Current mood:

pleased

Are you P.L.A.I.N?
So I was a little bit skeptical when I heard about DC's new Minx line. The brand name gave me pause, and I was a little worried the books would read like some of those lame Sweet Valley High novels.

Boy, am I glad to be proven wrong! I got Cecil Castellucci & Jim Rugg's The Plain Janes last night and the only disappointing thing about the novel is that it is apparently not a continuing series.

The "main Jane" of the story is a girl trying to figure out how to move on with her life after surviving a terrorist attack. And while that may sound like a depressing way to begin a story, The Plain Janes is a surprisingly uplifting tale about individuality, creativity, hope and personal courage. I liked reading about Jane's attempts to fit in at her new school, and her attitude dealing with the aftermath of the attack. Her decision to reinvent herself reminded me of Lindsey from Freaks and Geeks, which like The Plain Janes centers around the fringe kids in high school.

While the Minx books are being marketed towards young women and girls, I'd recommend TPJ to anyone who wants to try something new, something that isn't about spandex-clad Olympians punching the crap out of each other over the latest McGuffin. And although I'm a big fan of grim series like DMZ and The Walking Dead, the upbeat attitude of TPJ was a really nice change of pace.