Scan barcode
A review by crookedtreehouse
The Autumnlands, Volume 2: Woodland Creatures by Kurt Busiek
5.0
While [book:The Autumnlands, Vol. 1: Tooth and Claw|23862438] set up a gigantic world and a multitude of characters and intersecting plots, volume two focuses on our narrator, a Terrier Wizard Apprentice named Dusty, and a human named Learoyd who might be the champion who returns magic to a world which might be a future version of our own.
When reading the first volume, I'd barely noticed how foul-mouthed the hero was. It wasn't intended to be subtle, but I was so taken by the story and the artwork that it didn't register. As there are less characters and less chaos in this issue, I was impressed that the volume of cursing didn't detract from the story and really did ring true to the character. But the writing highlight of this issue is the narration from Dusty.
The unfolding of Dusty's awareness of his class and privilege, and how he has treated, and been taught to treat others is a wonderfully paced unwinding. He's been kind and intuitive since the first issue but it's clear that he simply didn't know how poorly his people were treating others And while he got a glimpse of that dishonesty in the first volume, there was so much else going on that he didn't have time to dissect it, as he does in this volume.
It's important to note that, while I've mentioned there's not as much happening at once in this volume, there is still a lot of plot and adventure here, but the narrative is more focused on the two main characters understanding each other while they go from event to event, as opposed to untangling the web of the first volume. [author:Kurt Busiek|7338]'s pacing and mythology structure is flawless here, and I'm sad I'll have to wait quite a while for volume three.
But the true heroes, once again, are Benjamin Dewy's drawing, and [author:Jordan Bellaire|14006467]'s colors. The lack of expression that they use for some species versus the constantly changing mood of Dusty (seriously, watch his ears and teeth, it's masterful) floors me. I've already been a fan of Bellaire's colors for years but now I'll also buy any book with [author:Benjamin Dewey|8044724]'s name on it.
When reading the first volume, I'd barely noticed how foul-mouthed the hero was. It wasn't intended to be subtle, but I was so taken by the story and the artwork that it didn't register. As there are less characters and less chaos in this issue, I was impressed that the volume of cursing didn't detract from the story and really did ring true to the character. But the writing highlight of this issue is the narration from Dusty.
The unfolding of Dusty's awareness of his class and privilege, and how he has treated, and been taught to treat others is a wonderfully paced unwinding. He's been kind and intuitive since the first issue but it's clear that he simply didn't know how poorly his people were treating others And while he got a glimpse of that dishonesty in the first volume, there was so much else going on that he didn't have time to dissect it, as he does in this volume.
It's important to note that, while I've mentioned there's not as much happening at once in this volume, there is still a lot of plot and adventure here, but the narrative is more focused on the two main characters understanding each other while they go from event to event, as opposed to untangling the web of the first volume. [author:Kurt Busiek|7338]'s pacing and mythology structure is flawless here, and I'm sad I'll have to wait quite a while for volume three.
But the true heroes, once again, are Benjamin Dewy's drawing, and [author:Jordan Bellaire|14006467]'s colors. The lack of expression that they use for some species versus the constantly changing mood of Dusty (seriously, watch his ears and teeth, it's masterful) floors me. I've already been a fan of Bellaire's colors for years but now I'll also buy any book with [author:Benjamin Dewey|8044724]'s name on it.