Review by Readerjorge -- Child of the Sun Complete Edition
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Jorge Leon Salazar
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Review by Readerjorge -- Child of the Sun Complete Edition
[Following is a volunteer review of "Child of the Sun Complete Edition" by Michael Van Cleve.]
Child of the Sun Complete Edition by Michael Van Cleve is a graphic novel that tells the story of the biblical character Samson. It occurs mainly in the surroundings of Thebes, Egypt. 1300 years B.C. The author offers a somewhat different version than the one narrated in The Bible in the Book of Judges.
The story begins with the presence of Heracles, the famous personage from Greek mythology, who shows his dominance as the strongest man in the world. Then, Samson appears and becomes his friend. Samson is an Israelite from the town of Zorah; he falls deeply in love with Adriana, a beautiful Philistine woman who likes worldly things and pleasures. She seems to be a heartless woman. Samson possessed impressive strength due to a Nazarene oath, which indicates that he should never eat unclean things or from the vine and should never cut his hair. Samson accomplished incredible feats like killing a cobra, slaying a lion with his bare hands, and fighting giant monsters.
Samson and Adriana plan to get married, he organizes a pre-wedding feast. Seeing the evil of the Philistines, he launches a riddle for the people of Timnath, which he was sure they would not guess, as he was referring to the episode with the lion that only he knows. Timnath's bad men decided to defeat Samson by threatening Adriana, asking her to tell them the answer to the riddle, otherwise, they would murder her family. She yields and betrays Samson, causing his anger.
The Philistines fear Samson and chase for him. They negotiate with the Israelites asking them to deliver him. Many Israelites find him, tie him up, and hand him over to the Philistines, whose kings have planned that Samson be killed by the monsters, the three elders: Belaus, Marduk, and Kingu. Which will be the denouement of this novel? Will it be the same told in the Bible?
Samson's story is interesting, in this version other figures such as Heracles are added making it even more attractive. In this way, Van Cleve shows a comparison between Samson and other known characters, who have similarities with him. Also, the author includes a bonus chapter dedicated to the death of Gilgamesh, who is another mythological figure with certain coincidences with Samson.
The format of the graphic novel is pleasant, as it allows readers to easily follow the story and the entire plot. I agree with the belief that an image says more than a thousand words. The illustrations are well done, they are true works of art, although sometimes the same personage looks a little different, I suppose that since the artists are not always the same, each painter adds a personal touch on the graphics. Most of the characters are identifiable, both from a physical perspective and in their attitude.
This book is suggested for mature adults, and it certainly is. Many illustrations express a lot of violence with much blood and portraits of beheaded people and other atrocious facts. Besides, there are several nudes, explicit erotic and sexual scenes.
Although the format of the graphic novel seemed nice to me, I think that there was a lack of words. In some cases, I felt that a little narrative, explanation or dialogue was needed since it was not clear to me what was occurring. On some occasions, I had to revise several times to understand what was happening. The edition was outstanding. I did not find any typo to remark.
In summary, I think Child of the Sun Complete Edition is an adequate choice for those who love these ancient, biblical stories and for those who like graphic novel format. For all that said, I rate it 4 out of 4 stars.
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Child of the Sun Complete Edition
******
Child of the Sun Complete Edition
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Child of the Sun Complete Edition by Michael Van Cleve is a graphic novel that tells the story of the biblical character Samson. It occurs mainly in the surroundings of Thebes, Egypt. 1300 years B.C. The author offers a somewhat different version than the one narrated in The Bible in the Book of Judges.
The story begins with the presence of Heracles, the famous personage from Greek mythology, who shows his dominance as the strongest man in the world. Then, Samson appears and becomes his friend. Samson is an Israelite from the town of Zorah; he falls deeply in love with Adriana, a beautiful Philistine woman who likes worldly things and pleasures. She seems to be a heartless woman. Samson possessed impressive strength due to a Nazarene oath, which indicates that he should never eat unclean things or from the vine and should never cut his hair. Samson accomplished incredible feats like killing a cobra, slaying a lion with his bare hands, and fighting giant monsters.
Samson and Adriana plan to get married, he organizes a pre-wedding feast. Seeing the evil of the Philistines, he launches a riddle for the people of Timnath, which he was sure they would not guess, as he was referring to the episode with the lion that only he knows. Timnath's bad men decided to defeat Samson by threatening Adriana, asking her to tell them the answer to the riddle, otherwise, they would murder her family. She yields and betrays Samson, causing his anger.
The Philistines fear Samson and chase for him. They negotiate with the Israelites asking them to deliver him. Many Israelites find him, tie him up, and hand him over to the Philistines, whose kings have planned that Samson be killed by the monsters, the three elders: Belaus, Marduk, and Kingu. Which will be the denouement of this novel? Will it be the same told in the Bible?
Samson's story is interesting, in this version other figures such as Heracles are added making it even more attractive. In this way, Van Cleve shows a comparison between Samson and other known characters, who have similarities with him. Also, the author includes a bonus chapter dedicated to the death of Gilgamesh, who is another mythological figure with certain coincidences with Samson.
The format of the graphic novel is pleasant, as it allows readers to easily follow the story and the entire plot. I agree with the belief that an image says more than a thousand words. The illustrations are well done, they are true works of art, although sometimes the same personage looks a little different, I suppose that since the artists are not always the same, each painter adds a personal touch on the graphics. Most of the characters are identifiable, both from a physical perspective and in their attitude.
This book is suggested for mature adults, and it certainly is. Many illustrations express a lot of violence with much blood and portraits of beheaded people and other atrocious facts. Besides, there are several nudes, explicit erotic and sexual scenes.
Although the format of the graphic novel seemed nice to me, I think that there was a lack of words. In some cases, I felt that a little narrative, explanation or dialogue was needed since it was not clear to me what was occurring. On some occasions, I had to revise several times to understand what was happening. The edition was outstanding. I did not find any typo to remark.
In summary, I think Child of the Sun Complete Edition is an adequate choice for those who love these ancient, biblical stories and for those who like graphic novel format. For all that said, I rate it 4 out of 4 stars.
******
Child of the Sun Complete Edition
******
Child of the Sun Complete Edition
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
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markodim721
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It is great that the graphic novel is richly illustrated. Thanks for the reading recommendation.
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