Book Review: Angel Catbird: To Castle Catula

We recently got to read the second volume of the Angel Catbird comic series, written by none other than Margaret Atwood and illustrated by Johnnie Christmas, with colors by Tamra Bonvillain, and we’re pleased to report that we enjoyed this one even more than the first volume.

It’s cats versus rats, basically

This series is the story of Strig Feleedus, a genetic engineer who, in the kind of accident that only happens in comics, was transformed into a cat-bird-man called Angel Catbird (see volume 1 for details). The villain of the story is Professor Muroid, a really ratty guy who has an evil plan to have rats take over the world.

Angel has an…interesting assortment of friends, from half-cats to Count Catula (bat-cat-vampire, obviously).  We meet up with them as they are on their way to Castle Catula, from where they can safely plan to destroy Muroid. Of course, nothing is that simple, as Muroid is busy hatching up an evil plot that involves getting his paws on Angel’s love interest, Cate. On their journey, our heroes are joined by Atheen-Owl (direct descendant of Athena—you know, the goddess), Mummycat (a cat mummy, of course), and Catullus (poetic cat of, um, questionable talent), among others. There is even some history mixed in with the main story, and you know how we love the history here.

A battle ensues when Muroid unleashes his secret weapon, which turns out to be the most wicked cat toy ever, designed to be irresistible to Angel Catbird. Will Angel be lured to his doom? Once again, the story leaves us hanging in anticipation of the next volume, which we eagerly look forward to.

Our verdict

Graphic novels are not everyone’s cup of tea, but if you have even a passing interest in them, we encourage you to check out the Angel Catbird series. We are enjoying the story (thorough suspension of disbelief is required!), and we love the bold, colorful art. We also enjoy the sketchbook in the back that shows the artwork in progress from initial thumbnails to final drawings. Also included in volume 2…a drawing by Margaret Atwood herself. It’s from when she was six or seven, and it features an angel (we think) and cats with wings. “The deep origins of Angel Catbird,” the caption says. Priceless!

Recommended!

A note on the "Paws Up" system: Miss C gives either one or two paws up. One paw is for a good read; two paws is for a great read. She never gives three or four paws because that would require her to lie on her back...and Miss C does not do that!

The link below is an Amazon Associates link. If you purchase the book through this link, old SoLT and I could get some coin for our kibble account. Thank you!