Renegade

This was really well done. An interesting historical biography captured in a strong, clean artistic style that really brings the subject matter to life.

Beautifully illustrated and well researched, this graphic novel follows the life of Martin Luther, the man who challenged the Catholic Church and inspired the Protestant Revolution. It is a fast read that captures the tumultuous times in Germany at the beginning of the 16th century, a time of poverty, plague and suffering. Martin was the son of hard working, strictly religious family. He excelled in school and was granted the opportunity to study at the University in Erfurt with the hopes of becoming a lawyer and improving his family’s lot. When caught in a violent storm, Martin has an epiphany which brings him to the church. Obsessed with salvation and faith he pores over the scriptures as he seeks to reconcile his growing doubts with the practices of the Holy Catholic Church. His major complaints against the Church over the sale of indulgences and the true meaning of faith and grace lead him to post the infamous 95 Theses on the door of the Cathedral. The novel presents Luther’s reasoning on the questions of faith, his friends and foes in his struggle to clarify his theology, and his efforts to bring the word of God closer to the people of Germany. The good, the bad and the ugly of Luther’s life is exposed, including his end of life tirades against Jews, Anabaptists and the peasants of Germany. Ciponte’s drawings are gorgeous and colorful - evocative of some of the great masterpieces of the Renaissance.

Well developed graphic novel on the life of Martin Luther, done in a way that will capture those reluctant readers. The purpose of graphic novels is to not only draw in a reader with graphics but to provide the reader with facts and information which in this case, portrays the life of Martin Luther in a magnetic way for us. Attention-getting.

Renegade is a graphic novel biography of the Father of Protestantism Martin Luther. I love that authors and illustrators are understanding the power of the graphic novel. For too long, biographies have been long boring tomes that the lay person aren't interested in. Buy breaking into the comic world, the writers are capturing more people and educating them in a fun way.
I knew the basics about Luther from my studies in college but I really enjoyed getting to know ore about him on a persona level. In school, we stuck to how he changed religion without looking at the man himself. Renegade does that rather well.
As a protestant myself, I was awed by truly seeing what Luther faced in making sure that the people were able to rad God's word and have a relationship with him outside the unethical dealings of the church. I had understood on an intellectual level, but the graphic novel made me understand it on an emotional level.
An engaging read, Renegade is a great way to get people more interested in history.

For text and originality of how they put this together I give it an A++. It's a thoroughly enjoyable read and our whole family loved it for reading nights. We love reading about Martin Luther and how he challenged the old ways to bring the new (yet old!) ways into being. He was far from perfect, but none of us are. I do strike off some points for the actual graphics. They're well constructed but I just can't stand the style of art they did for this. My husband loves it but it's just not my cup of tea.