Death & Sparkles

July 15, 2021
Death and Sparkles are ready to take on the world! And by world, we mean social media consumption, the temptations of fame, the fickle nature of celebrity, and the connection between consumerism and ecology. But still, that's a lot! When Sparkles, the last unicorn on Earth, has a fatal accident while promoting a sponsored product, he comes into contact with Death, an otherworldly employee of the claims department who is armed with the "powers of bureaucracy." (I.e., he kills creatures by touching them, but only if their paperwork is in order.) At the same time, a trio of sentient extraterrestrial lizards are trying to educate humanity about proper citizenship and planetary care. With Sparkles' death, the trio are lured into being a substitute act by Sparkles' manager. How will the influencer lifestyle pair with their values of personal responsibility and conservation? And what happens if Sparkles comes back to life? The story juggles a lot, but it manages to deftly keep all the balls in the air and packs several compelling messages into one very funny graphic novel. The memorable digital illustrations in soft pastels evoke watercolors and colored pencil and complement the text with flair. Readers will be enchanted and will ponder for some time the ideas presented here. Powerful and fun. (Graphic science fiction. 8-12)

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October 4, 2021
Sparkles the last unicorn, a few hundred–year–old, cupcake-loving celebrity known for his magical candy and rainbows and “SUPER expensive merchandise,” dies in a poorly executed stunt. While falling to his doom, Sparkles meets Death, a purple-cloaked skeleton working “in the claims department,” before waking up in limbo faced with the fact that he’s wasted his life and is thus unworthy of the “giant cupcake” unless he changes his ways. Sparkles then resurrects, with his horn impaling Death’s derriere, and the two slowly become friends. After Death accidentally kills a whole village celebrating Sparkles’s revival, the unicorn is quickly lampooned and derided by all his former fans. Soon, the duo is coerced into a live broadcast of three challenges to “decide who is worthy of our adoration and hard-earned consumer dollars,” up against Sparkle’s greedy manager and his new clients, an intergalactic group of skateboarding lizards whose true mission is to save Earth from climate change. Digital illustrations rendered in assured lines and sweet pastels work in tandem with the simple, fantastical aesthetic. If the story line feels a bit overstuffed, Justus offers a humorous yet clear-eyed exploration of mercurial public opinion, capitalism, and consumerism in this entertaining series opener. Ages 10–up. Agent: Steven Salpeter, Curtis Brown.

December 1, 2021

Gr 4-8-Outgoing Sparkles the unicorn is a beloved celebrity who promotes sunshine, rainbows, candy, flowers, cupcakes, and socks; his agent handles merchandising and promotion. Death, or at least an avatar of death who works as a "collections agent," makes his lonely daily rounds and files paperwork for each collected soul. When a publicity stunt goes wrong, Death collects Sparkles's soul, only for Sparkles to be sent back to the realm of the living from the great beyond. Sparkles is assigned to find a greater purpose in life, which starts with removing his horn from Death's behind. Together, they wander from Death's organized, solitary perch to the chaos of nature and people, opening up to each other along the way. Meanwhile, a group of alien lizards who want to spread an eco-conscious message on Earth replace Sparkles in the influencer hierarchy, rebranding themselves as the Lizard Bros. Justus's jokes about death, marketing, and the fickle nature of fame are both playful and morbid, as when Death accidentally kills a crowd at a party. Gentle art, rendered in watercolor and colored pencil, softens what could have been a far darker story. The narrative's point of view jumps around a lot, but readers should not have any trouble keeping track of the vibrant personalities and their motives. VERDICT Introverts and extroverts alike will unite watching true friendship blossom between Death and a magic unicorn.-Thomas Maluck, Richland Lib., SC

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