What do you think?
Rate this book
Lizard in a Zoot Suit
Los Angeles, 1943. It's the era of the Zoot Suit Riots, and Flaca and Cuata have a problem. It's bigger than being grounded by their strict mother. It's bigger than tensions with the soldiers stationed nearby. And it's shaped like a five-foot-tall lizard. When a lost member of an unknown underground species needs help, the sisters must scramble to keep their new friend away from a corrupt military scientist--but they'll do it in style. Cartoonist Marco Finnegan presents Lizard in a Zoot Suit, an outrageous, historical, sci-fi graphic novel.
144 pages, Paperback
Published May 5, 2020
5 people are currently reading
119 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews
March 5, 2020
Lizard in a Zoot Suit is a fantastical little novel that packs a punch with history, fantasy and action!
Flaca and Cuata are heading home when they get into a brawl with some sailors. As they escape, they discover a lizard creature and befriend it. Suddenly, the government is after their lizard friend which causes much chaos. Meanwhile, the Lizard in a Zoot Suit is trying to find his own family since he lost them years ago. Will friendship prevail? Will our fancy smancy Lizard friend find his family? Will Cuata's skirt ever be brought up by her Mother?!
I thought this book was super fun! It's short and sweet yet packed full of action and adventure. There's not a ton of dialogue, but the pictures tell the story just perfectly.
At the end of the book, there's a little section describing the Zoot Suit riots. I found it super intriguing to read about, since I hadn't been reminded of this since grade school. I'm always down for a little educational break within or after the novel.
Also, best title ever. Just saying.
Overall, I think this book is a real success! It's a fun, little comic that will bring lots of joy and excitement to readers. It reminds me of The Shape of Water without the R rated content.
Four out of five stars.
Thank you NetGalley and Lerner Publishing group for this wonderful opportunity to pick up this book. I hope to see more of Marco Finnegan soon!
Flaca and Cuata are heading home when they get into a brawl with some sailors. As they escape, they discover a lizard creature and befriend it. Suddenly, the government is after their lizard friend which causes much chaos. Meanwhile, the Lizard in a Zoot Suit is trying to find his own family since he lost them years ago. Will friendship prevail? Will our fancy smancy Lizard friend find his family? Will Cuata's skirt ever be brought up by her Mother?!
I thought this book was super fun! It's short and sweet yet packed full of action and adventure. There's not a ton of dialogue, but the pictures tell the story just perfectly.
At the end of the book, there's a little section describing the Zoot Suit riots. I found it super intriguing to read about, since I hadn't been reminded of this since grade school. I'm always down for a little educational break within or after the novel.
Also, best title ever. Just saying.
Overall, I think this book is a real success! It's a fun, little comic that will bring lots of joy and excitement to readers. It reminds me of The Shape of Water without the R rated content.
Four out of five stars.
Thank you NetGalley and Lerner Publishing group for this wonderful opportunity to pick up this book. I hope to see more of Marco Finnegan soon!
March 5, 2020
Lizard in a Zoot Suit is a fantastical little novel that packs a punch with history, fantasy and action!
Flaca and Cuata are heading home when they get into a brawl with some sailors. As they escape, they discover a lizard creature and befriend it. Suddenly, the government is after their lizard friend which causes much chaos. Meanwhile, the Lizard in a Zoot Suit is trying to find his own family since he lost them years ago. Will friendship prevail? Will our fancy smancy Lizard friend find his family? Will Cuata's skirt ever be brought up by her Mother?!
I thought this book was super fun! It's short and sweet yet packed full of action and adventure. There's not a ton of dialogue, but the pictures tell the story just perfectly.
At the end of the book, there's a little section describing the Zoot Suit riots. I found it super intriguing to read about, since I hadn't been reminded of this since grade school. I'm always down for a little educational break within or after the novel.
Also, best title ever. Just saying.
Overall, I think this book is a real success! It's a fun, little comic that will bring lots of joy and excitement to readers. It reminds me of The Shape of Water without the R rated content.
Four out of five stars.
Thank you NetGalley and Lerner Publishing group for this wonderful opportunity to pick up this book. I hope to see more of Marco Finnegan soon!
Flaca and Cuata are heading home when they get into a brawl with some sailors. As they escape, they discover a lizard creature and befriend it. Suddenly, the government is after their lizard friend which causes much chaos. Meanwhile, the Lizard in a Zoot Suit is trying to find his own family since he lost them years ago. Will friendship prevail? Will our fancy smancy Lizard friend find his family? Will Cuata's skirt ever be brought up by her Mother?!
I thought this book was super fun! It's short and sweet yet packed full of action and adventure. There's not a ton of dialogue, but the pictures tell the story just perfectly.
At the end of the book, there's a little section describing the Zoot Suit riots. I found it super intriguing to read about, since I hadn't been reminded of this since grade school. I'm always down for a little educational break within or after the novel.
Also, best title ever. Just saying.
Overall, I think this book is a real success! It's a fun, little comic that will bring lots of joy and excitement to readers. It reminds me of The Shape of Water without the R rated content.
Four out of five stars.
Thank you NetGalley and Lerner Publishing group for this wonderful opportunity to pick up this book. I hope to see more of Marco Finnegan soon!
May 1, 2020
Set during the era of the Zoot Suit Riots in 1943 Los Angeles, the story follows two Hispanic sisters who befriend a lizard man. He's lost and separated from his family while being pursued by a scientist and a racist sailor. I think you can see where the story is headed from here. The art is a little simplistic at times and looks a little blown up, but it serves its purpose. It does a good job of conveying the story as there aren't that many words.
This is a great all-ages story. It doesn't shy away from history's warts, showing how poorly Latinos were treated by the sailors in the area. At the time, there was a naval base placed right in the middle of the heavily Latino, Chavez Ravine. The book follows up with several pages describing the actual Zoot Suit Riots and how they came about. I think it's important we keep in mind our failures of the past so we don't repeat them in the future.
Received a review copy from Graphic Universe and NetGalley. All thoughts are my own and in no way influenced by the aforementioned.
This is a great all-ages story. It doesn't shy away from history's warts, showing how poorly Latinos were treated by the sailors in the area. At the time, there was a naval base placed right in the middle of the heavily Latino, Chavez Ravine. The book follows up with several pages describing the actual Zoot Suit Riots and how they came about. I think it's important we keep in mind our failures of the past so we don't repeat them in the future.
Received a review copy from Graphic Universe and NetGalley. All thoughts are my own and in no way influenced by the aforementioned.
June 29, 2020
A bit different from what I expected, both in plot and art style. Loved the Mexican American setting, loved learning about the Zoot Suit Riots of the time , loved the minimalistic art style.
What I didn't like: some action scenes were a bit hard to follow, and the story was pretty cliche (some compassionate people helping an animal/ monster isn't exactly fresh) Like other reviewers have said, maybe it could've worked just fine without the lizard at all, just straightforward historical fiction about the riots; the lizard people aren't developed at all, anyway.
**Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this book. All opinions are my own.**
What I didn't like: some action scenes were a bit hard to follow, and the story was pretty cliche (some compassionate people helping an animal/ monster isn't exactly fresh) Like other reviewers have said, maybe it could've worked just fine without the lizard at all, just straightforward historical fiction about the riots; the lizard people aren't developed at all, anyway.
**Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this book. All opinions are my own.**
September 16, 2020
Set during the summer of the Zoot Suit Riots (LA 1943)when two young Hispanic Americans encounter violence, prejudice and 5 foot tall lizard. A Navy base has been installed in a predominately Hispanic neighborhood and the white sailors think nothing of tossing out verbal assaults and starting fights, when a 6 foot tall lizard pops out of a sewer grate to save the sisters they realize they've made a new friend. What they don't realize is that the lizard is also being hunted by a crazed Navy scientist. Are they in even more danger for befriending him? The fantastical story is set in an all too real situation and helps readers see it in a new light. Great for all ages.
August 4, 2020
Interesting Spin
As a graphic novel presentation of the 1943 Zoot Suit riots in L.A., this book is very successful. Read the historical summary at the end of the book before you start the story and you'll find yourself right in the middle of the era and the action. Telling the tale from the point of view of two sisters who were in the middle of the events is an effective way to immerse the reader in the period and the unfolding conflict.
I'm not quite sure why we had to have a lizard alien as part of the story, although that certainly jazzed things up. I guess he represents kindness or cooperation or justice or resistance, or another aspect of oppression and fear of the alien. He certainly adds something to the cover, and looks good disguised in a zoot suit.
Bottom line, the riots are something readers should be aware of, especially now. This book does a fine job of bringing that all into focus. The lizard is just an amusing, and at least not annoying, bonus. That was fine by me.
(Please note that I received a free advance will-self-destruct-in-x-days Adobe Digital copy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)
As a graphic novel presentation of the 1943 Zoot Suit riots in L.A., this book is very successful. Read the historical summary at the end of the book before you start the story and you'll find yourself right in the middle of the era and the action. Telling the tale from the point of view of two sisters who were in the middle of the events is an effective way to immerse the reader in the period and the unfolding conflict.
I'm not quite sure why we had to have a lizard alien as part of the story, although that certainly jazzed things up. I guess he represents kindness or cooperation or justice or resistance, or another aspect of oppression and fear of the alien. He certainly adds something to the cover, and looks good disguised in a zoot suit.
Bottom line, the riots are something readers should be aware of, especially now. This book does a fine job of bringing that all into focus. The lizard is just an amusing, and at least not annoying, bonus. That was fine by me.
(Please note that I received a free advance will-self-destruct-in-x-days Adobe Digital copy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)
March 2, 2020
Well I certainly ended up grateful for the chance to read this book. The main core of it, an adventure for two teenaged girls of Mexican heritage in LA in the 1940s, is perhaps a little too broad, a little too childish, and a little too simplistic. For I think I'm actually crediting the post-script, the non-fiction part of this volume, as the greater success and perhaps of the greater interest. I had no idea at all, here in the UK, about the Zoot Suit Riots – a manic week where US Navy idiots were intent on duffing up Latinx (whatever that means) people principally because of their colour and because of their choice of wardrobe.
I knew of the Yellow Peril, with people from Asia the brunt of American racial animosity, and of course that was soon followed by a Red one, but this book brought something new to my attention, the Mexican equivalent, where people were intent on chasing down the 'other', whether that be a token sewer-dwelling lizard monster or Mexicanos. The drama has all the spirit of the 50s B-movies it sets out to attain, with dodgy men of dubious motive seeking the lizard man, and some people seeing with non-prejudicial eyes in retaliation. The fact does remain that that's a little too slender a story for a graphic novel – although I would still recommend this for junior readers, and I would still thank this book for teaching me something I ought to have known. Four stars is slightly generous perhaps, but for exceeding my expectations and for correcting my ignorance it feels about right.
I knew of the Yellow Peril, with people from Asia the brunt of American racial animosity, and of course that was soon followed by a Red one, but this book brought something new to my attention, the Mexican equivalent, where people were intent on chasing down the 'other', whether that be a token sewer-dwelling lizard monster or Mexicanos. The drama has all the spirit of the 50s B-movies it sets out to attain, with dodgy men of dubious motive seeking the lizard man, and some people seeing with non-prejudicial eyes in retaliation. The fact does remain that that's a little too slender a story for a graphic novel – although I would still recommend this for junior readers, and I would still thank this book for teaching me something I ought to have known. Four stars is slightly generous perhaps, but for exceeding my expectations and for correcting my ignorance it feels about right.
April 26, 2021
Such a fun twist on Creature from the Black Lagoon to introduce folks to the Zoot Suit riots.
February 27, 2020
Ok... but WHY a lizard though? This could have been basically the exact same story without the lizard, and could have been a great comic about the zoot-suit riots in Los Angeles in the 1940's and the messed up relations between whites and Hispanics at the time. The lizard was cute and stuff but kind of unnecessary to tell the story this was trying to tell.
February 4, 2020
Good, original and interesting art in every aspect of it. Unfortunately I can't say the same about the story which let me down rapidly....
August 25, 2020
It's June 3, 1943 and twin Latinx sisters Flaca and Curata have just stumbled upon Dr. James Rogers, a naval geophysicist and a few sailors digging in their Mexican American Los Angeles neighborhood of Chavez Ravine. After almost getting into a fight with the sailors for lewd remarks directed at Curata, the sister return home. Later that night, after their mother falls asleep, the girls take the family pickup truck and head to downtown Los Angeles to hangout and party with friends, all of whom are part of the city's Zoot-suit culture. But when a sailor bumps into Curata, a fight begins.
Some of the sailors chase Curata into a dead end alley. Scared and with no place to escape, a manhole cover opens and a large lizard-like creature climbs out and scares the sailors away. When Curata faints, the lizard takes her into the underground tunnel he came out of, followed by Flaca. And unknowingly also followed by one of the sailors working for Dr. Rogers, who immediately calls the scientist.
The lizard doesn't speak, but seems to understand Curata and Flaca and takes them home through the tunnel. It turns out that the creature, whom they call Chulito, has become separated from his family. The next morning, they decide that he should be reunited with them, if they are even still alive. After all, they understand separation and loss, they lost their dad, a soldier, in the war. But the night before, police and servicemen beat and arrested the mainly Mexican American Zoot-suiters in Los Angeles, resulting in the start of the Zoot Suit Riots.
Deciding to disguise the lizard, they put him in one of Flaca's Zoot suits. But before they even leave their neighborhood, they encounter Dr. Rogers and his sailors looking for Chulito. A fight ensues between the sailors and the Flaca and Curata's other Zoo-suit friends, but the sailors manage to capture the lizard. Desperate to get him back and help him find his family, the sisters get some help from a very unexpected person. But will they find Chulito?
Done in two tone panels of black and yellow, Lizard in a Zoot Suit is an interesting look at a particular time and place in history. At first, it seems like just an excitying historical science fiction story, until you discover that some of it is based on reality. Curata and Flaca are great characters. Curata wears skirts that she's rolled up to make shorter and has a real soft heart for animals, which is why Chulito appeals to her so much. Flaca has a hot temper when it comes to racist remarks, especially when directed at her and her sister, which is how she sometimes gets into fights, and dresses in Zoot-suits when they go out. Both are proud Mexican Americans, proud of their father's service despite losing him, and both are kind, caring teens.
Right from the start, readers will know that Dr. James Rogers is a smarmy corrupt scientist looking to make a fast buck and a claim to fame on the back of Chulito, and the sailors he gets to help are all white and racists, and all to happy to go after Zoot-suiters with their fists.
The result is a graphic novel that brings together the 1943 Zoot Suit Riots, the legend of an underground reptilian race living in tunnels under Los Angeles, and the treatment of the Latinx community displaced by housing discrimination.
Written in English, Finnegan throws in lots of Spanish, most of which is easily understandable by context alone. I did look up pachucas, which in this case means Zoot-suiter.
Pair Lizard in a Zoot Suit with Margarita Engle's verse novel Jazz Owls: A Novel of the Zoot Suit Riots for another perspective of Los Angeles' Zoot Suit culture and riots.
You might also be interested in reading about how author Marco Finnegan can up with the idea for his graphic novel. You can find it HERE
And you might also like to read about the real person looking for the underground reptilians. You can find it HERE
This book is recommended for readers age 13+
This book was purchased for my personal library
Some of the sailors chase Curata into a dead end alley. Scared and with no place to escape, a manhole cover opens and a large lizard-like creature climbs out and scares the sailors away. When Curata faints, the lizard takes her into the underground tunnel he came out of, followed by Flaca. And unknowingly also followed by one of the sailors working for Dr. Rogers, who immediately calls the scientist.
The lizard doesn't speak, but seems to understand Curata and Flaca and takes them home through the tunnel. It turns out that the creature, whom they call Chulito, has become separated from his family. The next morning, they decide that he should be reunited with them, if they are even still alive. After all, they understand separation and loss, they lost their dad, a soldier, in the war. But the night before, police and servicemen beat and arrested the mainly Mexican American Zoot-suiters in Los Angeles, resulting in the start of the Zoot Suit Riots.
Deciding to disguise the lizard, they put him in one of Flaca's Zoot suits. But before they even leave their neighborhood, they encounter Dr. Rogers and his sailors looking for Chulito. A fight ensues between the sailors and the Flaca and Curata's other Zoo-suit friends, but the sailors manage to capture the lizard. Desperate to get him back and help him find his family, the sisters get some help from a very unexpected person. But will they find Chulito?
Done in two tone panels of black and yellow, Lizard in a Zoot Suit is an interesting look at a particular time and place in history. At first, it seems like just an excitying historical science fiction story, until you discover that some of it is based on reality. Curata and Flaca are great characters. Curata wears skirts that she's rolled up to make shorter and has a real soft heart for animals, which is why Chulito appeals to her so much. Flaca has a hot temper when it comes to racist remarks, especially when directed at her and her sister, which is how she sometimes gets into fights, and dresses in Zoot-suits when they go out. Both are proud Mexican Americans, proud of their father's service despite losing him, and both are kind, caring teens.
Right from the start, readers will know that Dr. James Rogers is a smarmy corrupt scientist looking to make a fast buck and a claim to fame on the back of Chulito, and the sailors he gets to help are all white and racists, and all to happy to go after Zoot-suiters with their fists.
The result is a graphic novel that brings together the 1943 Zoot Suit Riots, the legend of an underground reptilian race living in tunnels under Los Angeles, and the treatment of the Latinx community displaced by housing discrimination.
Written in English, Finnegan throws in lots of Spanish, most of which is easily understandable by context alone. I did look up pachucas, which in this case means Zoot-suiter.
Pair Lizard in a Zoot Suit with Margarita Engle's verse novel Jazz Owls: A Novel of the Zoot Suit Riots for another perspective of Los Angeles' Zoot Suit culture and riots.
You might also be interested in reading about how author Marco Finnegan can up with the idea for his graphic novel. You can find it HERE
And you might also like to read about the real person looking for the underground reptilians. You can find it HERE
This book is recommended for readers age 13+
This book was purchased for my personal library
April 20, 2020
This is a very mixed bag. On the plus side, the art is engaging, the characters are detailed and interesting, and the author does a great job of giving the flavor of Los Angeles during this period without hitting us over the head with too much exposition. On the down side the plot is pretty cliched, and there really doesn't seem to be a good reason to have the subterranean race of lizard people there in the first place. They are fairly flat and don't work even as a metaphor for manifest destiny and the USA's historical treatment of indigenous peoples. I think it may have been better as a straightforward story about the Zoot Suit Riots and racial tensions in LA in the 20th century.
**Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange for an honest review.
**Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange for an honest review.
August 18, 2020
Lizard in a Zoot Suit was a gas full of humor, action and fun!
🦎
This YA graphic novel is set in LA in 1943: the days of the Zoot Suit Riots but Flaca and Cuata have a problem in the shape of a lizard. A lost member of an underground species needs help and the sisters need to keep them away from a corrupt scientist.
🦎
This book was outrageous, cute, fun with a historical fiction scifi adventure feel that I really enjoyed!
🦎
This YA graphic novel is set in LA in 1943: the days of the Zoot Suit Riots but Flaca and Cuata have a problem in the shape of a lizard. A lost member of an underground species needs help and the sisters need to keep them away from a corrupt scientist.
🦎
This book was outrageous, cute, fun with a historical fiction scifi adventure feel that I really enjoyed!
September 7, 2020
This is an unusual comic set during the Zoot Suit Riots in 1940s LA (which were a real thing, and not just an insanely catchy song of the brief 1990s swing music revival). I liked the setting and the historical lesson, but I feel it's structured around the very familiar "misunderstood creature" trope featured in so many monster stories.
March 19, 2020
ARC #PLA2020
Not what I expected from the cover, but a really interesting story. It takes place during the Zoot Suit Riots of 1943 and puts two immigrant teen girls in the hero roles. Empowering, informative and a compelling adventure.
Not what I expected from the cover, but a really interesting story. It takes place during the Zoot Suit Riots of 1943 and puts two immigrant teen girls in the hero roles. Empowering, informative and a compelling adventure.
April 13, 2023
I think the book is good as it also talks about racism in California/La and then helps the lizard find his family.
May 1, 2022
Love this story & I loved the information at the end! A little history lesson ✨
December 15, 2020
I think this story was actually some sort of mid-20th–century history lesson. Set in 1940s Los Angeles. Finnegan mingles humanoid swamp creatures with victory rolls and zoot suits to highlight Mexican American families struggling to survive in the US.
Meet the sisters...
Cuata is soft, petite, and likes to help others. Her sister, Flaca, is tall, lean, and angular with a short temper and a rebellious nature. The sisters are having a night out on the town. LA turns violent amid the clashes of the Zoot Suit Riots, Cuata and Flaca escape with the help of a subterranean creature who is part man and part creature. Feeling sorry for the creature they take him home after realizing he has been separated from his family. Now the girls mission is to reunite them while evading Navy men and a mysterious man-in-black scientist who wants to get hold of the specimen.
The plot is quick and almost seems rushed. The book explores themes of racism, colonialism, counterculture, and family. End pages include historical context, (rather lengthy), about the zoot suiters and the events that triggered the 1943 riots as well as insight into Finnegan’s art.
This didn’t work for me, yet I appreciate the historic insight and art.
Meet the sisters...
Cuata is soft, petite, and likes to help others. Her sister, Flaca, is tall, lean, and angular with a short temper and a rebellious nature. The sisters are having a night out on the town. LA turns violent amid the clashes of the Zoot Suit Riots, Cuata and Flaca escape with the help of a subterranean creature who is part man and part creature. Feeling sorry for the creature they take him home after realizing he has been separated from his family. Now the girls mission is to reunite them while evading Navy men and a mysterious man-in-black scientist who wants to get hold of the specimen.
The plot is quick and almost seems rushed. The book explores themes of racism, colonialism, counterculture, and family. End pages include historical context, (rather lengthy), about the zoot suiters and the events that triggered the 1943 riots as well as insight into Finnegan’s art.
This didn’t work for me, yet I appreciate the historic insight and art.
January 20, 2023
Flaca and Cuata are teenage girls who love going out and partying with the rest of their friends in 1940s Los Angeles. That very activity gets them into trouble when local Navy recruits start preying on local Mexican Americans, and the girls find themselves in the middle of the Zoot Suit Riots. Things get even more complicated when Cuata is rescued by a strange lizardman who emerges from the sewers. The little guy is wanted by a scientist for research, but Cuata is determined to help him reunite with his family.
I wasn't expecting this book to hit me as hard as it did. I mean, the title is so catchy and fun. I'm glad it went there though. While there's a fun flavor of fiction in here, this book highlights an interesting facet of how racism and mob mentality can create a culture of terror, where people aren't even recognized as human. I'm sad that I had to wait so long to get my hands on this one, but it was worth it.
I wasn't expecting this book to hit me as hard as it did. I mean, the title is so catchy and fun. I'm glad it went there though. While there's a fun flavor of fiction in here, this book highlights an interesting facet of how racism and mob mentality can create a culture of terror, where people aren't even recognized as human. I'm sad that I had to wait so long to get my hands on this one, but it was worth it.
February 25, 2024
I needed a book set in 1943 for the 2024 Reading Challenge, and this fit the bill!!
I thought this would be about the Zoot Suit Riots, but it is not, it is merely set during the same time. I didn't actually learn anything while reading this.
It's about a lizard creature living in the sewer who has become separated from his family, and the two sisters who find him and help him. The art is crisp and easy to understand, and Finnegan does a great job of including plenty of multilingual dialogue, but the story is a bit thin, I thought there's be more to it. I've seen Buffy episodes with more complexity than this book! Nevertheless, "Chulito" (the nickname they give to the lizard creature) is charming, so one extra star for the crisp art & multicultural setting, and one extra star for being weird and charming.
I thought this would be about the Zoot Suit Riots, but it is not, it is merely set during the same time. I didn't actually learn anything while reading this.
It's about a lizard creature living in the sewer who has become separated from his family, and the two sisters who find him and help him. The art is crisp and easy to understand, and Finnegan does a great job of including plenty of multilingual dialogue, but the story is a bit thin, I thought there's be more to it. I've seen Buffy episodes with more complexity than this book! Nevertheless, "Chulito" (the nickname they give to the lizard creature) is charming, so one extra star for the crisp art & multicultural setting, and one extra star for being weird and charming.
March 13, 2020
With the Zoot Suit Riots as a backdrop two teenage Chicana sisters find a juvenile lizard-man creature and try to get him back to his family.
The story is just okay but it does a good job of incorporating the lizard-man as a stand in for the "other" - someone different - the monster that is hunted by government forces when it is actually peaceful and harmless. It's basically a good guys and bad guys type of thing with everyone fitting neatly into their required roles. The characters are suitable for young teens.
The afterward that gives a brief description of the Zoot Suit Riots is a highlight of the book.
***Thanks to NetGalley and Lerner Publishing Group for providing me with a free digital copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.
The story is just okay but it does a good job of incorporating the lizard-man as a stand in for the "other" - someone different - the monster that is hunted by government forces when it is actually peaceful and harmless. It's basically a good guys and bad guys type of thing with everyone fitting neatly into their required roles. The characters are suitable for young teens.
The afterward that gives a brief description of the Zoot Suit Riots is a highlight of the book.
***Thanks to NetGalley and Lerner Publishing Group for providing me with a free digital copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.
April 20, 2021
Just an ok graphic in my opinion.
I mostly enjoyed the historical aspect of the zoot suit riots especially with the info given in the back of the GN. The artwork was basic?! Sorry.
The inclusion of the lizard is different and unique the story did seem to put everyone in specific boxes (good guys, bad.. yadda yadda).
It is a decent piece for the younger teens to acquaint them with this bit of history but a bit cliche and not anything particular to make it stand out to me.
Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this Arc.
I mostly enjoyed the historical aspect of the zoot suit riots especially with the info given in the back of the GN. The artwork was basic?! Sorry.
The inclusion of the lizard is different and unique the story did seem to put everyone in specific boxes (good guys, bad.. yadda yadda).
It is a decent piece for the younger teens to acquaint them with this bit of history but a bit cliche and not anything particular to make it stand out to me.
Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this Arc.
October 1, 2021
Crazy (not so little) book that takes you to the 1940s and how fashion caused a riot. Or more accurately, the fact people wore something "different" and were "different" caused people to cause a riot. Yet, it is all bundled up in the disguise of a Lizard creature trying to to help two sisters when they find themselves in trouble. The idea of "different" and "fear of that" and racism come together in the simplistically drawn graphic novel. Intense story covered by a seemly "innocent" story. An afterwards by the author/illustrator shows his inspiration and the history of the Zoot Suit Riots.
November 5, 2021
The rear matter definitely increased my rating. Reading the hostility of the sailors towards the female protagonists was frustrating, and the juxtaposition of real social issues with a lost lizard was goofy. But it was also a less tense way to tell a story about the zoot suit riots and the problems of gentrification in the 1940's. The author's influences and cultural explanations was very informative about an event in American history I knew almost nothing about. I love that the creator chose to make Flaca the toughest kid in the neighborhood.
July 7, 2021
A little derivative of E.T. and overall I was a little bored by it. I think my expectations were set too high by this incredible title and the images it produced in my mind. It also just felt too short to create a strong idea of the characters, including the lizard, who didn’t seem to do anything throughout the entire comic. A fun, short adventure that just doesn’t reach high enough to be anything special.
February 29, 2024
Middle school appropriate. I loved the richness of this historical event that I had never heard about. I also enjoyed the heart warming story. I wish translations for the Spanish had been given in footnotes. I also think more students might read this if the pictures were more colorful, although I understand that the color scheme also helps with the historical setting and a certain sense of flavor. Overall, a great book worth of study.
April 26, 2020
Thank you Netgalley for the chance to review! The lizard saves Cuata and her and her family decide they must put him in a zoot suit so they can find his family before the military finds him. The illustrations were amazing and I absolutely loved the story line. I would definitely recommend to a friend!
January 4, 2021
Tensions are high between the Hispanic community and the navy, so when a brawl breaks out Cuato is rescued by a scaly creature. At first she fears him, but quickly realizes he is just separated from his family and lonely. Cuato and her sister Flaca must find a way to disguise their newfound friend and reunite him with his family. Fun, with period illustrations.
April 8, 2024
Simple plot. Simple illustrations. Somewhat misaligned dialogue. Out of sync timing, but okay. Connection with and/or commentary on Zoot Suit riots is very thin, actually close to nonexistent save for the year and the abstract at the end.
June 28, 2020
Fantastic, bombastic — I wish I’d thought of it. A visually compelling reading experience worth sharing.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews