Winterworld Book 1: The Mechanic's Song

Winterworld #prose

by Chuck Dixon

Fans of Winterworld only know Scully's story from after he met Wynn. But what was life like for the traveling trader before he rescued a young girl and found a new reason to survive in the endless wastes of a frozen planet? Presented in stark prose by creator Chuck Dixon (author of the acclaimed Bad Times series) we learn for the first time of Scully's past from childhood to manhood in the brutal and unforgiving world where every day presents another challenge from death. Filled with the kind of breakneck pacing, savage action, and high stakes that have made the comic series a world renowned classic, Winterworld Book 1: The Mechanic's Song will thrill you, horrify you, and touch your soul. Find out how the saga begins!

Genres: Science Fiction Fantasy

180 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2014

About the author

Charles "Chuck" Dixon is an American comic book writer, perhaps best-known for long runs on Batman titles in the 1990s.

His earliest comics work was writing Evangeline first for Comico Comics in 1984 (then later for First Comics, who published the on-going series), on which he worked with his then-wife, the artist Judith Hunt. His big break came one year later, when editor Larry Hama hired him to write back-up stories for Marvel Comics' The Savage Sword of Conan.

In 1986, he began working for Eclipse Comics, writing Airboy with artist Tim Truman. Continuing to write for both Marvel and (mainly) Eclipse on these titles, as well as launching Strike! with artist Tom Lyle in August 1987 and Valkyrie with artist Paul Gulacy in October 1987, he began work on Carl Potts' Alien Legion series for Marvel's Epic Comics imprint, under editor Archie Goodwin. He also produced a three-issue adaptation of J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit for Eclipse with artist David Wenzel between 1989 and 1990, and began writing Marc Spector: Moon Knight in June 1989.

His Punisher OGN Kingdom Gone (August, 1990) led to him working on the monthly The Punisher War Journal (and later, more monthly and occasional Punisher titles), and also brought him to the attention of DC Comics editor Denny O'Neil, who asked him to produce a Robin mini-series. The mini proved popular enough to spawn two sequels - The Joker's Wild (1991) and Cry of the Huntress (1992) - which led to both an ongoing monthly series (which Dixon wrote for 100 issues before leaving to work with CrossGen Comics), and to Dixon working on Detective Comics from #644-738 through the major Batman stories KnightFall & KnightsEnd (for which he helped create the key character of Bane), DC One Million , Contagion , Legacy , Cataclysm and No Man's Land . Much of his run was illustrated by Graham Nolan.

He was DC's most prolific Batman-writer in the mid-1990s (rivalled perhaps in history by Bill Finger and Dennis O'Neil) - in addition to writing Detective Comics he pioneered the individual series for Robin , Nightwing (which he wrote for 70 issues, and returned to briefly with 2005's #101) and Batgirl , as well as creating the team and book Birds of Prey .

While writing multiple Punisher and Batman comics (and October 1994's Punisher/Batman crossover), he also found time to launch Team 7 for Jim Lee's WildStorm/Image and Prophet for Rob Liefeld's Extreme Studios. He also wrote many issues of Catwoman and Green Arrow , regularly having about seven titles out each and every month between the years 1993 and 1998.

In March, 2002, Dixon turned his attention to CrossGen's output, salthough he co-wrote with Scott Beatty the origin of Barbara Gordon's Batgirl in 2003's Batgirl: Year One. For CrossGen he took over some of the comics of the out-going Mark Waid, taking over Sigil from #21, and Crux with #13. He launched Way of the Rat in June 2002, Brath (March '03), The Silken Ghost (June '03) and the pirate comic El Cazador (Oct '03), as well as editing Robert Rodi's non-Sigilverse The Crossovers. He also wrote the Ruse spin-off Archard's Agents one-shots in January and November '03 and April '04, the last released shortly before CrossGen's complete collapse forced the cancellation of all of its comics, before which Dixon wrote a single issue of Sojourn (May '04). Dixon's Way of the Rat #24, Brath #14 and El Cazador #6 were among the last comics released from the then-bankrupt publisher.

On June 10, 2008, Dixon announced on his forum that he was no longer "employed by DC Comics in any capacity."

Reviews

[Magdalena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Winterworld Book 1: The Mechanic's Song was listed under graphic novels on NetGalley, so I was a bit disappointed when I realized it was an ordinary book instead. But I decided to read it since it was a short book and I actually came to enjoy it quite much. I like dystopian books and this one was really good, the world is frozen over and everyone has to fend for themselves. It's basically to eat or not to be eaten, seriously, there are cannibals out there in the frozen world.

I liked Scully, I liked the way the book was structured, him retelling Wynn about his upbringing. It was a great read to follow him from boy to a young man in this frozen world and I'm keen to read the rest of the books in the Winterworld series and to finally met Wynn.

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with a free copy for an honest review!

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I picked this up from Netgalley thinking it was a graphic novel and was initially disappointed to find that this was in fact a novella that ties to a graphic novel series (Winterworld). It tells the younger years of Scully and his harsh start to life in the frozen landscape of a very bleak world.

Scully's is part of a family when we first meet him, you never really find out if this is his real family but I despised his 'mother' and 'father', his father being an abusive bully who uses Scully to take out his frustrations. His mother is too meek to stand up for him and it's not until an accident incapacitates his father that she even begins to notice him.

This was an enjoyable novella that sees Scully transitioning to manhood at a time where everyone is either hunting or being hunted. The brutality of the environment is described well and you get a real sense of how savage mankind has now had to become, as groups of people cannibalise and abuse the weakest members of society.

The pacing is pretty good for most of the read but for me it dropped off a little bit at the end and I wasn't as engaged in the outcome, I also felt the ending was very anti-climatic, to the point that I wondered if the e-arc had cut off the story prematurely.

Scully is a great character though and I wouldn't mind picking up the graphic novel series at some point. Recommended for those that love dystopian fiction.

[sillypunk · Rating 1 out of 5]

Blah: https://blogendorff.com/2019/03/13/bo...

[Marjolein (UrlPhantomhive) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read all my reviews on http://urlphantomhive.booklikes.com

When I first saw this title I too believed it was a graphic novel, but I'd already heard from others that it was a 'normal' book instead. That's fine as well, just a warning that this is NOT a graphic novel.

I'm not familiar with the Winterworld series, this book was my introduction. I'm however a big fan of Dystopian novels and this seemed to be one of those. And it is in fact a good Dystopian novel. The world is frozen over and only the law of the strongest applies. Scully's life is forced into new ways after a tragedy strikes.

It dark and brutal (sometimes perhaps a bit too much so), but it really fits the story. It made me interested in reading the graphic novels. I think it probably works great as a prequel novella for fans of the series.

The Mechanics song is the first book in the Winterworld series. It's also a prequel novella to the graphic novel series.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

[Kevin Findley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chuck pulls no punches with this one. I won't spoil it here, but you'll never look at Scully the same after reading it. What pushes this book into the 5 star range is that there is no happy ending. At the end of the day, our anti-hero is warm and has a full belly. In this world, even with what's happened, that's enough for him and for the reader.

[Nick Brett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Winterworld is new to me, so I treated this as a possible introduction to the series. This is NOT a graphic novel but instead is a novella that provides a bit of an origin into Scully and his early days and migration from boy to man.

It’s bleak and just reading it will make you feel cold. We meet Scully as a member of a family unit, living almost like animals and just trying to survive in a world that is now frozen. We are presented with a broken future where the best of society live like scavenging animals and the rest just kill and take what they want. There are no longer any nice guys or morals.

As Scully’s situation changes he does find a kind of sanctuary, a challenge and the chance to develop his skills. And then he takes on a journey that will change him forever.

Very much enjoyed this, short but really engaging reading. It is about 160 pages so I went through this in one sitting and then started to look up the comics for more.

[Michele · Rating 4 out of 5]

Creator/writer Chuck Dixon is known for his comic book series Winterworld that follows a trader, Scully, and the young girl, Wynn, that he saved on the icy wastelands of a post apocalyptic world. This year IDW published Dixon's novelization of Scully's youth prior to meeting Wynn and provides insight into the character development of Scully through his relationships with The Boss and Cilla.

I have enjoyed reading the comic book series and this novel is welcome addition to the entire series, not just for me, but for longtime fans of the series. The sparse writing style in the comics works well in the book form and Dixon is effective in telling a difficult coming of age story. Dixon utilizes a linear storytelling narrative that is straightforward and effective and leads to well developed characters.

The story reads quickly and if there is anything that I wish, I wish there was more story. I hope that Dixon will write more novels that explores Scully's story further.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Picked this up as a blind buy--the cover looked interesting, and the plot synopsis intrigued me. Plus, I enjoyed Dixon's run on Batman, and knowing that this novel comes from a comic series furthered my interest, not to mention the only $10 price tag.

And it was pretty good. Not amazing, but a fun read that kept me interested. I do definitely want to read the comic series now.

[Bill Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well considered and well written, this dystopian look at a frozen world is gripping and a little too real.

[Kris · Rating 2 out of 5]

Totally straightforward adventure story. I like post-apocalyptic stuff so it was a unique take on that. Characters are drawn wafer thin though, not much to care about... and the ending was pretty disappointing, it just kind of petered out. Still a fun ride though.

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This review originally published in Looking For a Good Book. Rated 4.75 of 5

Gut-wrenching and tough. This post-apocalyptic novel is probably the only one I've read that I feel has gotten it 'right.'

A young man matures in the tough environment of an Earth that is now in an eternal winter. Food might be found in cans, on shelves, that was over-looked by other scavengers, or it might be in other people - killed, bled-out, and filleted. Alliances and allegiances are only as good as the people who hold them. Our protagonist is left without the only family he knows when they are killed by roving gangs. He tracks down one of the few people who has ever treated him kindly - a mechanic in a moving vehicle - only to see him roasted over a fire. About to become the next course himself, our young man (Scully) is saved by the mechanic's friends who take Scully in and give him the skills to become their next mechanic. But even this alliance is only good as long as Scully chooses to make it so.

This book is gritty and dark and about as tough and bleak a book as I have ever read. It is more powerful than Cormac McCarthy's The Road (with a very similar feel).

One of the odd, but wonderful, aspects of this book is that it manages to move along quickly, with action sequence after action sequence, and yet it doesn't feel hurried. In fact, we get so much of Scully's reflections that this feels like twice as long as it is (because we get so much information, not because it's dull).

A post-apocalyptic world would very likely see a 'survival of the fittest' very much like what we have here in Winterworld. But what Scully shows us is that adaptability may be the true key to survival and Scully is very adept here.

I was surprisingly moved by this book. 'Surprisingly' because I've read a fair number of post-apocalypse books in recent years and they tend to feel so much the same, but this one really stands out from the crowd.

I really look forward to reading other Winterworld stories.

Looking for a good book? Winterworld: The Mechanics Song by Chuck Dixon is a moving, very dark story set in a bitter cold and bleak future. It is highly recommended.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

[Theediscerning · Rating 3 out of 5]

Coming to this without prior knowledge of the graphic novels, I found a quite decent novella prequel. It's done in a chatty style, at least at first, but soon gets dark, and similarly starts off bright and concerned with a teenaged boy in an ice world, before getting more adult alongside him. There are bits that are too guessable, and there are bits that are too much like a made-to-measure prequel, but the book isn't to be dismissed out of hand, especially if you have a connection with the character. In the end it's done too naively to really portray the man struggling to be an oasis of humanity in a harsh, nightmarish world of no trust and little more hope, but on the whole it ignores that grander theme in search of more audience entertainment, something it is at least capable of achieving.

[Mhorg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Back in the 1980's when Eclipse comics existed, they published a comic (recently republished and given a sequel) called Winterworld. In it, an ice age has ended civilization and only the mobile and brutal survive. The main character is Sully, who drives across the frozen wastes, trading goods. This book is his origin story. It starts with him as a kid, and goes into how he learned to be a mechanic. It's well written and enjoyable, but a little short and ends a bit abruptly. Still worth reading.