I was contacted the other day by Boneville publishing, home of artist Jeff Smith, because he had recently come out with the second novel in a new graphic series, dubbed “Tuki: Fight for Fire” (the first one), and the second one being “Tuki: Fight for Family”.
Now you might be asking what I have to do with reviewing graphic novels, and i was asking myself the same thing as I read the email, but then I soon found out that the theme, and topic of these graphic novels, is the lives of a few hominins walking the Earth about 2 mya, and their interactions with each other.
I do not like reviews, or other talks that make you wait until the very end to hear the good stuff, you’re already here, I figure you want the best bits up front, and if you want to read on, I will leave that up to you.
Ill be honest, these are the first graphic novels I have ever read, and I was actually a little surprised to see how much I enjoyed them. I do not know if it is the subject matter, as I love all things paleoanthropology, but the fun of the entire experience was just great! As I am sure with most comics, the art is simple easy on the eyes, and a breeze to follow (once you figure out which way the storyboard goes, but for those more experienced graphic novel readers, I know this will not be a problem!)
The story, which I will not talk about much as I do want you to grab some copies (go ahead and click on the image to be taken the publishers website where you can purchase copies) but the important thing to know is, the story is fun. I think that is the best way to put it. You do not need to know anything about science or anthropology to enjoy it, but for those of us who are from the field, it is lovely to see the little tidbits, accurate tidbits mind you, that are put into the story.
I particularly enjoyed all the facts at the end of the book, as a science communicator, it was a great way to help explain some of the what seem to be simple topics, on a more complex level, and expose more people to the field. It was very enjoyable to read both of these books!
Basically, if you are a fan of comics, this is a great, and fun series that will keep you on your toes, and keep you guessing at what is coming next, and even for us science nerds who know a little bit more of what we are talking about when it comes to Paleoanthropology, this is a fun read.
I highly recommend for so many reasons, but above all, it exposed me to a whole new world of content consumption, and in a way that showed me it was not only just to enjoy, but can be educational too!
A+ from me!
Seth Chagi
World of Paleoanthropology 