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My Lack of Talent Burns || My Storybook Favorites

Wow there are some really talented writers out there...

Scrolling through the lengthy list of storybooks, I was amazed at the sheer quantity and quality of writing. There was no shortage of great storybooks to choose from, however, I chose three that I believe had unique concepts or storytelling methods that I thoroughly enjoyed.

1. Hades' Iliad

John Martin, Fallen Angels in Hell
Hades' Iliad retells some of the greatest stories of the Iliad from the perspective of Hades and the stories told to him by the dead. I found this take on these classic stories to be an awesome idea that was well executed and successful in lending a different perspective on the well-known events of Homer's epic. The Iliad is a story that I am familiar with, having read it for a previous class. However, the title caught my attention. It definitely describes the contents of the storybook well. The introduction does a solid job of both explaining the unique concept of the storybook as well as introducing the style and setting for the subsequent story. The design and format of the introduction was the same as many of the other storybooks that I looked at; not particularly noticeable. The creative style, however, was noticeable. The author's writing style (not quite as much in the introduction but definitely in the subsequent chapters) stays admirably true to the translated style of the original Iliad. Word choice, mannerism, and content are all pretty consistent. Overall, the physical design of the storybook was not too intriguing. Some solid visuals and consistent design but a lack of anything that really stood out.

2. Hell On Earth

Grand Prismatic Hot Spring

Hell On Earth
 is a modern telling of the concept of Hell from the reader's point of view as Virgil guides through and describes to them the horrors and feelings of modern incarnations of more ancient sins (e.g. wrath, gluttony, etc.). I am vaguely familiar with the source material for this storybook, the Inferno from Dante's Divine Comedy, however I have not read through the entirety of the story and am only vaguely familiar with its main parts and themes. The title of the storybook definitely communicates the intention and basis. The introduction is in the form of Virgil addressing the reader and explaining the experience they are about to undergo in order to communicate the true nature of Hell. It definitely grabbed my interest and made me want to read the subsequent stories. Writing the entire storybook in second person point of view was an interesting design choice that I actually ended up enjoying a lot. The layout of this storybook is very aesthetically pleasing and does seem to space out the text with relevant images well. I think that in my own storybook, I would put any images I used in the same kind of banners as the author did in this one. 

2. The Brave Hedgehog

Hedgehog Stock Photo

The Brave Hedgehog tells the journey of little hedgehog as he wanders through the forest and interacts with different animals. The author lists Aesop's Fables as the main inspiration, a collection of stories that I am not very familiar with. The title does essentially state the main premise for the storybook. The introduction does give a lot of information on the author's own experience with hedgehogs as well as general information on hedgehogs and an introduction of the main character. The overall physical design had light and fun theme with plenty of cute pictures of hedgehogs to accompany the stories. For me, the most important aspect of the design and implementation of this storybook was the inclusion of a different hand-picked musical piece to accompany each story. I love the idea of different types of art interacting and, as I read through the storybook, I found the author's choices of music really did add to the experience of reading. I think that this is a concept that I would love to implement in my own storybook. 

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