Wolverine: Worst Day Ever [Hardcover]

Barry Lyga (Author), Marc Sumerak (Contributor)

Book Description

Grade Level: P and up | Series: Wolverine

He's Marvel's most popular mutant...and the best there is at what he does! Now, for the first time ever, experience the storied saga of everybody's favorite feral X-Man. In his own words - fully illustrated with archival images from more than 30 years worth of comic-book appearances!

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 4–8—Thirteen-year-old Eric Mattias is new to Xavier's Institute for Gifted Students, aka X Men training ground. (Though with the world's lamest mutant power, it is highly unlikely that he will ever become an X-Man.) For Eric, it is not just an exaggerated complaint or cry for attention when he says that no one notices him. He can scream his head off, be tripped over, sat on (even on a toilet), and still, no one would notice. The few perks to this anonymity include being able to write a tell-all blog without getting in trouble and shadowing lone hero Wolverine on his adventures. True, the very presence of Wolverine on the book's cover makes it an easy sell, but it is Eric's voice that will keep readers thoroughly absorbed in the story. Tempering his glib and at times laugh-out-loud observations on superhero behavior are Eric's feelings of loneliness and alienation brought about by his power. Individual comic panels that function as posted pictures on Eric's blog make this an amped-up, Marvel version of Jeff Kinney's Diary of a Wimpy Kid (Abrams) that will simply fly off the shelves faster than Wolverine can retract his adamantium claws.—Joanna K. Fabicon, Los Angeles Public Library END

Product Details

• Hardcover: 200 pages
• Publisher: Marvel Books (April 22, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0785137572
• ISBN-13: 978-0785137573
• Product Dimensions: 1 x 1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #735,857 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Nice, Refreshing Take on Wolverine, November 23, 2009

By 

GraphicNovelReporter.com (New York, NY) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Wolverine: Worst Day Ever (Hardcover)

Don't let the title mislead you: Wolverine isn't actually the star of Wolverine: Worst Day Ever. Instead, he's the focus of attention for the narrator, a lead character who blogs frequently about Logan and his exploits, his life, and what he considers to be his pretty lame superpower. The narrator is Eric Mattias and his mutant ability is akin to invisibility. But that would be too easy--and too cool. Eric's actual power allows him to go unnoticed. That's a power that most teenagers often feel they already have.

Lyga is a young-adult author with the right sensibilities for a young audience. He's honed his craft in other prose books, and Wolverine: Worst Day Ever is close to being a prose work itself. It uses the blog format to advance its story, combined with archive images of Wolverine that have appeared in comics throughout the years. So while not technically a graphic novel per se, it has several of the elements (not least of which is one of the most popular characters to ever appear in comics).

Wolverine: Worst Day Ever is ideal for middle-school-age children, although younger ones would probably enjoy it as well. Violence is present, but it's minimal (and it's centered around Wolverine's annual battle with his archnemesis, Sabretooth). Traditional YA themes of acceptance, fitting in, and learning to express yourself are dealt with, and in a very nice way. Lyga has a nice touch with Eric, and he gives him plenty of room to breathe in the novel.

Older readers will enjoy this new take on Wolverine as well. It's innocent, in a way, but it still keeps Wolverine cool. He is one of the coolest comics characters around, after all. But in this case, he might not be the most interesting character in the book. Eric is fascinating.

Lyga often touches on dark themes in his works (like The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl), but this isn't like that. It's a lot of fun from start to finish, a nice, refreshing take on Wolverine and the whole school for gifted youngsters that Professor Xavier founded.

5.0 out of 5 stars A Good book for boys age 8-11, May 29, 2011

By 

QueenOfReviews - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Wolverine: Worst Day Ever (Hardcover)

I bought this book for my 12 year old nephew (he enjoyed it) but it should have gone to my 9 year old nephew. Great content, read and the writing and is awesome!