Let’s talk a moment about Dan Mora and Paul Little’s art. Mora’s character designs are great. His characters are expressive and look like they’d be right at home in an animated feature. The dialogue scenes are nicely drawn with great attention given to body language that really sells the humor and the fun interaction between our two heroes. When it comes time for the action, Mora really shines with great use of perspective and intelligent panel layout to really sell the movement and intensity of the battle. Paul Little’s colors really bring out the best of Mora’s art. Early in the book, his scenes are bright and colorful and really draw out the fun adventures of our characters. Later, when the book shifts to night, he lights the scene perfectly, switching to dark blues and greens that help to build the tension to the final confrontation.

So, you may be asking, “Jason, this sounds great, but what is the book about?” Well, I don’t want to give too much away, because I want you to go and enjoy it, but I’ll give you a bit. Quixote is about a pair of adventures who are trying to uncover the secrets of the past and a king who wants those same secrets for his own selfish reasons. In the process of their adventures, they find exactly what they were looking for, but it may be more than any of them could handle. Sounds like pretty common fantasy fare, but it’s not straight-up fantasy, as this world is filled with flying machines and robots. Bennett, Mora, and Little deliver a story that is both familiar and refreshingly new, and, even better, they deliver it with style. This book is a must-read.


5 Laser-Shooting Iron Giants out of 5