Agatha H. and the Airship City by Phil & Kaja Foglio
Agatha H. and the Airship City is a novelization of the first three volumes of the Girl Genius comic created by Phil and Kaja Foglio. This beautiful comic strip, which won the 2009 and 2010 Hugo Award for Best Graphic Story, is ongoing and can be read from the beginning at Girl Genius Online. In fact, if you read or listen to the novelization, I’d suggest that you occasionally view the comic along with it so you can see the story’s strange characters and constructs (and, also, just because it’s gorgeous and deserves to be seen). At the bottom of each page is an archive with titles of the chapters, so it’s easy to find the pages you need while reading. The novelization follows the strip almost exactly, but there are some minor differences.
I love the GIRL GENIUS comic (reviewed here) which has been published as a series of graphic novels available in hardback and paperback. So, why turn Girl Genius into novels? … I don’t know… I suppose that those who don’t read comics might read the Girl Genius story in novel form. Also novelization allows it to be put on audio, which is how I read Agatha H. and the Airship City. The audiobook is narrated by Angela Dawe, who is simply amazing — she’s enthusiastic and vibrant and has a wide range of voices and accents. She’s a lot of fun to listen to and a perfect choice for this zany story.
Readers who pick up Agatha H. and the Airship City while ignoring the comic will be missing out. The novelization is successful, but because it essentially recreates the story frame-by-frame, the scene and viewpoint transitions don’t always come across smoothly, and much of the humor that comes from the art is missing (though some of it is maintained through careful description). But, most importantly, so much of the charm of the comic comes from the stunning art! Thus, Agatha H. and the Airship City works as a novel, but it’s much better in graphic form. If you don’t have time to read years’ worth of the Girl Genius comic, then the audiobook is the next best thing. Just be sure to supplement your listening by occasionally following along with the artwork online. You can’t fully appreciate GIRL GENIUS otherwise.
Girl Genius novels — (2011-2014) This is a novelization of the Girl Genius comic. Publisher: The Industrial Revolution has escalated into all-out warfare. It has been sixteen years since the Heterodyne Boys, benevolent adventurers and inventors, disappeared under mysterious circumstances. Today, Europe is ruled by the Sparks, dynasties of mad scientists ruling over — and terrorizing — the hapless population with their bizarre inventions and unchecked power, while the downtrodden dream of the Hetrodynes’ return. At Transylvania Polygnostic University, a pretty, young student named Agatha Clay seems to have nothing but bad luck. Incapable of building anything that actually works, but dedicated to her studies, Agatha seems destined for a lackluster career as a minor lab assistant. But when the University is overthrown by the ruthless tyrant Baron Klaus Wulfenbach, Agatha finds herself a prisoner aboard his massive airship Castle Wulfenbach — and it begins to look like she might carry a spark of Mad Science after all.
Just saw you like Jack Vance. Me too. Surely he offends you somewhere though?
Words fail. I can't imagine what else might offend you. Great series, bizarre and ridiculous review. Especially the 'Nazi sympathizer'…
"Nor Iron Bars a Cage by Kage Harper" Freudian slip there. ;)
[…] (Fantasy Literature): In 1957, Hammer Studios in England came out with the first of their full-color horror creations, […]
I'm going to have to find these and read them.