Sinclair is a boy living in a superficially normal yet utterly fantastic inner city environment. His sister, Emily, is an aspiring rock musician with her own band and a regular gig at Smith's bar. A very short man named Sunshine Montana has a fish that follows him around, floating through the air. Addison is a homeless artist. Koole is a very peculiar and somewhat sinister monk whom everyone finds a bit alarming.

Sinclair has wings, and can fly.

No one thinks Sinclair is much more peculiar than anyone else.

But while everyone goes about their business, Emily is approached by a strange man who says he works for a big corporation, and can make her rich.

The same man approaches Addison with the promise of making him a rich, successful artist.

And then someone starts luring the children away--the same man?--with the promise of a marvelous entertainment.

Who is Koole really, and what is he hiding under his robes? Who is the Doll King? What's really going on?

The art is attractive and engaging, and the story blends the fantastic and the mundane in a way that feels completely right. It's a pleasant escape from the news of the day, if you relax and go along for the ride.

Recommended.

I received a free electronic copy of this book from the publisher, and am reviewing it voluntarily. ( )

Pop Gun War by Dalrymple Farel is definitely a title for the connoisseur of surrealist graphic novels. Unfortunately, surrealism just isn't my cup of tea, so it's difficult for me to give this title an accurate and fair review. Here's what I can say. The simple black and white art is evocative and clearly differentiates between characters. The use of different fonts for different character's speech bubbles also provides some nuance to different individuals. The diversity of the characters is also a welcome relief in the world of graphic novels. Some of the more chaotic scenes, however, can be hard to work out, simply because the artwork has a two-dimensional feel that complicates perspective. I would recommend this title to school & academic libraries with strong art or graphic design programs, as well as public libraries with a considerable reader base for independent and unusual graphic novels. ( )

http://12frogs.com/reading/reviews/2003/11/pop-gun-war/ ( )