The Oddly Pedestrian Life of Christopher Chaos (2023), Volume 1

April 1, 2024

Best-selling authors Tynion (DC Pride: Love and Justice) and Brombal (The World of Black Hammer Omnibus Volume 3) team with illustrator Goodheart (Victor and Nora: A Gotham Love Story) to create an LGBTQIA+ coming-of-age story infused with elements drawn from the horror and superhero genres. Since birth, Christopher Chaos has felt cursed by possessing a supercharged intellect which detects patterns and equations everywhere. He's tried his best to hide this, or at least only use it for the betterment of others. Either way, he's been made to feel like a freak, without a place in the normal world. That all changes the night he witnesses one of his classmates transform into a werewolf only to die at the hands of ghostly assassins shortly thereafter. The traumatic incident inspires Christopher to realize that he's been struggling to follow rules set by others when he's capable of manipulating reality itself in order to create a set of rules all his own--which is just what he'll need to do if he's going to avenge his friend's murder. VERDICT A heartfelt horror story, as entertaining as it is empowering.

Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 3, 2024
This energetic action-horror hybrid cowritten by Tynion (the Something Is Killing the Children series) and Brombal (The World of Black Hammer series) finds teenage mad scientist Christopher Chaos struggling to understand his atypical mind: “I think I see the very threads that stitch our world together,” he confides to his only friend, a pigeon. But when he accidentally discovers that the cute guy in drama club is a werewolf, Christopher is plunged into an underground society that includes a vampire who calls himself Dracula Boy, a goth girl who can summon ghost cats, and a Frankenstein’s monster, all of whom are stalked by a cult of monster hunters. There’s plenty to keep the pages turning even without supporting characters like police officer Jesse Tombs, who’s trying to get to the bottom of a series of supernatural attacks. The parallels between monstrosity and queer identity are skillfully drawn, and Goodhart’s clean, firmly inked art has an offbeat dynamism reminiscent of Mike Allred and Mike Mignola. The mood of the art shifts effortlessly as the script arcs between superhero-style action, gothic horror, steampunk, and fantasy. It’s a madcap delight.

Starred review from June 14, 2024

Gr 8 Up-Looking at a complicated problem would cause most people to either give up or fall back on their knowledge to create a rational solution. It takes a mad genius to see solutions as Christopher does. Given the surname "Chaos" by his peers, his intelligence usually causes more damage than good, which leads to alienation and loneliness. Christopher's life may seem pedestrian but takes a wild turn one day after school: While following a cute boy into the woods, Christopher is shocked when his classmate turns into a werewolf. Add in a group of hunters, all in white, and a vigilante vampire, and you get a tale full of supernatural chaos. This is a dive deep into classic monster tales that weaves them together in a modern setting; the authors create exciting new characters to lead the way into a hopefully long-running series. A sequel is set up nicely at the end, giving readers another villain to focus on, with much deeper possibilities for future tales. The visuals here are electrifying; a vibrant color palette overlays a mysterious and muted noir style, well-known in Goodhart's other works. Source material for monsters is unlimited and always popular with readers, so this vibrant graphic novel is likely to be checked out often. VERDICT There is nothing pedestrian about this fantastic supernatural thriller. A modern classic with ties to the monsters that came before.-Adam Fisher

Copyright 2024 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.