The Girl Who Married a Skull: and Other African Stories

by Kel McDonald (Editor), Kate Ashwin (Editor), Katie Shanahan (Contribution by), Shaggy Shanahan (Contribution by), Jose Pimienta (Contribution by)

Overview

"Dynamic and thought-provoking." — KIRKUS


Have you heard the one about the skull who borrowed body parts to pass himself off as a human so he could trick the village beauty into marriage? No? Well, what about when the daughters of Frog and Snake had a playdate? Okay, fine. But surely you've heard the story of the crocodiles who voted on whether or not to eat a man that had saved one of their lives? NO? Wow, have we got some stories for you!


In this vibrant comics treasury, some of storytelling’s finest talents reimagine classic African folktales with a modern twist. Funny, warm, and wildly inventive, these timeless tales are brand new all over again. Featuring the work of JARRETT WILLIAMS, CARLA SPEED MCNEIL, CHRIS SCHWEIZER, FAITH ERIN HICKS, and many more!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781945820243
Publisher:	Iron Circus Comics
Publication date:	10/01/2018
Series:	Cautionary Fables and Fairytales Series , #1
Pages:	209
Sales rank:	729,710
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.70(d)
Age Range:	9 - 12 Years

About the Author

Editor Kel McDonald has been working in comics for over a decade—most of that time has been spent on her webcomic Sorcery 101. More recently, she has organized the "Cautionary Fables and Fairytales" anthology series while contributing to other anthologies like Dark Horse Presents, Smut Peddler, and Sleep of Reason. She has also worked on Buffy: The High School Years. She recently finished a creator-owned series, Misfits of Avalon. She’s currently working on her self-published series, The City Between. Her work can be found at kelmcdonald.com.

Editor Kate Ashwin is a comic artist who lives in West Yorkshire, England, with her two fat cats and one very understanding husband. She’s drawn and written over 1,000 pages of webcomics since 2002. Her most current project is the well-received Victorian-era adventure story Widdershins, which is currently on its sixth Kickstarter-funded volume. Kate has also contributed to, co-edited, and provided Kickstarter support to the "Cautionary Fables and Fairytales" books, written a story for Dark Horse Presents, and contributed artwork to critically-acclaimed kids’ weekly comic The Phoenix.

Editorial Reviews

"A solid addition to most YA graphic novel collections." — SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL

"Dynamic and thought-provoking, this foray into the world of African fables and fairy tales is sure to entertain young readers who welcome both strong messages and open-ended myths." — KIRKUS

"Fifteen African folktales are each adapted by a different author or illustrator, with story and style varying from sardonically irreverent to eerily sinister." — THE BULLETIN OF THE CENTER FOR CHILDREN’S BOOKS

"A fab introduction." — TOR.COM

“The collection of mini stories was cute, witty, and overall enthralling. Each one had its own complete exciting and unpredictable story arc.” — VIRGINIA LIBRARY ASSOCIATION

"We were completely bowled over by this." — READ IT DADDY

From the Publisher

10/01/2018
Gr 6 Up—Originally published in 2014 through a successful Kickstarter campaign, this graphic novel features 15 African tales adapted by different indie comic artists, including best-selling author Faith Erin Hicks. The stories and the black-and-white art range in style and tone. The entries preserve the intent of the source material but offer intriguing new takes. In the titular entry, a beautiful yet vain young woman attracts the attention of a skull who wishes to marry her. The skull happily bounces across the grass, with hearts in his eyes, then calls The Boys on his cell phone for help in hatching his scheme, though they ask how he is even using a phone. In a tale about how Anansi the spider spends his days creating webs after he is punished for trying to steal wisdom from the elders, Anansi and the other animals are drawn with thick line art and minimal background. Bonus pages include select concept sketches. VERDICT A notation about each piece's country of origin would have been helpful, but this is otherwise a solid addition to most YA graphic novel collections.—Marissa Lieberman, East Orange Public Library, NJ

School Library Journal

2018-09-17

African tales get makeovers in this eclectic collection of fables in the form of comics.

In Nicole Chartrand's opening story, a beautiful, vain, and "disobedient daughter" turns out to be clever and independent-minded, escaping from the monster who tricked her into marriage and turning her escape route into a business. A loving brother and sister who have run away from home outsmart cannibals and make off with their riches in Katie and Steven Shanahan's "Demane and Demezana." An arrogant young woman fails to impress the chief, while her humble, kind sister earns his offer of marriage, in Sloan Leong's treatment of a tale from Zimbabwe. Some tales are familiar in form, such as an Anansi tale from Jose Pimienta, a myth called "Why Turtles Live in Water" from Jarrett Williams, and D. Shazzbana Bennett's "Gratitude" fable, which is reminiscent of "The Lion and the Mouse." Other stories feature Egyptian gods or science-fiction twists. Each is adapted and illustrated by a different artist, which makes for nice variety even if the different illustration styles and plots seem geared toward slightly different age groups. While the black-and-white drawings are expressive, some seem more like sketches than finished work, and regrettably, one, Mary Cagle's "The Lion's Whiskers," lacks an African aesthetic. Despite these inconsistencies, the collection feels balanced and diverse. Thumbnail bios of each contributor follow along with a few concept drawings.

Dynamic and thought-provoking, this foray into the world of African fables and fairy tales is sure to entertain young readers who welcome both strong messages and open-ended myths. (Graphic folktales. 9-13)

Kirkus Reviews

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