A review by andrael
Beasts of Burden: Animal Rites by Evan Dorkin

4.0

"Oh, a book about a bunch of neighborhood pets who become paranormal investigators? With art by Jill Thompson, creator of Scary Godmother, Magic Trixie, and the Little Endless? Sounds adorable!" I was NOT prepared for how dark and disturbing this book was. It's basically Supernatural with dogs. Characters can die in nasty ways; and several of the cases had sad or bittersweet endings. But the dialogue and the characters' personalities were a light touch that kept the story from getting too dark and heavy. And as always, Jill Thompson's expressive watercolors are a joy to look at. Fairly gruesome violence (against humans, animals, and monsters) and some PG-13 language would make me hesitate to recommend this for a young kid; but it would definitely appeal to someone like me, who grew up with stories about animals having adventures.