heavily on the visual iconography being used. The images in the story are a mix of what we would call real and what we would call fantasy, with no clear boundary between them, much the way the world must seem to young Barbara, a girl that clearly has a rapidly worsening stress related personality disorder starting up. As her behavior becomes increasingly anti social, the art becomes more frantic, using more aggressive panel layouts and larger panel sizes. Barbara's world shapes the book's feel very effectively and the art, while loose and slightly cartoonish (not in a pejorative sense), uses space very well. A heavy use of gray tones and aggressive, almost manga-esque styling at times, keeps the book exciting all the way through.
For anyone with teen and pre teen children in their lives, or remembers their own teen years as difficult, this book is very powerful. Barbara has some serious causes to the stress in her life, and while they are pretty easy to guess as the story begins to explore them, their eventual revelation is surprisingly powerful. The climax of the story is filled with real word events and metaphorical images, and at no time tells you which are which as the people around her seem to be as involved in the events that Barbara sees as she is.
This book was a joy to read. I enjoy the traditional comic book fare as much as anyone, but this was such a refreshing change of pace for me that I found everything more enjoyable for a while after. That is the mark of something very positive and even cathartic. It leaves you feeling cleansed and ready to face what is next. I am a 42 year old adult human male, and I am not ashamed to admit that the book managed to get me choked up as easily as it made me giggle.
Anyone that enjoys feeling like they can identify with a heroic character will love this book.
[...]
Summary of I Kill Giants
Barbara Thorson, a girl battling monsters both real and imagined, kicks butt, takes names, and faces her greatest fear in this bittersweet, coming-of-age story called "Best Indy Book of 2008" by IGN. Collects I Kill Giants #1-7.Fantasy Books
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