Horowitz, A. (2006). Stormbreaker: The Graphic Novel (Alex Rider) (p. 144). Philomel. ISBN : 0399246339
$14.99 paperback
Reader's Annotation: Alex Rider attempts to avenge his murdered uncle by helping a British spy agency stop a terrorist from unleashing a deadly virus.
Summary: An adaptation of the book by the same title. Alex Rider knows something is suspicious about the car accident that killed his uncle, and only living relative. But he is surprised to discover his uncle, whom he always knew as a banker, is actually a spy for Britan's top spy agency, MI6. Even more surprising, the MI6 folks want Alex's help. He's given a bit of training, and sent in to finish the mission his uncle started. Darrius Sayle is an entrepreneur who has developed a new supercomputer, the Stormbreaker. He's offered to give one to every school in Britain, and a ceremony has been planned to commemorate the occasion, with the Prime Minister flicking the switch to activate all the computers at once. The MI6 officers think there is more to Sayle than generosity, and it's up to Alex to find out what the computer are really supposed to do.
Genre: adventure, series, action
Series : Two Alex Rider graphic novels have been published to date:
- Stormbreaker
- Point Blank
Evaluation: Having read this back to back with the novel, I was rather put out by the changes that were made to the story. With a bit of research, I decided the graphic novel was closer in plot to the movie version than the novel version of the story. I enjoyed the graphic novel more than the book, even with the changes.
Why it belongs in a Tween Collection: Having another version of this popular story in a tween collection would be a good idea. Tweens who have read the book might pick up the graphic novel, and reluctant readers could be drawn to the novel via the graphic novel version.
Readalikes :
- Hardy Boys graphic novels by Scott Lobdell
- Redwall graphic novels by Brian Jacques
Reviews:
From Booklist
An ode to rampant commercialism, this is not exactly based on Anthony Horowitz's thrill-a-second novel about 14-year-old Alex Rider, who discovers that his deceased uncle was a superspy and that Alex himself must face an evil businessman and his multitude of gruesome killers. No, this graphic novel springs from the screenplay for the recent movie, which is based on the novel--which, itself, is a clever compilation of James Bond movies. If it's possible, this is even more rapidly paced than the novel. Alex remains an appealing hero here, and the idea of a heroic teen up against insidious adults continues to be an extremely powerful draw for readers. The female art team casts the action in exciting manga style, and the digital colors produce an anime-like sense of depth and motion. Readers who already like Alex Rider will want this; even adventure lovers unfamiliar with the books will find it difficult to resist the hyperkinetic fun, although they may feel they have sold a bit of their souls to get it. Jesse Karp
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