Book Review: UPGRADE SOUL by Ezra Clayton Daniels

UPGRADE SOUL graphic novel by Ezra Clayton Daniels (Lion Forge Press, September 2018) Trade paperback 272 pages.

Synopsis on the Goodreads website . . . . .

For their 45th anniversary, Hank and Molly Nonnar decide to undergo an experimental rejuvenation procedure, but their hopes for youth are dashed when the couple is faced with the results: severely disfigured yet intellectually and physically superior duplicates of themselves. Can the original Hank and Molly coexist in the same world as their clones? 

In Upgrade Soul, McDuffie Award-winning creator Ezra Claytan Daniels asks probing questions about what shapes our identity-Is it the capability of our minds or the physicality of our bodies? Is a newer, better version of yourself still you? This page-turning graphic novel follows the lives of Hank and Molly as they discover the harsh truths.

My FIVE-STAR Review on the Goodreads website . . . . .

Add UPGRADE SOUL to the list of graphic novels to recommend to friends who are skeptical of the ability of comics to tell compelling and complex stories. This is a fine example, and I can't imagine the story having as much power had it been presented as a print novel without the visuals. The illustrations, including the clever use of colors and shading, enhance the story in way that I don't believe could be as effective without it. This novel is a great candidate for a film version or an animated feature.

This was the monthly selection of a book club that I belong to, and I read the graphic novel quickly over two days. UPGRADE SOUL happened to be one of the few choices that generated a lot of thoughtful discussion in the book club, including wandering off into tangents on related subjects like eugenics, cloning, and what defines a person and their soul. 

The story takes place in the 1990's, before the advent of advances in artificial intelligence when experimentation (human or otherwise) was being conducted on the fringes. There are many heart-warming moments, but overall this a sad and tragic storyline. At least it conludes with a ray of hope.

I want to return to this novel at a future date, and read it much slower - - which it truly deserves. I'm sure I will derive even more of significance in doing so and will be adding to this review then.

This one requires a lot of thought and reflection.