Graphic Classics: O. Henry: Graphic Classics Volume 11

Graphic Classics #11

by Tom Pomplun (Editor), Johnny Ryan (Illustrator), Lisa K. Weber (Illustrator)

Tales from the master of the surprise ending

• The Ransom of Red Chief - The terror of an unleashed child, interpreted by Johnny Ryan

• The Gift of the Magi - O. Henry's Christmas classic, by Lisa K. Weber

• The Caballero's Way - The original story of The Cisco Kid, illustrated by Mark A. Nelson

• The Marionettes - Crime and medicine by Antonella Caputo and Rick Geary

• The Friendly Call - The extremes of friendship by Peter Gullerud

• After Twenty Years - A tale of belated justice by Rachel Masilamani

• Roads of Destiny - A unique, three-part tale scripted by Rod Lott and illustrated by Joe Ollmann, Pedro Lopez and Rico Schacherl

• A Madison Square Arabian Night - The power of art, as told by Mort Castle and Michael Slack, plus an original sequel by Mort and Stanley W. Shaw

• Also The Furnished Room by Gerry Alanguilan, A Strange Story by Tom Neely, An Unfinished Story by Shary Flenniken, a poem by Carl Sandburg, illustrated by Milton Knight, and a great cover painting by Esao Andrews

“Graphic Classics proves that the graphic novel can take existing material and re-present it as if it’s new. The versatility of illustrators, mixed with the myriad methods of re-telling the source material, offer an engaging visual exploration of O. Henry’s short stories.”
— C. Nathan Coyle, Rambles

Genres: Graphic Novels, Short Stories, Classics, Graphic Novels Comics, Fiction, Young Adult

146 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 15, 2005

Reviews

[Nikki in Niagara · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best volumes in this series (and I've almost read them all)! First of all, I just love O.Henry, the master of the twist ending and this collection brings together his two most famous stories "The Ransom of Red Chief" and "The Gift of the Magi" with a wonderful assortment of others from all sorts of different genres such as westerns, comedies and mysteries. I absolutely enjoyed every single tale whether it be new or an old favourite to me. Seeing them renditioned in the graphic format is a delight. The collection of illustrations brings together a fine company of artists. One thing I love about the early books in this series is that one can expect to find Rick Geary (a favourite of mine) more often than not making a contribution. Here he deftly handles the masterpiece "The Marionette" of two equally criminal thieves but one a scoundrel, the other with a heart. Other fantastic artwork I enjoyed was by Michael Slack, Lisa K. Weber and the comic style of Johnny Ryan. The rest of the art varied in my appreciation but nothing disappointed me; everything was a good match for the stories they highlighted. If you've never read O.Henry (gasp!) this should only whet your appetite to read the real thing and if you are already a fan like me it is a joy to read a wonderful graphic homage to his work such as this. When all things are considered, the author specific volumes of Graphic Classics series are my favourite volumes as opposed to the thematic ones of which there are two types: genre specific such as horror, Gothic, western, fantasy and generic themes such as Halloween, Christmas, African-American, Adventure and the upcoming Canine/Feline.

[Dolly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an entertaining collection of short stories in a graphic novel format and is part of the Graphic Classics series.

Of course I was familiar with O. Henry's classic tale, The Gift of the Magi.

But many of these stories were new to me and I really enjoyed them.

[Brent · Rating 4 out of 5]

This fun anthology has put me in the mood to rediscover these stories in the prose of O. Henry. These Graphic Classics anthologies perform a useful service this way. Recommended.

[Mickey Bits · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent adaptations of classic tales by the master of short stories later to be used as plots for sitcoms.

[Treasa · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a tricky book to rate because it is a collection of short-story graphic novels, each done by a different artist. Some of them I liked, some I did not. One good thing about this book was that it reminded me how wonderful O.Henry is and inspired me to reread (or read for the first time) his stories. So if this book will do that for young adult readers, then it's a good thing. Anything that might get them interested in reading the classics (or reading anything, really) is good. But I just wasn't overly excited by this collection in general.

[Marilyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love O. Henry and really wanted to love this book. Overall the interpretations were interesting and compelling, however, I tend to gravitate towards particular art styles in graphic novels and many of the artists in this book were not my favorites. That said, it was an opportunity for me to stretch a little beyond my comfort zone and learn about some illustrators that I was not familiar with.

[Dayna Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

A selection of O. Henry's greatest stories in graphic novel form. They tales are wonderfully told and the variety of graphic design will appeal to readers of all ages. A fantastic way to get reluctant readers to experience this master storyteller.

[Jason · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked "Roads of Destiny" and the art of "The Gift of the Magi." This series is generally good. 3 1/2 stars.

[Stevie Oberg · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just barely finished this novel. It was boring, but the art was awesome for the most part and horrible for the rest. The stories were interesting, but none really caught my interest.

[Carl Tubridy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too inconsistent, though it has its moments.

[Abby Turner · Rating 2 out of 5]

The o Henry stories are delightfully twisty but the graphic illustrations were often icky or silly looking. They did not enhance the stories at all.