Written by John Claude Bemis
Art by Nicole Miles
Published by Holiday House
I’ve said it before and I’m saying it again: The current crop of children’s/tweens/teens graphic novels is so much better than most of the current “adult” graphic novels.
Not all…but most.
The latest evidence of this is Rodeo Hawkins and the Daughters of Mayhem, written by John Claude Bemis and illustrated by Nicole Miles.
Despite the character’s name, this is not a cowboy saga.
Here. I’ll let Bemis himself, from Instagram, tell you about Rodeo.
“Meet Rodeo Hawkins. The leader of the Daughters of Mayhem. Rodeo is the OD — or “original Daughter” — and don’t you forget it! I know she looks like a scruffy tween, but Rodeo is actually a powerful cosmic being. And yes, giving an overconfident kid that much magic isn’t safe for anyone — including her friends. Her favorite weapon? Bubble gum, which she uses as a whip or to tie up people. Is it sanitary? Nope, but it gets the job done.”
Got it? The other girls with whom Rodeo hangs out in the limbo between worlds are Valerie, who is mostly normal, Tori and Tori—the same person from two different earths, and one of whom is a plant—Go, a female creature of pure consciousness who can inhabit toys, tech, etc, and Bugbear, essentially a lady Chewbacca/Groot mix.
None of them are the main character of this book, though, not even Rodeo. No, that dubious honor falls to Sidney Poblocki, the last Sidney Poblocki in the universe. We meet Sidney as a sad, unloved young boy, shuffled between foster homes after his grandfather got dementia.
We then meet a ragtag group of interdimensional beings called paladins who claim they’re basically a cosmic police force and that they’ve come to recruit him, when they’ve actually come to kill him, like they’ve killed all the other Sidney Poblockis, all of whom were female.
This is when Rodeo Hawkins shows up and the adventure is off and running! This is one of those books that you read straight through, even at 262 pages, because you just can’t put it down.
Bemis has crafted a surprisingly complex story considering the intended audience.
The bad guys aren’t really bad. They’re doing bad things for what they genuinely believe to be the right reasons. though. The good guys, meanwhile, have the reputation of outlaws. For much of the book, Sidney is torn between the two groups, and even scared of them at times.
Little by little, Sidney comes to realize that he has inherited various energy “gifts” from all of the other, female Sidneys, and this helps him to make some tough choices as well as to realize who his true friends are.
Rodeo is a fascinating character.
On the one hand, she’s the group leader; on the other, she’s a mysterious loner. She’s light-hearted and funny, but violent, secretive, and manipulative. Other than meeting her surprising “mother,” we learn very little about her background here, although we’re promised more of her to come.
The story and the characters are involving, the pacing is dead-on, the length just about perfect for a solid adventure with many creative and original concepts. The artwork, which we’re told was created with an art app called Procreate, matches the feel of the story perfectly. It’s ultra-simple for the most part and yet Ms. Miles’ proclivity for facial and physical expression shows that a lot more thought goes into it than might first seem apparent. The color, for the most part, is flat, straightforward, and comfortable, which makes the occasional coloring “outside-the-box” feel even more purposely jarring. A really nice touch.
The ending of Rodeo Hawkins and the Daughters of Mayhem sets up future stories, even as it rounds off this one nicely, and we’re shown a cover for a second Rodeo Hawkins book to be forthcoming! I look forward to it!
Booksteve recommends.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login