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lizaroo71's review against another edition
4.0
I love Tan's artwork. This is an eclectic collection of short stories that take place in the suburbs. You have orignal stories that are accompanied by beautiful artwork.
My favorites are the stories pieced together with pieces of text.
All of it is observing how much we are connected even though we believe we are so dramatically different.
I love the surprise endings to some of the stories.
My favorites are the stories pieced together with pieces of text.
All of it is observing how much we are connected even though we believe we are so dramatically different.
I love the surprise endings to some of the stories.
barbtrek's review against another edition
5.0
Wow, the first story had me a bit confused. I was checking to see if maybe some pages fell out! But once I got going this book just got better & better. I bought this last year for my son but some of the stories seemed based on recent events--it was almost eerie. Very good & thought provoking!
pattydsf's review against another edition
4.0
I have now finished all the books my library has by Shaun Tan. They have been so much fun. His words and illustrations make up young adult books that stand out. They stand out because some of the subject matter does not appear in other ya fiction, because the illustrations are marvelous and because Tan seems to see the world from a slant. His viewpoint is not typical.
In this book all fifteen stories were wonderful, but I especially liked the tale about Eric and the one titled Our Expedition. The style of Tan's illustrations are always appropriate for the story he is telling.
Like the other Shaun Tan books, I believe everyone should read these. They don't take long, but are lots of fun and always leave you with something to think about.
In this book all fifteen stories were wonderful, but I especially liked the tale about Eric and the one titled Our Expedition. The style of Tan's illustrations are always appropriate for the story he is telling.
Like the other Shaun Tan books, I believe everyone should read these. They don't take long, but are lots of fun and always leave you with something to think about.
davygibbs's review against another edition
4.0
A gorgeous and moving picture book for adults, or young adults, I suppose. I'm not sure I would've gotten much from it when I was a teen, but then, I had patience only for hobbits and hyperspace at that age.
The tendency these days is to assume that when a writer or musician or filmmaker creates a work of art about the suburbs, he or she does so primarily to disparage them. I don't think that's the case here. Tan uses the suburbs not to praise them or curse them, really, but as a familiar backdrop against which these odd fables may leap out with colors and characters shining all the brighter. Tales from Outer Suburbia is not really about the suburbs at all; it's about magic and fantasy, and how extraordinary things can happy to ordinary people. In "The Inner Courtyard," a struggling family glimpses an exotic secret garden through a hole in the attic floor. "Alert but Not Alarmed" introduces us to a neighborhood full of budding artists, transforming ballistic missiles into colorfully painted birdhouses and pizza ovens. Shaun Tan doesn't bristle at the mundane; these stories would be nothing without it.
There's a push and pull at work in these stories, a series of comfortable contradiction--restless characters with endless reserves of patience, stubborn kids with open minds, mute houseguests filled with gratitude, neighbors who want to fit in by standing out. Maybe this book IS about the suburbs as we know them--maybe there is some social commentary mixed in somewhere--but to me, it's about what's waiting just under the surface, waiting for that first tentative scratch.
The tendency these days is to assume that when a writer or musician or filmmaker creates a work of art about the suburbs, he or she does so primarily to disparage them. I don't think that's the case here. Tan uses the suburbs not to praise them or curse them, really, but as a familiar backdrop against which these odd fables may leap out with colors and characters shining all the brighter. Tales from Outer Suburbia is not really about the suburbs at all; it's about magic and fantasy, and how extraordinary things can happy to ordinary people. In "The Inner Courtyard," a struggling family glimpses an exotic secret garden through a hole in the attic floor. "Alert but Not Alarmed" introduces us to a neighborhood full of budding artists, transforming ballistic missiles into colorfully painted birdhouses and pizza ovens. Shaun Tan doesn't bristle at the mundane; these stories would be nothing without it.
There's a push and pull at work in these stories, a series of comfortable contradiction--restless characters with endless reserves of patience, stubborn kids with open minds, mute houseguests filled with gratitude, neighbors who want to fit in by standing out. Maybe this book IS about the suburbs as we know them--maybe there is some social commentary mixed in somewhere--but to me, it's about what's waiting just under the surface, waiting for that first tentative scratch.
roseannmvp's review against another edition
5.0
Truly amazing mind and wonderful artist. I really loved this book I may have to go and buy it!
lilyevangeline's review against another edition
5.0
a masterpiece that bears rereading, and a challenge to see reality as something a little more magical--not necessarily something we need to understand, but something to wonder at.
kaylielongley's review against another edition
4.0
Tucked in a corner of the adult section of the library but with an Australian Scholastic label, Tales from Outer Suburbia is a stunner, from cover to concept to intended audience. With no context of who's narrating and where this suburban landscape is, my wonder supercedes all normal literary qualms. Here, in outer suburbia, a visitor plants a garden in a cabinet, made from gum-wrappers and other neglected waste, making life out of trash. Here, a stick figure family literally exists, but no one knows anything about them, so they are mere speculation... until they're not. Here, scraps of poems wad up into an ever-expanding porous ball, ready to strike (or slam poem?) at a moment's notice. This majestic book encourages curiousty in finding magic in the mundane.
chorvereads's review against another edition
5.0
Loved this book a lot! Very funny, amusing, and the art is so beautiful to look at. This is a collection of short stories about sleepy town urban legends, backyard creatures, mysterious neighbors, and unusual holidays.
This book reminded me a lot of Hey Arnold! This 90s Nickelodeon cartoon show where everybody knows everyone in their neigborhood and in almost every episode there's an urban legend about their town that gets revealed, told by the very dramatic Gerald Johansen.
This book reminded me a lot of Hey Arnold! This 90s Nickelodeon cartoon show where everybody knows everyone in their neigborhood and in almost every episode there's an urban legend about their town that gets revealed, told by the very dramatic Gerald Johansen.
hades9stages's review against another edition
5.0
iconic- i used to read these stories all the time as a kid, over and over. i decided to re read for some nostalgia. i wasn’t disappointed, these stories are great for adults too, i find myself reading the exact same stories from my childhood but they have brand new meanings and i’m reading a brand new thing. some of these stories are dark and terrifying. they’re so sad. yet they’re so unique and creative and smart, it’s never uncomfortable for unbearable to read. it’s really a collection of masterpieces. i will have to read more of his books in the future.