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4saradouglas's review against another edition
3.0
Action Philosophers! is a graphic novel that explains nine philosophers’ beliefs and what led them to come up with their theories. The book takes an otften dull topic and spins it in a fun and humorous way that keeps readers intrigued and amused. The book covers some adult themes and has some tough vocabulary, but the illustrations and the quick wit will keep older teens and adults reading until the end.
I learned so much from this book and yet I still managed to enjoy myself while doing it. This is an amazing feat considering the book was about philosophers, something I find extremely unappealing. The illustrations were funny and added to the story, and there were many jokes to keep the reader interested.
I learned so much from this book and yet I still managed to enjoy myself while doing it. This is an amazing feat considering the book was about philosophers, something I find extremely unappealing. The illustrations were funny and added to the story, and there were many jokes to keep the reader interested.
nickjagged's review against another edition
2.0
Passable introduction peppered with some fairly bad takes
dawnoftheread's review against another edition
3.0
Wacky, yet informative. Useful for getting basic concepts across at least.
monikasreadingadventures's review against another edition
5.0
This comic book is a great collection of philosophers. what is even better is the fact that each story about the philosopher includes a combination of their philosophy and life. This is quite refreshing because you get to know about the philosopher's life a bit more. The comics are fun and educational although I have to admit that some of the philosophers were harder to understand than others. I'll be rereading this more than once.
jescatling's review
4.0
Not a narrative story, but comic mini-biographies of Plato, Nietzsche, Freud, etc. See the slaves of Monticello tap Thomas Jefferson on the shoulder and ask, "What about us?" Watch as Ayn Rand's rationalization skills crumble when her lover starts sleeping with a student.
ederwin's review
4.0
This probably makes most sense if you already know at least a little bit about the philosophers being described, and have at least a little experience with other comics. I have, and I enjoyed it immensely.
You won't get a complete understanding of any of these thinkers thoughts. That just isn't possible in a few comics pages per person. And the ideas are sometimes being mocked at the same time they are being described. But there is enough to refresh your mind on who's who, or to help you decide which ideas you want to explore further. And overall, it is just fun!
The art is often very literal. Example, the concept of "give them enough rope and they'll hang themselves" is drawn as words coming out of someones mouth and literally forming a rope and noose. (This is in a discussion of how to learn and how to engage in debates.) I often hate this sort of literal drawing, but I enjoyed it here. It helps a lot that the drawing style is very varied, imitating a wide range of comics creators and styles. (John Stuart Mill is drawn as Charlie Brown. Foucault as a character in Family Circus. Etc.)
[This edition is the full run of the comic, which was 9 individual issues, or 3 smaller collected editions.]
You won't get a complete understanding of any of these thinkers thoughts. That just isn't possible in a few comics pages per person. And the ideas are sometimes being mocked at the same time they are being described. But there is enough to refresh your mind on who's who, or to help you decide which ideas you want to explore further. And overall, it is just fun!
The art is often very literal. Example, the concept of "give them enough rope and they'll hang themselves" is drawn as words coming out of someones mouth and literally forming a rope and noose. (This is in a discussion of how to learn and how to engage in debates.) I often hate this sort of literal drawing, but I enjoyed it here. It helps a lot that the drawing style is very varied, imitating a wide range of comics creators and styles. (John Stuart Mill is drawn as Charlie Brown. Foucault as a character in Family Circus. Etc.)
[This edition is the full run of the comic, which was 9 individual issues, or 3 smaller collected editions.]
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