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The Five Wolves: A Graphic Novel
In The Five Wolves, beloved picture book author and Caldecott Honor recipient Peter McCarty breaks new ground. This monumental graphic poem is perfect for fans of Shaun Tan and Brian Selznick!
Across oceans, through fields, and down tunnels, five daring wolves traverse the planet in search of wonders to draw and paint. All the while, a disembodied narrator spins the tale of their absurdist adventure and asks big questions. What is art? And who does it belong to?
Part epic picture book, part graphic novel, The Five Wolves defies genres. With intricate ink work and meticulous hand-lettering, Peter McCarty has crafted an exquisitely illustrated epic poem. The Five Wolves is an entrancing journey and a testament to the power of art and artists.
Across oceans, through fields, and down tunnels, five daring wolves traverse the planet in search of wonders to draw and paint. All the while, a disembodied narrator spins the tale of their absurdist adventure and asks big questions. What is art? And who does it belong to?
Part epic picture book, part graphic novel, The Five Wolves defies genres. With intricate ink work and meticulous hand-lettering, Peter McCarty has crafted an exquisitely illustrated epic poem. The Five Wolves is an entrancing journey and a testament to the power of art and artists.
288 pages, Hardcover
Published October 14, 2025
3 people are currently reading
119 people want to read
About the author
Peter McCarty
36 books56 followersI was born in 1966 in Westport, Connecticut right in the middle of two older brothers and two younger sisters. We kept our mother busy while my father worked long hours at IBM. Most of my childhood was spent in my head. I was usually recreating a battle from World War II or running from dinosaurs in prehistoric times. To this day, I develop characters and environments based on worlds I first created when I was three. I am grateful to my mother who kept us surrounded with art. I come from a long line of artists and my grandmother, Grace Boyd, was the best. She died before I was born, but her fantastic paintings and drawings were all around us.
Since my father worked for IBM, we moved often. I think being on the move during my formative years has been the reason I tend to create books about returning home. By the time I graduated from high school we were living in Boulder, Colorado. At the University of Colorado, I began my long career as a professional student. I first thought I was going to be an engineer so I took all kinds of science and math classes. I enjoyed solving math problems, but I could not see myself working in a lab. Along the way, I continued to draw and create worlds as I always have. My friends and teachers were very supportive. Around the time when I should have been graduating, I decided to start over and go to art school at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. I finally graduated from college, in 1992.
One of my illustration teachers, William Low introduced me to Laura Godwin, a children’s book editor at Henry Holt and Company. She gave me my first professional art job to illustrate a little science book, Frozen Man written by David Getz. I worked really hard on that book. Laura was impressed; so I was offered to illustrate a picture book, Night Driving written by John Coy. Again I did the best illustrations I knew how, like my life depended on it. One drawing of a car going over a bridge made my girlfriend cry. She said, “Oh, you can draw.” We were then married in 1995.
Night Driving was first published in 1996 and received praise from critics and won some awards. Laura Godwin then offered me the best of all offers; I could write and illustrate whatever I wanted. Little Bunny on the Move came into my mind after months of searching for a story. Little Bunny on the Move was published in 1999 and won a Best Illustrated Book of the Year from the New York Times. That book established my career and gave me the confidence to continue to write and illustrate the stories from my mind.
Since my father worked for IBM, we moved often. I think being on the move during my formative years has been the reason I tend to create books about returning home. By the time I graduated from high school we were living in Boulder, Colorado. At the University of Colorado, I began my long career as a professional student. I first thought I was going to be an engineer so I took all kinds of science and math classes. I enjoyed solving math problems, but I could not see myself working in a lab. Along the way, I continued to draw and create worlds as I always have. My friends and teachers were very supportive. Around the time when I should have been graduating, I decided to start over and go to art school at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. I finally graduated from college, in 1992.
One of my illustration teachers, William Low introduced me to Laura Godwin, a children’s book editor at Henry Holt and Company. She gave me my first professional art job to illustrate a little science book, Frozen Man written by David Getz. I worked really hard on that book. Laura was impressed; so I was offered to illustrate a picture book, Night Driving written by John Coy. Again I did the best illustrations I knew how, like my life depended on it. One drawing of a car going over a bridge made my girlfriend cry. She said, “Oh, you can draw.” We were then married in 1995.
Night Driving was first published in 1996 and received praise from critics and won some awards. Laura Godwin then offered me the best of all offers; I could write and illustrate whatever I wanted. Little Bunny on the Move came into my mind after months of searching for a story. Little Bunny on the Move was published in 1999 and won a Best Illustrated Book of the Year from the New York Times. That book established my career and gave me the confidence to continue to write and illustrate the stories from my mind.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews
April 21, 2025
This enchanting tale surrounded by grayscale illustrations worthy of Brian Selznick — high praise, indeed! — looked so promising. Five artistically minded wolves sail their Viking ship encountering one adventure after the other. Sadly, even the world of fantastical wolves has short-sighted art critics and tasteless philistines and Flying Yorbas. However, this story goes around and around without going anywhere.
In the interest of full disclosure, I received this book from NetGalley and First Second Books in exchange for an honest review.
In the interest of full disclosure, I received this book from NetGalley and First Second Books in exchange for an honest review.
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October 5, 2025*NO RATING*
Thank you to NetGalley, Peter McCarty, and First Second Books/First Second for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to NetGalley, Peter McCarty, and First Second Books/First Second for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
September 18, 2025
The cover and title of this book got me interested, while the illustration style and hilarious story kept me hooked. I work in adult services at my library but plan on personally purchasing this because I loved it so much. The wolves are a hilarious treat of eccentric artists- wandering around just trying to paint. It seems like everyone else is determined to either ruin or prevent that. I literally cannot get enough of the illustrations of the wolves talking- arms out. All of the characters are a fun bunch. It was a bit long, so I am eager and excited to see what the print book looks like when my library orders it next month! 10/10 fun, silly, artsy story!
August 31, 2025
Thank you to First Second Books and Netgalley for the digital arc
It took me a bit to understand how to read this book, and even then, be warned, I needed to take breaks to process and reread the text. It isn't organized like your usual graphic novel because rather than panels with text and illustrations, detailed swirling graphics contain the both large and small text which tells the story of five easel and canvas toting wolves who are on a quest to discover the meaning of art with the rabbits, cats, people and a dragon they encounter. This is a one of a kind graphic novel, to be explored slowly, especially with friends, and I can see exploring it again and again.
It took me a bit to understand how to read this book, and even then, be warned, I needed to take breaks to process and reread the text. It isn't organized like your usual graphic novel because rather than panels with text and illustrations, detailed swirling graphics contain the both large and small text which tells the story of five easel and canvas toting wolves who are on a quest to discover the meaning of art with the rabbits, cats, people and a dragon they encounter. This is a one of a kind graphic novel, to be explored slowly, especially with friends, and I can see exploring it again and again.
November 14, 2025
It's giving Where the Wild Things Are and absurdism in the best way. I'm obsessed with the wolves faces. I'm in love with the fish.
The more I think about this the more I think it's a work of genius and that the haters simply don't get it
The more I think about this the more I think it's a work of genius and that the haters simply don't get it
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December 20, 2025This is one of the weirdest books I've ever read! I don't know where to begin reviewing it. While there are some amazing creative devices employed, the oddity of the story itself becomes overwhelming and I wonder how this book will be read (or even enjoyed!)
I truly was so distracted by the chaos of the illustrative text and nonsensical writing, and trying to connect it to the whimsical animal characters, that I couldn't enjoy reading the book.
I'm not sure adults reading this to children will be able to connect all the pieces for and with them. It's definitely not a book to be read in one sitting (and might even be too scary for a bedtime read!) At times it gives off Alice in Wonderland vibes, other times it's like a drug-induced dreamscape.
I truly was so distracted by the chaos of the illustrative text and nonsensical writing, and trying to connect it to the whimsical animal characters, that I couldn't enjoy reading the book.
I'm not sure adults reading this to children will be able to connect all the pieces for and with them. It's definitely not a book to be read in one sitting (and might even be too scary for a bedtime read!) At times it gives off Alice in Wonderland vibes, other times it's like a drug-induced dreamscape.
December 18, 2025
Five stars for the unique presentation of this book, but I felt like I was Alice in Wonderland and never really figured out the story. Probably the story is meant for younger eyes than mine. All the swirling text in different fonts and colors was hard for me to read, so I mostly just read the bold text and I’m sure I therefore missed a good part of the story. Probably this book would be better appreciated by teens, than by the targeted younger audience. This was a library copy and it was in the kid section and I saw it recently in a bookstore in the kid section.
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December 8, 2025Beautiful illustration, but the story isn’t for me. I suspect more adults than kids will be charmed.
December 11, 2025
more of this please. id maybe want it to be a touch weirder or either a touch more linear BUT really enjoyed it and will read it more times.
June 25, 2025
In a way this book reminds me of Brian Selznick. He is the illustrator and author of the image of Hugo Cabaret. You have the illustrations telling more than half the story in the words there for clarity. Except the words are not clear. Our five wolves are artists. They like to paint, but they don’t like to ship a cat. A fish tries to eat a painting, they make a mural on a castle that then gets burnt down just so they can go to a city and make more art. This book is a little bit all over the place, but that’s part of what makes the story unique and interesting. And not only do you have the motion of the word you have like the thoughts of others around you at the same time so you can choose to read as little or as much of this as you’d like. This was interesting and I’m glad that somebody gave the author a chance to create it and publish it.
October 5, 2025
My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this early review copy.
I am a long time McCarty fan, I love his art, and I was THRILLED to get a glimpse of his latest book. It was a privilege. I think this is his finest work yet. It is bizarre and magical and mysterious and funny and exciting and ambiguous and completely goofy and a little bit sad and completely nonsensical.
With this book, 30 years in the making, McCarty is transitioning from sweet picture books for small children with soothing bedtime cadences, to an all-ages graphic novel in which characters are prickly and call each other "stupid" and fire cannons at each other. "This cannot be happening" is repeated often, and, indeed, these events are quite ludicrous and unbelievable and cannot be happening. But this IS what is happening.
At first it appears to be a wordless picture book, but it is not, there are pages that are FULL of words, words swirling and twisting across the page, words telling the story and words arguing with other words. (Since I read a pre-publication e-book, I'm not sure what the final paper format will look like.)
I sped through my first reading, eager to find out WHAT was happening (how could this be happening??). This book rewards multiple re-reads, there is so much yet to discover if you go back ,and take your time with it and read slowly.
I am a long time McCarty fan, I love his art, and I was THRILLED to get a glimpse of his latest book. It was a privilege. I think this is his finest work yet. It is bizarre and magical and mysterious and funny and exciting and ambiguous and completely goofy and a little bit sad and completely nonsensical.
With this book, 30 years in the making, McCarty is transitioning from sweet picture books for small children with soothing bedtime cadences, to an all-ages graphic novel in which characters are prickly and call each other "stupid" and fire cannons at each other. "This cannot be happening" is repeated often, and, indeed, these events are quite ludicrous and unbelievable and cannot be happening. But this IS what is happening.
At first it appears to be a wordless picture book, but it is not, there are pages that are FULL of words, words swirling and twisting across the page, words telling the story and words arguing with other words. (Since I read a pre-publication e-book, I'm not sure what the final paper format will look like.)
"Hey, what are you all doing up there?" asks the fish. "What are you looking at? Haven't you ever seen a fish swim before? What in the world are you doing?"
"We are drawing pictures of you," answered the one wolf. "See, this is you."
"That's not me. I'm me. Who are you?" asks the fish.
I sped through my first reading, eager to find out WHAT was happening (how could this be happening??). This book rewards multiple re-reads, there is so much yet to discover if you go back ,and take your time with it and read slowly.
November 30, 2025
W T A F.
I'm not quite sure what I just read but I've read it two times and plan to do so again because there is A LOT going on here.
My brain works this way -- swirling, with sub thoughts below irl conversation and everything around me personified -- but even for me, this was challenging.
If you want the full (circular, fantastical, very Blake-ian) story, you will need to parse through the text around the text. It's worth it.
You can also take the simple path by following the bolded (well-balanced, serif) lettering, and, taking advantage of the brilliant illustrations as support, complete the basic story, but it will, unfortunately, leave you a little dissatisfied.
So for that reason, I am taking a star off because of its Juvenile Fiction categorization. The text blocking is non linear, crowded (especially hard for some readers), interspersed with numbers, and it takes effort to get even the most accessible narrative. Yes, this will feed the soul of that small percentage of children who this book will appeal to, but so will any number of unclassifiable adult books and that's not a reason to put it in the kids section. I'm sure the Pub struggled to categorize it and so based it on format (hate when they do this) but in my opinion, this would be better better placed in the adult graphic novel category (especially during the holidays when people are looking for gifts for that hard-to-buy-for weird uncle, or the genius cousin who dropped out of art school and became a coder but secretly stays up all night creating notebooks full of quirky ant drawings).
But back to adults. It's still pretty niche but if you love wolves with hilarious expressions, drool over line drawings, and can handle a little work for your story, this is for you!
I'm not quite sure what I just read but I've read it two times and plan to do so again because there is A LOT going on here.
My brain works this way -- swirling, with sub thoughts below irl conversation and everything around me personified -- but even for me, this was challenging.
If you want the full (circular, fantastical, very Blake-ian) story, you will need to parse through the text around the text. It's worth it.
You can also take the simple path by following the bolded (well-balanced, serif) lettering, and, taking advantage of the brilliant illustrations as support, complete the basic story, but it will, unfortunately, leave you a little dissatisfied.
So for that reason, I am taking a star off because of its Juvenile Fiction categorization. The text blocking is non linear, crowded (especially hard for some readers), interspersed with numbers, and it takes effort to get even the most accessible narrative. Yes, this will feed the soul of that small percentage of children who this book will appeal to, but so will any number of unclassifiable adult books and that's not a reason to put it in the kids section. I'm sure the Pub struggled to categorize it and so based it on format (hate when they do this) but in my opinion, this would be better better placed in the adult graphic novel category (especially during the holidays when people are looking for gifts for that hard-to-buy-for weird uncle, or the genius cousin who dropped out of art school and became a coder but secretly stays up all night creating notebooks full of quirky ant drawings).
But back to adults. It's still pretty niche but if you love wolves with hilarious expressions, drool over line drawings, and can handle a little work for your story, this is for you!
July 26, 2025
The Five Wolves, by award-winning Peter McCarty, is a delightful mashup of genres, narratives and themes. The book itself is part picture book and part graphic novel. The illustrations take the lead and guide the narrative. Each image and figure are drawn with pen in a fantastic and surrealistic way. In fact, it’s impossible to imagine this book being created by anyone other than McCarty who brings both the text and pictures together flawlessly. But that’s not all. The story is a “hero’s journey” of sorts for five artist wolves. They enter this “fairy tale” world – part medieval and part contemporary having adventures with cats, rabbits, people and a dragon. Along the way, they whip out their easels and canvases and begin to draw and paint. This leads to discussions about creation and art. What is art? Who is it for? Who can create it? Who can destroy it? Does it have to look only one way? And through it all (which is a journey both laughable and thought provoking), there are important issues raised about stereotypes of gender and “the other.” (My favorite “stereotype” is when eating cakes or pies are attributed to a particular gender.) The text box was also created by the author/illustrator who gives you stories within stories within stories. The main narrative is surrounded in a compelling way with debates, questions and conversations. This is a book for all ages, both children and adults, and especially the artist who lives within each of us.
October 13, 2025
My thanks for the ARC goes to NetGalley and First Second Books. I'm voluntarily leaving a review.
Genre: Fantasy
Age & Format: Middle Grade Graphic Novel
THE FIVE WOLVES is a feast for the eyes and a wondrous tale of wolves who draw.
The illustrations are gorgeous and huggable!
I was intrigued by this book with the complex drawings filled with words; an ocean of words. There is a bizarreness to it that reminds me of talking to a creative child with endless stories and tangents.
A physical copy of the book is going to be much more enjoyable than a digital copy. I feel like you can read this again and again while searching for new things and finding new connections. I wonder if kids would use this as a starting point for their own stories. That would be fun to do as a family.
If you love wildly adventurous books that are beautiful, this is perfect for you as an adult. If you have kids in your lives that need a book that will grip their imaginations, this is for them. Fans of Aaron Reynolds will love this book.
I highly recommend this book for a whimsical adventure.
Happy reading—remember your art easels for this journey.
Genre: Fantasy
Age & Format: Middle Grade Graphic Novel
THE FIVE WOLVES is a feast for the eyes and a wondrous tale of wolves who draw.
The illustrations are gorgeous and huggable!
I was intrigued by this book with the complex drawings filled with words; an ocean of words. There is a bizarreness to it that reminds me of talking to a creative child with endless stories and tangents.
A physical copy of the book is going to be much more enjoyable than a digital copy. I feel like you can read this again and again while searching for new things and finding new connections. I wonder if kids would use this as a starting point for their own stories. That would be fun to do as a family.
If you love wildly adventurous books that are beautiful, this is perfect for you as an adult. If you have kids in your lives that need a book that will grip their imaginations, this is for them. Fans of Aaron Reynolds will love this book.
I highly recommend this book for a whimsical adventure.
Happy reading—remember your art easels for this journey.
July 1, 2025
Very confused.
TL:DR
2 stars
Appropriate for Anyone
Primary appeal to Unsure
Fans of Chris Van Allsburg
To be clear, I love the work of Chris Van Allsburg, and this art is similar to that in ways. A little creepy, evocative of more information that lies just out of reach...
But this book just makes me confused. I am really unsure who the audience is.
I will heavily qualify this review by saying that the digital version did not read smoothly. The two page spreads were hard to see and the in person experience could be different.
---
Thank you to NetGalley for providing an advance digital copy of this book for review. All opinions are my own.
KC
School Librarian for 3rd - 5th Grade
Storyteller
Lover of cheese & tiny boxes
TL:DR
2 stars
Appropriate for Anyone
Primary appeal to Unsure
Fans of Chris Van Allsburg
To be clear, I love the work of Chris Van Allsburg, and this art is similar to that in ways. A little creepy, evocative of more information that lies just out of reach...
But this book just makes me confused. I am really unsure who the audience is.
I will heavily qualify this review by saying that the digital version did not read smoothly. The two page spreads were hard to see and the in person experience could be different.
---
Thank you to NetGalley for providing an advance digital copy of this book for review. All opinions are my own.
KC
School Librarian for 3rd - 5th Grade
Storyteller
Lover of cheese & tiny boxes
November 26, 2025
2nd read yielded much better impression. I'm trying to think of another book that will so obviously require multiple readings for its audience to appreciate every little hidden sentence and the impact of every page turn. Maybe this will inspire a cult following of readers, adult and child, who appreciate the kooky detail and humor. Of particular interest to me are the word clouds in which the prominent sentences are larger and bolder, but in which the tiny words and numbers could lead to deeper and deeper meanings. Brilliant, really, but takes an effort to get there. Let's hope the readers and The Five Wolves find each other.
June 9, 2025
I think this is going to work better as a physical book than it ever will as an ebook due to the intricate nature of the letter work and the prevalence of multi-page spreads, but it's still a gorgeous book with a lovely message about the power of artists to create community and change.
I look forward to getting my hands on a physical copy as soon as it's released in the fall and exploring all of the details that are difficult to see in the ebook version.
I'm especially interested in seeing what my students make of the numbers 😃
This absolutely beautiful ARC was provided by NetGalley.
I look forward to getting my hands on a physical copy as soon as it's released in the fall and exploring all of the details that are difficult to see in the ebook version.
I'm especially interested in seeing what my students make of the numbers 😃
This absolutely beautiful ARC was provided by NetGalley.
October 21, 2025
McCarty's artwork is superb, and the concept here is interesting, though I wish there had been more of a story.
I'm also completely confused as to where to place this in the library where I work - Adult? Children? Graphic novel?
Thanks to NetGalley and First Second Books for the electronic ARC, though my review is of the finished hardback.
I'm also completely confused as to where to place this in the library where I work - Adult? Children? Graphic novel?
Thanks to NetGalley and First Second Books for the electronic ARC, though my review is of the finished hardback.
August 23, 2025
I'm afraid this book was not for me. I do love McCarty's soft illustrations; his animals always look huggable, even the dragons. However, the swirls of words made me crazy, trying to decipher. This book is clearly a work of art, but the only feeling it gave me was confusion and the vague notion that I had missed something important. If I have, I suppose that is my fault, and I'm sorry I missed it.
November 5, 2025
I have a strong feeling this is going to be one of those "love it or hate it" sort of books. The illustrations are a delight and wonderfully creative, bringing to mind Shaun Tan's work. However, the text is a topsy-turvy mess--readers will need to wade through a sea of tiny text and focus upon only the slightly larger text to get the story, not that there is much of an understandable story to be had here. I read it in print and that was hard enough, I couldn't imagine it in digital.
November 12, 2025
DNF. Read to p. 107 and skimmed the rest.
I'm so disappointed! This book looked so promising, and the illustrations are incredible. However, the "story" is absolute gobbly gook and not in a good way. It's as though Alice in Wonderland was written by someone who was high or drunk and kept losing the plot of his own story. I can't imagine who would want to read this: adults, children, tweens. Moving on.
I'm so disappointed! This book looked so promising, and the illustrations are incredible. However, the "story" is absolute gobbly gook and not in a good way. It's as though Alice in Wonderland was written by someone who was high or drunk and kept losing the plot of his own story. I can't imagine who would want to read this: adults, children, tweens. Moving on.
November 29, 2025
Not since Shaun Tan's "The Arrival" have I been as captivated as I am with this book! This book begs to be read again and again in order to capture all of its nuance and humor. This is an original work of genius. As a librarian I almost never buy books but this book is number one on my christmas list because I want to take the time to reread and explore and wonder at the art presented to me by Mr. McCarty. I would give it 10 Bravos if I could.
July 12, 2025
The illustrations in this book are out of this world!!!
The story is a little bit “Where the Wild Things Are” meets “Jumanji” with just a touch of “Alice in Wonderland”. I found this tale to be mysterious and unique. I often found myself smiling and giggling. A joy to read!!
Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced reader copy.
The story is a little bit “Where the Wild Things Are” meets “Jumanji” with just a touch of “Alice in Wonderland”. I found this tale to be mysterious and unique. I often found myself smiling and giggling. A joy to read!!
Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced reader copy.
November 17, 2025
I appreciate the art in this book and how much work would have gone into it- especially the lettering!
This is one of those books that I'm not sure who it's for- kids? adults? both? I'm also not sure what I read- absurd type of book of artistic wolves on a journey but I'm not sure there was a real resolution.
This is one of those books that I'm not sure who it's for- kids? adults? both? I'm also not sure what I read- absurd type of book of artistic wolves on a journey but I'm not sure there was a real resolution.
December 1, 2025
2.5
While the art is beautiful, I'm not sure this book adds up to a lot beyond pretty. Since there's not a lot of storytelling continuity to the art, I guess it would be a (really) long picture book (if one needs to shove it awkwardly into a ill fitting category).
More confusingly then enjoyable - what's the point of all of the background words?
Didn't work for me.
While the art is beautiful, I'm not sure this book adds up to a lot beyond pretty. Since there's not a lot of storytelling continuity to the art, I guess it would be a (really) long picture book (if one needs to shove it awkwardly into a ill fitting category).
More confusingly then enjoyable - what's the point of all of the background words?
Didn't work for me.
December 21, 2025
What a massive missed opportunity! The artwork throughout this books is truly stunning, but it’s paired with nearly indecipherable text blocks/narration that, even if you can read it “correctly”, compose an acid-trip of a plot that doesn’t make sense. I have little idea what I read and struggle to image a kid reading this without getting equally as frustrated about not knowing what is going on.
December 6, 2025
I'm still not sure if I read this book 'right.' On it's face, it's a graphic novel-ish, poem-esque, art book about wolves who paint, cats who also paint, the complexity of creating. The closest comparison I can make to it is a book that came out years ago called Woolves in the Sittee. Strange but pleasant, it requires patience but speeds up as you read it. The art, monochromatic until it isn't, the text that floods through the pages like a river overflowing it's banks,
December 10, 2025
this was not a book for me...very confusing to read especially as an ebook.....print book may do it more justice as it is beautifully illustrated....made you think about what you were reading....but text was very distracting and hard to pick out from the background fonts.
October 20, 2025
3.5 stars. The art is great, but the story is wild!
November 7, 2025
Stunning art, but confusing format making what little story there is hard to decipher.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews