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teresaalice's review against another edition
2.0
This book showed so much promise, interspersed with graphic novel chapters in which the protagonist portrayed herself as Medusa, but sadly it was a flop for me.
dgrstory's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts
brisbookreviews's review against another edition
4.0
Year of the Beasts by Cecil Castellucci and Nate Powell is about sisters Tessa and Lulu who are ready to go to the annual summer carnival for rides, food and boys! This summer turns out to be different, they experience jealousy which starts a course of tragic events, testing their relationship.
Year of the Beasts is a beautiful story that at first I had trouble getting into. I absolutely love the gorgeous art work of Nate Powell and once finally into the story everything made sense. I loved the connection with Greek Mythology and the characters were well written. This was a very powerful roller coaster of emotions! Cecil Castellucci and Nate Powell did a wonderful job
Special Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group who provided me an e-galley in exchange for an honest review.
Year of the Beasts is a beautiful story that at first I had trouble getting into. I absolutely love the gorgeous art work of Nate Powell and once finally into the story everything made sense. I loved the connection with Greek Mythology and the characters were well written. This was a very powerful roller coaster of emotions! Cecil Castellucci and Nate Powell did a wonderful job
Special Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group who provided me an e-galley in exchange for an honest review.
alboyer6's review against another edition
3.0
I wasn't sure what to make out of this book at first. The chapters alternate between the story of two sisters and the graphic novel style story of teenager who woke up and found snakes for hair and her world changed irrevocably . I struggled a bit in the beginning to get into it but once I did I enjoyed it. It isn't until the last few chapters do you see the stories tying together. Good book.
jwinchell's review against another edition
3.0
I liked the flip between graphic novel & prose, but it took re-reading to figure out the connection between the two narratives.
kelleemoye's review against another edition
4.0
Reviewed at: http://www.teachmentortexts.com/2012/12/the-year-of-beasts.html
4.5 stars
Such an interesting novel that will definitely get a second read. Told in a dual format of prose and graphic novel, Cecil Castellucci tells us the story of two very different girls- One is a modern day Medusa who hates what she has become and keeps turning everyone she loves into stone; the other is a teenage girl filled with jealousy for her younger sister who is dating the boy of her dreams. When finished with the book, you will definitely see why I want to go back and reread.
The Year of the Beasts is one of those books that exudes teen angst right from its core. Both girls have such a repulsion filling their being that it is almost hard to read at times; however, also hard to stop. And it is a feeling that almost all of us felt in those high school years.
I found it fascinating how the author used the Greek monster, Medusa, to embody one of her characters. She along with other monsters and creatures in the graphic novel section, are symbols for the person inside of the monster. It is so much more than it seems on the surface.
I'll be completely honest; I was so confused throughout most of the book. Not because either story is confusing, but because I didn't understand how they fit together. They seemed like such a dichotomy, but there is a method to the madness that makes it all the more powerful. This book will be one that the reader will have trouble forgetting.
4.5 stars
Such an interesting novel that will definitely get a second read. Told in a dual format of prose and graphic novel, Cecil Castellucci tells us the story of two very different girls- One is a modern day Medusa who hates what she has become and keeps turning everyone she loves into stone; the other is a teenage girl filled with jealousy for her younger sister who is dating the boy of her dreams. When finished with the book, you will definitely see why I want to go back and reread.
The Year of the Beasts is one of those books that exudes teen angst right from its core. Both girls have such a repulsion filling their being that it is almost hard to read at times; however, also hard to stop. And it is a feeling that almost all of us felt in those high school years.
I found it fascinating how the author used the Greek monster, Medusa, to embody one of her characters. She along with other monsters and creatures in the graphic novel section, are symbols for the person inside of the monster. It is so much more than it seems on the surface.
I'll be completely honest; I was so confused throughout most of the book. Not because either story is confusing, but because I didn't understand how they fit together. They seemed like such a dichotomy, but there is a method to the madness that makes it all the more powerful. This book will be one that the reader will have trouble forgetting.
pussinbooks's review against another edition
4.0
Fluid prose meets evocative comics in this tale of young love and regret. Alternating chapters of prose and comics seem to be telling different stories until the narratives meet in a shocking way. Tessa experiences growing pains she never thought she'd have when her little sister Lulu wins the heart of the boy Tessa loves. Tessa enters a quiet rebellion when she starts having trysts with Jasper, the strangest boy in town. Unable to get over her jealousy, Tessa’s coldness toward her sister rises until a tragic event convinces Tessa she has been a monster to everyone.
Powell's art is a reminder that beasts are both terrifying and beautiful; some are revered while others are shunned, often for unjust reasons. Characters from Greek mythology are set against a contemporary American backdrop that illuminates sorrows and burdens that are at once ancient and new when felt by these young people.
Readers looking for a play-by-play retelling of the Medusa story won’t find it here. Castellucci’s story comes with its own set of complexities that don’t always parallel their source material. Tessa’s snake hair has to do with the feeling that she alienates others, and can’t talk to people without hurting them—by turning them to stone, that is. She’s a monster, and so is everyone else involved in her last summer of adolescence.
Despite Tessa’s self-imposed exile, she is able to find forgiveness in herself and her friends. This is a story that reminds us life goes on even in heart-breaking circumstances. It is about how we are monsters to each other without realizing it, without meaning to, and about how we are still able to change for the better when at our worst. The Year of the Beasts is a must read for fans of Greek mythology, retellings, and comics.
Powell's art is a reminder that beasts are both terrifying and beautiful; some are revered while others are shunned, often for unjust reasons. Characters from Greek mythology are set against a contemporary American backdrop that illuminates sorrows and burdens that are at once ancient and new when felt by these young people.
Readers looking for a play-by-play retelling of the Medusa story won’t find it here. Castellucci’s story comes with its own set of complexities that don’t always parallel their source material. Tessa’s snake hair has to do with the feeling that she alienates others, and can’t talk to people without hurting them—by turning them to stone, that is. She’s a monster, and so is everyone else involved in her last summer of adolescence.
Despite Tessa’s self-imposed exile, she is able to find forgiveness in herself and her friends. This is a story that reminds us life goes on even in heart-breaking circumstances. It is about how we are monsters to each other without realizing it, without meaning to, and about how we are still able to change for the better when at our worst. The Year of the Beasts is a must read for fans of Greek mythology, retellings, and comics.
readwithpassion's review against another edition
3.0
Tessa (age 15) and Lulu (age 13) are sisters, but they are quite different. Lulu is prettier and more confident, while Tessa is more insecure. They have a close bond, and when they go to a carnival, they meet boys, one of whom is Tessa's crush. As the boy falls for Lulu, Tessa feels an incredible amount of jealousy, putting their sisterly bond to the test.
With alternating prose and graphic novel chapters, this book is cleverly crafted. The graphic novel chapters will seem confusing to the reader, and it isn't until the end that the story comes together.
With alternating prose and graphic novel chapters, this book is cleverly crafted. The graphic novel chapters will seem confusing to the reader, and it isn't until the end that the story comes together.
mnboyer's review against another edition
5.0
There are two different story formats between the covers of this novel. On one hand, we have the 'traditional' written word--the story follows two sisters that are both interested in the same boy. There is a rivalry here but each sister ends up finding a respective boyfriend. On the other hand, there is some gorgeously illustrated graphic novel-type chapters that I really appreciated (and I felt like I wasn't going to). This story reveals different mythological creatures are also attending high school and are having their own issues. By the end of the story, the two separate methods blend and you get the "full picture" (which I will not disclose here).
I was quite uncertain when I picked this book up at the local library. I'm not a general reader of the graphic novel and thought this was a shorter YAL title (around 190 pages, making for a quick read). Yet a local librarian had set this on their 'must read' shelf and so I decided to take a gamble. I was actually pleasantly surprised and thought the story grew stronger as it went on. At first, I was a little turned off by the sister rivalry (isn't there a clear sister code that if both are interested in the same boy... no one gets him?). The girl group drama was a little bleh. But once you start to see the rest of the story unfold, and the sudden....(no spoiler here!)... then it all makes sense.
A pleasant surprise -- worthy of five stars.
I was quite uncertain when I picked this book up at the local library. I'm not a general reader of the graphic novel and thought this was a shorter YAL title (around 190 pages, making for a quick read). Yet a local librarian had set this on their 'must read' shelf and so I decided to take a gamble. I was actually pleasantly surprised and thought the story grew stronger as it went on. At first, I was a little turned off by the sister rivalry (isn't there a clear sister code that if both are interested in the same boy... no one gets him?). The girl group drama was a little bleh. But once you start to see the rest of the story unfold, and the sudden....(no spoiler here!)... then it all makes sense.
A pleasant surprise -- worthy of five stars.
tobyyy's review against another edition
1.0
I tried to like it. I really did. But I just couldn’t. I DNF’d around 75%.
Dual stories, one that occurs in present day without magic, and one that occurs in present day with magic. One in prose, the other in comic form. This has worked for other authors I’ve read, namely Cherie Priest, but it did not work for me in this setting.
What REALLY got me was just how much telling there was, instead of showing. “This happened. Then this happened. Then Lulu did this thing which made Tessa feel this way.” Like bruh SHOW MEEEEE. Don’t tell me to death!!
And that I was supposed to make connections between really random things. Like how Lulu grew two inches and went up two shoe sizes after kissing the boy that Tessa liked. Not sure what eerie thing I’m supposed to infer from that aside from a very clumsy way of intimating that Lulu is maturing with the onset of this relationship. But it seemed way more meaningful to Tessa than that. Ugh.
Yeah. Bizarre concept that could’ve been summarized as a “strange little book” had I actually liked it enough to persevere through the whole thing. But no. Just no. Don’t waste your time on this.
Dual stories, one that occurs in present day without magic, and one that occurs in present day with magic. One in prose, the other in comic form. This has worked for other authors I’ve read, namely Cherie Priest, but it did not work for me in this setting.
What REALLY got me was just how much telling there was, instead of showing. “This happened. Then this happened. Then Lulu did this thing which made Tessa feel this way.” Like bruh SHOW MEEEEE. Don’t tell me to death!!
And that I was supposed to make connections between really random things. Like how Lulu grew two inches and went up two shoe sizes after kissing the boy that Tessa liked. Not sure what eerie thing I’m supposed to infer from that aside from a very clumsy way of intimating that Lulu is maturing with the onset of this relationship. But it seemed way more meaningful to Tessa than that. Ugh.
Yeah. Bizarre concept that could’ve been summarized as a “strange little book” had I actually liked it enough to persevere through the whole thing. But no. Just no. Don’t waste your time on this.