The Pilgrims and the First Thanksgiving (Family Comic Friday)

2007's The Pilgrims and the First Thanksgiving from Graphic Library is an educational comic book that does a fairly decent job explaining a controversial moment of American history. While it doesn't mention that the Pilgrims choose Cape Cod to settle because they ran out of beer and ale, we do get perspective on an often forgotten part of the First Thanksgiving story: the Native Americans!

It was always a mystery to me how Squanto knew English. Turns out that the Pilgrims weren't the first Europeans in the area. Fishermen and slavers had been coming to the cape for years prior. Also, Squanto is an Anglicized pronunciation of the name.

There was also a certain amount of caution on the side of the Indians. The white man was known to bring disease with them and Chief Massasoit didn't want his people getting sick from them. (Smart man!)

A lot of detail is out into the massive amount of food that went into the Autumn feast of Pilgrims and natives. We often get that lesson in grade school. But did you know that the event lasted 3 whole days? And there were shooting contests and axe throwing competitions in between meals? 

There's an educational section in the back of this graphic novel. In it, you get a glossary of terms, an list of further reads and an interesting 2-page article about the aftermath of the First Thanksgiving. I'd always thought that the Pilgrims were the same as the Puritans. Turns out that they weren't and man, were those Puritans mean and evil! The Pilgrims kept a 50 year peace with the Native Americans. The Puritans show up, start stealing land and within a year, the whole tribe is wiped out in a massive conflict.

Direct quotes from historical figures are supposed to be on a yellow background. But the hue is so light, I could barely figure out those segments. I also felt like the artwork was a little more simple than a typical graphic novel. However, it could be because artist Peter McDonnell is more of a children's book illustrator than a comic book artist. I think that's more of a matter of taste than actual quality.

The Pilgrims and the First Thanksgiving was an informative read. It was a timely read for the holiday. I got this recently on Amazon for a very good price. Kids will enjoy reading about the history of the fourth Thursday in November while parents and guardians will delight that the young readers in their life are learning! It's too late for this year. But if you know of a child aged 7-11 who loves reading comics, this is a read that they can enjoy next year while they wait for the turkey and trimmings to finish cooking!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Comics Presents #107

A new multi-parter begins in this issue. Jack Russell, the Werewolf by Night teams with Ghost Rider, Danny Ketch, in a tale that has a lot of promise. The Braineaters, a biker gang of carnivorous werewolves return. We last saw the Braineaters in issues #55-59 of MCP. In that story, Jack Russell was by himself against this gang of maniacs as well as having to also take on a demented Catholic priest who thought it was his God ordained duty to kill all creatures of the night. Here, the Werewolf by Night has the Spirit of Vengeance on his side and it looks like only the Braineaters are involved in this story. 

The one-shot story stars the Native American superhero Red Wolf. This story involves the corrupt oil and tech company Roxxon and the drilling on indigenous lands. At first you think this story is going to be nothing but a social relevance story about the evils of big oil and the rights of Native people. There's absolutely nothing wrong with this. I was just surprised how by page 2 or 3 of this 8-pager, the story turned into a whodunit? Okay, more like a Who's-gonna-do-it? 

Threats have been made to both members of the Roxxon board of directors and some of the Native American activists. It's up to Red Wolf, who is working security at an Roxxon gala, to figure out who the gunman or gunmen are! This was a great mystery story in which superpowers were an afterthought. I loved this Batman level detective story!

Crap, Crap, Crap. Both the Wolverine/Nightcrawler and Young Gods story keep on chugging along. When will either mercifully end? 

Rating: 5 out of 10 stars.

The Big Book of the Weird Wild West

How much would you be willing to pay for a Western anthology series featuring the artwork of legends such as Dick Giordano, Joe Orlando, Marie Severin, Paul Kuppenberg, Joe Staton, and many, many more? 

 

$50? $75? $100? What if I told you that all of these comic legends could be bought for $14.95 or less? 

   Featuring the writing talents of John Whalen (Un-Men), Rick Klaw (Wild West Show), and others, the Big Book of the Weird Wild West contains dozens of short stories about the oddest lawmen, dumbest outlaws, and strangest habits of the old west that Hollywood and the history books just don't you about. 

   This book was published by Paradox Press, a short-lived imprint of DC Comics from the 1990s. Paradox published a number of anthologies like this one in which each volume was devoted to the odd, the strange, the macabre, and the just plain weird. I love the Factoid Books series. For a history buff than loves his world the weirder the better, these books are the perfect fun reads in sequential art form.

   But as these are books about true events, the Factoid Books or 'Big Books' do not sugarcoat their reports. A little titillating, sometimes gory, and filled with adult themes and language, these books from Paradox are suited for the Vertigo Comics crowd. In other words: for teens and older. 

   I found this copy when I was working at the book sale at my local library. But volumes of this series can be found on Amazon for good prices. You might also come across these books at your favorite used book shop. These are treasured gems in my graphic novel collection and for some reason you can almost always find a copy or two at your local comics shop usual for half off cover or better.

   Worth Consuming

   Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales: Donner Dinner Party

In this edition of Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales, the patriot cum martyr regales his captors with the gruesome story of the Donner Party. From the beginning of their wagon train in Illinois to meeting up with a trail master in Independence Missouri through the barren salt flats of Utah till their ultimate perilous stop in the wilds of California, every tragic episode is told in horrible detail. There’s murder, death, cannibalism, betrayal, and stupidity- AND it’s all true!

The book is geared for ages 8-12 but the subject matter may actually up the reading level to 11 and up. Once again, many of the references in this book’s bibliography are from adult text books. What gears this book for kids is the silly jokes and goofy nature of some of the characters. For example, the patriarch of the Reed family is shown as a buffoon who likes to name places after himself and sing songs of how he slew a buffalo. The author, whose name actually is Nathan Hale, admits in the afterword to using some poetic license to lighten the tone of this history lesson.

    I love these stories- juvenile or not. There’s looks of facts mixed in with the fictional goofiness and the author is very careful to let readers know at books end what stuff was real and what was fictionalized. There’s another volume due out soon- if not already and I can’t wait for it to come out.

Once again, thank you Orange County (NC) Public Library for carrying another great series of graphic novels that I otherwise would’ve overlooked if you didn’t obtain them for readers like me.

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

 

Scalped Vol. 1: Indian Country

NOT WORTH CONSUMING

I’ve never read or seen a work about modern Native American life that didn’t have at least a smattering of hope for the future or the Pride of being of noble heritage. Scalped is gritty, raw, dangerous and above all, dark with despair. I know that Native Americans have been given a raw deal and live in the worst of poverties, but when I want to read a comic book, I want the fantasy and allure. Not the local news.

I didn’t enjoy it and I really hated the ending. I couldn’t figure out where it was going. I now know based on research that there is a volume 2. I have no intentions of pursuing it.

Not worth consuming.

(Parental note: with its graphic sex, language, and raw violence- this book is not recommended for those under 18.)