Marvel: Powers of a Girl

by Lorraine Cink, Alice X. Zhang (Illustrator)

Powers of a Girl is a young adult inspirational gift book that showcases the amazing stories, personalities, and power behind the super-women of Marvel. The unique editorial treatment in this beautifully illustrated book gives each hero a 1-page, full bleed portrait, a 1-page origin, and a creative spread that embodies their persona and power. This gift book features every fangirl's favorite hero like they've never seen them before. Whether you're 8 or 18, these Super Heroes will feel more accessible to the everyday reader.

Genres: Marvel, Comics, Graphic Novels, Superheroes, Nonfiction, Feminism, Art

148 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 5, 2019

Reviews

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

CAN WE PLEASE TALK ABOUT HOW AWESOME THIS BOOK IS?!?!

THE ART-phenomenally GORGEOUS. How have I never heard of Alice X. Zhang before? I would happily hang every single illustration on my wall.

I LOVE the way Lorraine Cink takes the time to explain who these Marvel ladies are and what motivates them. It’s a great primer for someone new to the Marvel Universe, and long term fans will also enjoy visiting old friends.

Finally, I love that this is a book that believes that girls deserve to have their stories told.

[Estíbaliz Montero Iniesta · Rating 5 out of 5]

4'5⭐
El espectro de heroínas que se nos presenta es muy amplio y no se limita, ni mucho menos, a las típicas y más conocidas. He encontrado un montón de curiosidades que desconocía y profundizado más en las motivaciones de heroínas a las que creía conocer, pero pueden llegar a ser mucho más complejas de lo que parecen.

En cuanto a los textos, la autora ha realizado un gran trabajo en cuanto a condensación, y aunque en algunos momentos me ha resultado confuso, solo es por culpa de la ingente cantidad de veces que Marvel ha reescrito y reimaginado los orígenes de sus personajes y todos esos crossovers.

Las ilustraciones son realmente preciosas, el estilo de la artista es muy único y conecta a la perfección con cada una de las heroínas.

[Jessica (Odd and Bookish) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a fun guide featuring the ladies of the Marvel Universe!

I am a huge Marvel fan so I knew I had to read this book. My all time favorite superhero is Squirrel Girl and she is included in this book.

Each hero gets about 4 pages dedicated to her; complete with a biography and fun facts. I loved that everyone got an equal amount of attention. This book is aimed at a young adult/middle grade audience, so at times the writing and messages can feel slightly juvenile. It’s also more a primer so it’s not going to go in depth into every little detail about these ladies.

Additionally, I enjoyed the selection of women featured. There was a good balance of well known characters (e.g. Black Widow, Captain Marvel, Scarlet Witch) and lesser known ones (e.g. Silk, Moon Girl, Hellcat).

The best part of the book was the artwork. The artwork is absolutely stunning. The artist did a phenomenal job with each portrait. It was refreshing seeing them redrawn in a different style. Every woman looked fierce!

Overall, I enjoyed learning about all these heroic ladies! I recommend this book for fans of Marvel’s female superheroes or to anyone who wants to learn more about them. It also would make a great gift.

[Mandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a lot of fun, but I feel like you have to have a pretty good level of knowledge of Marvel to fully enjoy/understand instead of being a more casual fan. I absolutely loved diving in deeper with this fierce fantastic Marvel heroines, and I now have a list of comics that I need to check out because these ladies' stories sound amazinggggggg. However, with some of the stories, Cink left out a bit of the background knowledge needed to fully understand it. There were references that went over my head and a lot of things kind of got rushed together so it was too brief to explain everything. I would have loved to read so much more about certain people. The graphics were lovely as well. Summary: amazing content but just needed more room to expand on background and more of the heroine's story. 3 crowns and a Belle rating!

[Carly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful artwork, gorgeous layout. I loved the backgrounds and the editing is sheer perfection. Very detailed and yet easy to read.

I loved the inclusion of lesser known superheroes. Equal attention is given to those with hyper intelligence, strength, powers, or cool gadgets. Wonderful representation of queer and interracial relationships as well.

[TJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

The art in this book is GORGEOUS! It’s perfect for any Marvel fan who wants to read up on some powerful heroines. That said, there must have been a “no X-Men” rule because the lack of mutant ladies in this collection is SHOCKING! (Who knows, maybe they’re getting their own book? ... 👀)

[Lobo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kolejna książka skierowana do młodszych odbiorców, ale porobiłam w niej więcej zakładek niż w Encyklopedii Marvela z myślą o przyszłych fikach, więc to bardzo inspirująca lektura. Grafiki są cudowne, napisana jest lekko, zabawnie i inkluzywnie, co bardzo doceniam.

[Clarissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love this!

Just a short introduction to some of the female heroes in the Marvel Universe (Janet van Dyne did not have her own entry and that should be rectified, but she is mentioned. Yes, I deducted a star for that). Overall, this is a wonderful introduction to female bad-asses that Marvel has to offer and the illustrations are gorgeous. Seriously, Alice X. Zhang, can I get a poster of each to hang on my bedroom walls?

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very helpful for grasping each character's general story and approach and how many of them are connected to one another, but the didactic, "just keep trying!" "girls need to help other girls!" "fight the patriarchy!" "it's okay if you're not perfect!" bits got a little old whilst reading one entry after another.

[Lena's Version · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maravilloso compendio sobre 30 poderosas mujeres del universo Marvel. Además, está bellísimamente ilustrado con retratos a toda página y color que he amado, así como otras ilustraciones extra que complementan un desglose ameno, a la vez que exhaustivo, por la historia de cada una de ellas. La verdad es que la manera de enfocar el libro y a sus personajes he de agradecer que haya sido así: al grano, entretenido y de fácil comprensión, teniendo en cuenta toda la mezcla de historias a lo largo del universo Marvel por las que pasan cada una de ellas.
Muy buenos valores y referentes femeninos.

[Paige · Rating 5 out of 5]

Disclaimer: I received this book from Disney Books and Rockstar Book Tours. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Rating: 5/5

Publication Date: February 5, 2019

Genre: Comic Book/Collectors Book

Recommended Age: 10+ (some intense discussion about personal struggles)

Publisher: Disney Books/Marvel Press

Pages: 144

Amazon Link

Synopsis: This is the Marvel Universe. Where the personalities, powers, and straight-up legends of countless heroic women have captured readers for generations.
This unique book is the perfect start-or addition-to any Marvel fan's collection! Using her in-depth knowledge and passion for Super Heroes, Lorraine Cink explores the lives of the exceptional and diverse women of the Marvel Universe. Filled with inspirational lessons and clever observations, each section digs into what these relatable women can teach us all about growth, bravery, and the true meaning of strength. Paired with over one hundred original, vibrant, and emotive illustrations from the talented Alice X. Zhang, this book balances the responsibility and the fun the comes with being a hero.

Review: I have always been a DC kind of girl, but I can’t help but notice how much the women of Marvel kick ass. They’re not only amazing in their powers, but they’re very diverse too. I loved that this book highlighted not only the most known women of Marvel, but the new or unknown women as well! This book didn’t disappoint with the nostalgia and it introduced me to new women to read about! While the book doesn’t cover all of the women of Marvel, it covers 65 noteworthy ones. Some notable ones included were America Chavez, Valkyrie, Ironheart, Moon Girl, Squirrel Girl, Ms. Marvel, and Ghost Spider. All of these women are different from each other, but similar in one way: they’re all kick-ass females! Definitely a must read for anyone. More people should know about these heroes!

The only issue I had was that I wish that the book was longer! I wanted to know more about these heroes and now I want all of the comics!! Definitely go to a comic store after reading this book!

Verdict: A coffee book I’d actually read!

[Gritnay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bought mainly because Alice X Zhang is one of my favourite artist! And having a whole book of her artwork is just incredible!
Also enjoyed discovering some of the female Marvel characters, but really, I’m staying for the visuals.. ;)

[Ariadna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actual rating is 3.6

I gotta begin by stating the obvious: for all intents and purposes, this is a total Marvel media (comic books, TV shows, and movies) marketing ploy to get more folks interested in their IPs. It's a really good one, tho.

This book offers one to two page profiles on over 30 female Marvel superhero characters including their backstory, superpower origin story, and a summary of their continuity up to 2019 (the year this book was published.) I have to tip my hat at the author because she makes tons of info v. accessible to both folks who are familiar with the characters as well as those who have 0 idea who Quake might be.

Like, there are some, such as Natasha Romanoff, who have literal decades of canon and yet, the book offers up a lot of info without overwhelming the reader.

Another thing I liked was that there was a definite balance between well-known superheroines (like Captain Marvel and Peggy Carter) and lesser-known (to the general public) ones like Moongirl and Silk.

Also, the art by Alice X. Zhang is total *chef's kiss*.

IF there is a wonky part to the book, it has to do with the tone. Which, to me, reads like it's aimed to the 10-to-17 y.o. demographic. It's v. friendly and inclusive while also going slightly overboard with the YAYS, GIRL POWER sentiments. THAT SAID, this is categorized as a YA so, you know, there's that.

TL;DR: A pretty good mini-encyclopedia of a lot of female characters in the Marvel 'verse. You're given enough information about everyone to pique your interest and the bubbly vibe makes this a quick read. I was so-so about the tone and writing style which read a tad too young for my liking.

HOWEVER, if you're a casual or hardcore Marvel fan, this book is a fun one to pick up. I borrowed this from the library.

[Joy Thomas · Rating 1 out of 5]

The art is stunning. The formatting is extremely eye-catching and dynamic. The writing is complete garbage. It seems like an adult trying to write like a kid and just comes off as patronizing and about as obnoxious as your aunt saying "talk to the hand" or "getting jiggy with it". Just about every paragraph has some crap marketing keyword/phrase to sound hip and it just comes off as gross. The editor really should have stepped in and saved what otherwise would have been a gorgeous book. These characters deserved better.

[Meredith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic art and a great marvel companion book for all the Supergirls out there!

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was SO CUTE!!!! I loved it a lot. Just the right amount of background info for the heroes to get me intrigued if I hadn’t read the comics, and grinning if I had. Unsurprisingly, I wished Kate Bishop’s talked a bit more about how she earned the moniker Hawkeye from Clint as well, and how he’s also her biggest fan. Like I get that everyone loves Kate a ton, and it’s fun to knock Clint down a peg because she’s great, but it’d be nice if everyone would remember Clint is also the first in line to tell you that Kate is great.

My only other real complaint (because let’s be real, that one is just my Hawkeye(s) fangirl self who loves them both equally) is what someone else pointed out - this book doesn’t include any X-Men. I know that Marvel’s thrown the X-Men by the wayside since the MCU became a thing, cause they wanted the comics and the movies to mesh better and they couldn’t legally say mutant. But this book definitely isn’t focusing on the MCU, it’s the comic story arcs. I also can see that it’s trying to highlight some of the most current characters, like Kamala and Shuri and America, but if you’re still gonna include Natasha and Wanda and Medusa (who I’ve only seen as a background character in other characters books, and this book still didn’t make clear to me whether she actually has powers other than awesomely strong hair? I mean if so, that’s totally cool, but -), then why not include the X-Men ladies who are super empowering as well, what with all the prejudice they have to face? I mean, Magneto was name dropped in Wanda’s section, so it’s not like they couldn’t mention them at all. I didn’t grow up reading comics, and books like these are a great way to get me interested in characters who have so much background and lore that I might not otherwise. Would’ve loved a good primer on Storm and Rogue.

But still, this book was SO CUTE and made me very happy and Alice’s art was unsurprisingly incredible and I still totally want to own it.

[Kacey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love superheroes. Marvel and DC boast some of the most amazing ones out there, and this book gives in-depth looks into the Marvel ladies. It is written for a younger audience, so the language is a little more "chill", but it still explains the origins and powers of the ladies well, and also adds lessons and inspirational things that can be taken away from each of the ladies featured.

The illustrations are gorgeous. In some cases, like with Valkyrie, the drawings look very close to their MCU equivalents. But let it be known this book is focusing on the comic book versions of these characters. It details that history but doesn't really go into the movies or television shows these ladies appear in. Which is fine, but still worth noting in case anyone is thinking that they'll read about the MCU versions in this book.

Also let it be known that the book doesn't touch on every single female superhero in the Marvel comic books. None of the lady X-Men are featured, for example. Which is honestly a bit disappointing for me, since I grew up with X-Men and would've loved Rogue, Storm, Jean Grey, Mystique, Kitty Pryde, Laura, any of them. I realize that there was only so many the author could focus on, but it's still odd that not a single one of those amazing ladies got a focus. Invisible Woman also didn't get a focus.

But with that said, I really enjoyed reading more about the ladies of Marvel. I learned about ones I knew very little about, like Squirrel Girl or She-Hulk, and ones I didn't know anything about, like America Chavez. It did make me want to hunt down the comics and read more about them.

So no matter what your gender or age, I think this is a book worth reading. It's fun, informative, has lovely pictures, and is an inspiration for all girls from all walks of life.

[J · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actual rating: 3.75 stars

I bought this book immediately because of the following reasons:

1. Alice X. Zhang is one of my favorite artists.
2. I’m a big fan of several Marvel heroes and I recognized some of them on the beautiful cover.
3. As someone who gets easily excited by girl power, it’s not a big shock for me to be intrigued by the title.

I definitely don’t regret buying this book. The artworks of the Marvel heroines are all so vivid and gorgeous. I also enjoyed learning more about my favorite Marvel heroines (Black Widow, S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, Shuri, Scarlet Witch) and discovering potential favorites (Quake, Mockingbird, Hawkeye).

These are the reasons why I didn’t give this book a higher rating:

1. I’m not really emotionally invested in the Marvel comics. I confess that I don’t read the comics even though I loved many MCU movies. Too many crazy things happened in the comics and reading this book confirmed that. Haha. The information found here revolved around the comics, not the MCU. If you’ve only seen the movies and/or t.v. series, you’d see some common factors between the comics, movies, t.v. series. There are also many major differences though, and I didn’t care for some of them that struck me as drama-for-the-sake-of-drama.

2. The writer’s tone seemed to be intended for the middle-grade readers. Even though I found it entertaining, it’s not really my cup of tea. She did tackle the darker parts of the characters’ backstories though, which I appreciated. I’m sure the younger readers would learn a lot of important lessons from this book.

To conclude, I would still recommend this book to Marvel fans, especially the younger ones who don’t find the comics as crazy as I do!

[Courtney Whited · Rating 5 out of 5]

This world is full of glass ceilings, unequal power dynamics, and people who deny the powers inherent in girls and women. As Lorraine Cink writes, "Whether you were born a girl, identify as a girl, or just appreciate how darn cool girls and former girls (or as you might call them: women) just so happen to be, we know that being a girl can bring you great and unfold powers." This book details some, but not all of the powers a girl can have, whether they be inherent, gained over time, overt, or subtle. I look forward to seeing what a young generation raised on books like these does to expand on these powers. Go out and save the world, girls. You are powerful beyond your wildest imaginations. 😍

[Tabrizia · Rating 5 out of 5]

You don't have to be a fan of the Marvel Universe or comic books to love this book! Not only is this a book was a great encyclopedia of heroic women of the Marvel Universe, it is full of inspirational lessons that will captivate any reader for generations to come. While reading this, I was able to encounter the superwomen I love and meet new ones along the way. It really digs deep down at what it truly means to be a hero, with or without super powers, and doing it your way. And the artwork? Magnificent! Such beauty and detail was put into it. Great book for any comic book fan!

[KelceyTheLibrarian · Rating 5 out of 5]

So when this new book came across my desk at work (seriously, reviewing newly processed books? one of the best parts of my job <3), I was absolutely drawn in by the art. There are so many beautiful illustrations in this book and I loved seeing these characters portrayed in such soft yet vibrant lights. I learned so much reading this book. There were some characters that I was already familiar with, but this book is great for all levels of familiarity. I learned a new thing or two about the characters I had read stories about and I learned about plenty of new characters that I have never encountered in any story yet (and some that I just have not gotten to you yet). Not only do we learn about them and their history, but the author highlights what makes each woman truly extraordinary and relates this back to the reader and how they can be like them, superpowers or not! The author writes with a voice that uplifts, empowers, and inspires as she describes the feats of these trailblazing superheroes. Despite being an informational book, I was entranced and couldn’t wait to turn the page to learn about the next new hero! A winner and an excellent recommendation for all superhero fans!

[Ren · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! The tone is amazing and the character descriptions are witty. I laughed out loud several times. "Skill: Avoiding talks about 'feelings'" 😂 My favorite part is that flaws and mistakes made by the superheroes were discussed as opportunities for growth and not as bad characteristics. Even when discussing how a hero altered reality to get what she wants then realized she was wrong, it says "we are all works in progress."

[Ang -PNR Book Lover Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holy Moly, Can we please take a moment and appreciate the art work in this mammoth of a book. For a book I did not know that was coming out, I sure do love it. It is so big that it does not fit on my bookshelves, its literally the best piece of coffee table material.

I love the way this book is set out, how we can discover more about our favorite lady superheroes.

[Tess · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this book! My favorite section was Gamora because my favorite Marvel origin story is Guardians of the Galaxy. This book really channels girl power, and the (mostly) unknown talent behind these no-nonsense women! I recommend this book to anyone who likes Marvel and origin stories. Overall, this is one of the best books I have ever read.

[Taylor Royce · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐
This book reads like a blog, which kinda threw me off, but I liked the information it gave. It isn't super detailed, but you get to see some female supers not introduced in the major MCU movies. Besides my obvious lady crushes, I found a lot more female badasses I hope to see in later content!

[Jayleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a fun read and the illustrations were amazing! I got this to put in my classroom library, but I’m also such a big marvel fan. It was great to see so many female characters get light shown on them!

[Sophia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was just amazing. The artwork was phenomenal, it was so beautiful and I loved it! I totally recommend this book for all Marvel fans especially ones that want to learn more about Marvel’s amazing female superheroes! I learnt so much and I really enjoyed it!

[Lisa Mcbroom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now this book prefers why I prefer Marvel over DC. The rich history and the worlds that these great comic book heroines fall into . Clink compiles a list of diverse heroines who changed the world in the comic industry. A great book to read for Women's History Month!!!!!!!!!

[Veronika · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is perfection. I needed it and it delivered. Everybody needs to at least flip through the art is insane. Absolutely gorgeous.

[Ken Yuen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The illustrations are awesome. Love the style used.

The text is a summary of non-stick comic book stories, and there's a lot of text. Pretty thorough for the comic book fan that wants to learn more about these ladies of Marvel!