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az_green's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
fast-paced
4.25
I did not realize the depth of crap this party went through prior to being snowed-in at the pass. Obviously, I knew this was going to be a dark story, but the cannibalism was ultimately just the cherry on top of a brutal trip full of egos and blunders.
I did not enjoy this one as much as Blades of Freedom, but it was still a very educational read and I look forward to my next Hazardous Tales!
I did not enjoy this one as much as Blades of Freedom, but it was still a very educational read and I look forward to my next Hazardous Tales!
icanreadish's review against another edition
4.0
Grisly and horrifying! An excellent addition to a classroom or a student's reading list. Despite the subject matter, it's very age-appropriate.
lucysreading's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
3.0
Too sad.
christiana's review
4.0
Why isn't everyone talking about these? A graphic novel account of real historical events that is funny and true? COME ON. This book sells itself on title and cover alone (it is the most asked about book on my "Ask Me What I'm Reading" display ever), but it's careful cannibalism storytelling (there's a sentence I never thought I'd type) and Donner Party research is what makes this one good. For me personally, this is a 3.5, but I'll bump it to 4 for its sellability to mature elementary schoolers and all middle schoolers.
thestoryowl's review
4.0
A quirky and entertaining way to present some exciting history. Gotta be careful with this one, since it deals with cannibalism and lots of death, but a great "real life" scary tale to give to the older more adventurous readers down in J.
lattelibrarian's review
5.0
Nobody should be surprised that I read this. Given how many graphic novels I've been reading and how many books I've read about the Donner party, this is just a natural cohesion of the two.
To be honest, when I first saw this, I was in class and only had a few minutes to get acquainted with it. Naturally, I wanted to get to the part where they ate people. (I mean, it was a Children's Lit Collections course for library science so...). What I found were a couple jokes and I was aghast--such a horrific moment in our nation's past! How could he?? But once I finally sat down and read the whole thing, I realized that the balance between the horrors and the jokes was actually quite nice and fitting given that this would likely be someone's first introduction to the Donner party's plight.
This version of the Donner party's plight was told through the eyes of James Reed, who was highly in favor of the Hastings Cutoff, who killed a man, and who joined a war while he thought his family was safely on the other side of the mountains instead of starving to death in the middle of them. He was certainly a character in his own right, and a good gateway into this tale. He was misguided, and therefore sympathetic, but angry, and therefore wary. Considering that he was one of the few who made it out of the Sierra Nevadas without eating anybody, he was the perfect person to position as the main character--and to poke a little fun at.
Aesthetic-wise, I really liked it. The outer tale (which I didn't fully understand because I didn't read the first few of this series) wrapped nicely around the inner tale, and the blue ink gave the story a cold, freezing feel to it.
Overall, this was a well-done intro to the tragedy of the Donner party. It's perfect for the age group to whom it's targeted, and the balance between the horrors and the jokes is well done.
Review cross-listed here!
To be honest, when I first saw this, I was in class and only had a few minutes to get acquainted with it. Naturally, I wanted to get to the part where they ate people. (I mean, it was a Children's Lit Collections course for library science so...). What I found were a couple jokes and I was aghast--such a horrific moment in our nation's past! How could he?? But once I finally sat down and read the whole thing, I realized that the balance between the horrors and the jokes was actually quite nice and fitting given that this would likely be someone's first introduction to the Donner party's plight.
This version of the Donner party's plight was told through the eyes of James Reed, who was highly in favor of the Hastings Cutoff, who killed a man, and who joined a war while he thought his family was safely on the other side of the mountains instead of starving to death in the middle of them. He was certainly a character in his own right, and a good gateway into this tale. He was misguided, and therefore sympathetic, but angry, and therefore wary. Considering that he was one of the few who made it out of the Sierra Nevadas without eating anybody, he was the perfect person to position as the main character--and to poke a little fun at.
Aesthetic-wise, I really liked it. The outer tale (which I didn't fully understand because I didn't read the first few of this series) wrapped nicely around the inner tale, and the blue ink gave the story a cold, freezing feel to it.
Overall, this was a well-done intro to the tragedy of the Donner party. It's perfect for the age group to whom it's targeted, and the balance between the horrors and the jokes is well done.
Review cross-listed here!
lannthacker's review
4.0
Funny, well done, informative, nice illustrations, cool color palette. Love this!
gothradiohour's review
3.0
It's a grisly subject matter to tackle, especially in a children's graphic novel. I commend Hale for being well researched and I think striking a good tone with the story. The story goes out of its way to humanize all of the parties involved on the trail. The story is engaging and is a good way to get kids interested in history.
I didn't particularly care for the framing device of it (a man at the gallows telling the story to the hangman and captain,) perhaps it all makes sense in the earlier series. ㄟ( ▔, ▔ )ㄏ
I think it would be a good read for kids curious about the darker side of American History.
I didn't particularly care for the framing device of it (a man at the gallows telling the story to the hangman and captain,) perhaps it all makes sense in the earlier series. ㄟ( ▔, ▔ )ㄏ
I think it would be a good read for kids curious about the darker side of American History.