Electric Girl, Vol. 1 (Paperback)

~ Michael Brennan (Author, Artist)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 6-9-Issues five through eight of a light and engaging comic book are brought together in a collection that will appeal to those who haven't met the title character heretofore, as well as to those who are already her fans. Virginia, the daughter of a college professor, owner of a pet dog, and human compatriot to a clever and, to most, invisible gremlin, is not your average American kid. She has electric powers that allow her to change traffic lights but also invite some to view her as a bit of a freak. In the stories collected here, Virginia ranges in age from grade school student through beginning college coed. This round of adventures includes a messy bit of detective work involving kidnapped girls, conjoined twins, and a wicked but handsome doctor; and a tale about Gremlin having to rescue a cohort from a fate worse than death-transmutation into a human. The cast of characters is upscale and multiethnic. Romance-except for the would-be human gremlin's-is absent, making these tales as attractive to prepubescent kids of either gender as it is to older girls. Facial expressions and body postures are fluid and evocative, while the verbal text is easy to read.
Francisca Goldsmith, Berkeley Public Library, CA
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

From Library Journal

This is writer/artist Brennan's second collection of comic-book stories involving Virginia, a teen endowed with electrical powers who has a mild invisible gremlin on her back. The gremlin sometimes prods Virginia to higher levels of achievement but generally does not. The basic story line revolves around Virginia's attempts to minimize the impact of the gremlin in her life, while the electrical powers serve as a subplot. The book parodies the conventions of superhero comics and comic-book culture (in one installment, Virginia and a friend attend a comic-book convention, where Virginia has her photo taken with "Electric Girl") while scratching the surface of some of the difficulties that teens often experience. The black-and-white drawings serviceably move the story along. Brennan has created a cute package that is most appropriate for YA readers. Purchase where demand warrants. Stephen Weiner, Maynard P.L., MA
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: AiT/PlanetLar (December 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0970355505
• ISBN-13: 978-0970355508
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 6.3 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,115,508 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A delightful book to read!, January 19, 2001

By	Jamie Coville (Kingston, Ontario, Canada) - See all my reviews

I was really surprised. Just an all out delightful book to read. Mike's art, writing and characters really draw you in. You like the characters and you get involved with the story. Despite the title and description this is not a superhero book. There are no costumes or crime fighting (well, one short story but it's not what you think), it's just about a normal girl named Virginia with an ability to discharge electric zaps.

Thanks to her ability, her dog Blammo and a life long grimlin friend named Oogleeoog who's job to cause mischief, Virginia's life is a fun chaos to watch. Mike gives us a wide range of stories all of them really good.

Buy this book, you won't be disapointed, even if you never read a comic book before.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Less Electric Girl, More Blammo!, February 26, 2004

By	A. Ross (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This collection of the first four issues of the indie comic, Electric Girl, didn't do a whole lot for me. The premise is that there's a human girl born with a serious amount of electricity in her body, thanks to the wacky hi-jinks of a band of invisible gremlins. The first story shows her origins, and the rest show her as a teenager finishing high school and entering college. As she grows older, she seems to acquire a measure of control over her "ability" to zap things, but she still discharges spontaneously whenever she gets agitated. In any event, not a whole lot happens. She gets into random adventures and scrapes, and uses her power to try and fix things here and there. Her guardian gremlin Oogleeoog sometimes plays little pranks on her, and her dog Blammo is another catalyst for stories. Actually Blamo is the most engaging aspect of the whole series-while Brennan's rough drawing style crudely captures the humans and gremlins, when applied to Blammo's blocky canine form, the result is oddly compelling and engaging. Personally, I'd like to see Blammo ditch the twitchy girl and get his own book of adventures!

0 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Electrfying (Ha ha ha!), June 14, 2004

By	Jenn (Saskatchewan, Canada) - See all my reviews

This book is not as funny as I expected it to be, althought the story lines aren't that bad. The drawings are pretty spiffy but overall I must say I'm enjoying the second editon (volumes 5-8) a lot more and just over half way through it. Overall and okay read, especially worth persisting through for the second book but fairly far fetched.