The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde - UPDATED REVIEW

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde  Genre : Classics Blurb (on back of book) : Oscar Wilde’s only novel is the dreamlike story of a young man who sells his soul for eternal youth and beauty. In this celebrated work Wilde forged a devastating portrait of the effects of evil and debauchery on a young aesthete in late-19th-century England. Combining elements of the Gothic horror novel and decadent French fiction, the book centers on a striking premise: As Dorian Gray sinks into a life of crime and gross sensuality, his body retains perfect youth and vigor while his recently painted portrait grows day by day into a hideous record of evil, which he must keep hidden from the world. For over a century, this mesmerizing tale of horror and suspense has enjoyed wide popularity. It ranks as one of Wilde's most important creations and among the classic achievements of its kind. UPDATED REVIEW MY OPINION : ****** I would like to start out this review by stating that this is undoubtedly m...
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Boxers - Gene Luen Yang

Image result for boxers bookBoxers by Gene Luen Yang
Genre: YA Graphic Novel

Blurb (on back of book): China, 1898. Bands of foreign missionaries and soldiers roam the countryside, bullying and robbing Chinese peasants.
Little Bao has had enough. Harnessing the powers of ancient Chinese gods, he recruits an army of Boxers--commoners trained in kung fu--who fight to free China from "foreign devils."
Against all odds, this grass-roots rebellion is violently successful. But nothing is simple. Little Bao is fighting for the glory of China, but at what cost? So many are dying, including thousands of "secondary devils"--Chinese citizens who have converted to Christianity.

MY OPINION: ***

This was a short read for me to help me get closer to meeting my Goodreads goal. My sister recommended it to me as she is a graphic novel fan and enjoyed this one. I ended up liking it quite a lot more than I initially thought I would, which is both surprising and pleasant.

IT WAS HILARIOUS. I don't think parts of it were meant to be funny but I thought 80% of it was hilarious for some reason. For example, every time the older brothers smacked the baby brother (the protagonist), I laughed. I don't know why; it shouldn't be funny but I laughed. This is a rare occasion for me because I don't laugh when I read as much as I cry/scream.

The battle scenes were gruesome and confusing but also fast-paced and interesting, which was good because I wanted to finish this book as soon as possible. There was blood everywhere and everyone kept dying and I didn't really comprehend who died or who killed whoever.

I like the historical/factual aspect of this book because I learned at least a little bit about China in that time period even if it was a fictional portrayal of what really happened. That was interesting to me because even though I am of Chinese descent, I don't have a lot of knowledge about Chinese history, which is surprising and sad, and something that I want to fix in the future.

The art was comical and simple at times, although it could be elaborate and beautiful at others, especially during the battle scenes.

It took me about half-an-hour to read the entire thing and I'm interested in reading the second book. I would recommend this book to readers looking for a historical fiction/graphic novel about Chinese history.

Main Character: Little Bao
Sidekick(s): Brother-Disciples, Sister-Disciples, etc
Villain(s): Foreign devils, etc
Graphic Novel Elements: This book was formatted to be a graphic novel.

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