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Dec 14, 2007

Jackie "the Librarian" rated it:

Take back your world! Jane survives a bomb attack, and her freaked out parents move the family to the "safer" suburbs. But Jane takes the spirit of the city with her - she has a plan, she just needs to put together a team to carry it out. Then she spots the other Janes in the lunchroom, and soon convinces them to join her in her guerilla art projects. I love the active role these girls take, and the humor and positiveness of what they do. And I love that these are real girls portrayed More...

1 comment like (7 people liked it)

Dec 16, 2009

Jennifer rated it:

When I first read this book, it was a preview galley, and I thought that pages must be missing from the end. But this was not the case. While the book has an interesting premise and very nice art by Jim Rugg (his Street Angel work is far more dynamic and full of detail, however--I say that as the editor of SA, mind you), it falls flat in execution. Characters are not fleshed out sufficiently; believability is a problem (where do 16-year-old girls get hundreds of garden gnomes?); and, the worst o More...

1 comment like (5 people liked it)

Aug 25, 2008

Sylvia rated it:

Di suatu hari yang terlihat biasa-biasa saja, sebuah bom meledak dekat Jane, dan mengenai seorang pria. Jane, meskipun terkejut, membawa pria tersebut ke rumah sakit. Dan sejak itu dia tak pernah berhenti mengunjunginya. Pria yang tak dikenalnya itu menjadi tempat curhatnya.

Ketika keluarganya memutuskan untuk pindah ke pinggiran kota, Jane merasa hidupnya berakhir. Tak ada lagi teman-temannya, hangout bareng. Semua berubah.

Tapi ketika di sekolah barunya dia menemukan me More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Oct 08, 2007

LFPL Teen Services rated it:

What is art? Think of a piece of art that you are familiar with. Do you think that art is something that can be created under the cover of night with flashlights and black ski masks while trying desperately to elude the police?
The secret gang called P.L.A.I.N. (People Loving Art is Neighborhoods) are on a mission – to transform their sleepy suburban town into a living and breathing work of art that goes beyond just enjoying artwork from afar. They have made the town and streets part More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

May 16, 2007

Jamil rated it:

this book is the first release from Minx, which is the dc comics graphic novel imprint aimed at teenage girl readers. so, yeah, i'm kinda outside the demographic for that -- and judging by the previews for future titles in the back, probably will remain so. (the only other one which holds any interest for me is "Good as Lily" by Derek Kirk Kim & Jesse Hamm).

anyway, this wasn't bad. and it's actually not too heavy handed in it's exploration of things like terror(ism More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 20, 2009

monica rated it:

This was my first encounter with Cecil Castellucci, Jim Rugg, and Minx books (the DC comics division developed specifically for teenage girls) so I can honestly say I went into "The Plain Janes" not knowing what to expect. What I found was a comic book that I would have LOVED had I been 15, with absolutely no insight into how high-school really worked.

"The Plain Janes" is about a young girl named Jane (the main Jane), who moves out to the suburbs with her parents More...

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Aug 23, 2011

Andrew Shuping rated it:

After a bomb attack in Metro City Jane's parents move to the suburbs and take her away from all that she knows. Bored and lonely at her new school, Jane attempts to make friends with three other girls also named Jane. She has to do something for each of them, but they quickly form a secret club called the "Plains Janes" and decide to add some excitement to the town with some random secret art projects throughout the town. Some of the people in the town like the secret art projects othe More...

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Jan 12, 2011

Tressa rated it:

A sweet but predictable story about a teen who experiences a tragedy and opts for a new identity when her parents pick her up and move her from the city to suburbia.

The blonde, popular Jane is almost killed when a bomb explodes on a sidewalk cafe, and she cuts her hair and dyes it black to change her image and mirror the dark feelings she has about the world. At her new school, she eschews the popular lunch table and decides to sit with three misfits, all named Jane (Jane, Jayne, and More...

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Oct 20, 2010

Oh Ya! rated it:

From the <a href="http://ohyacomics.blogspot.com/2010/09/plain-janes-written-by-cecil.html?Oh YA! Comics</a> blog.

After surviving a terrorist bombing, Jane is left with questions about her identity and the sketchbook of a comatose John Doe from the attack. She resolves to find her true self through art and abandons her carefree-blond-popular girl persona. When her family moves out to the suburbs, she soon enlists her new 'tribe' of misfits -- dramatic "Theater" More...

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Aug 23, 2010

Patrice rated it:

SUMMARY: After Jane is injured in a bomb attack, her parents move from the city to the suburbs, where they hope life will be safer. Jane cuts and dyes her hair, an outward expression of how the bombing incident changed her internally. At her new school, she shuns the popular girls, instead striking up a friendship with three girls who are also named Jane. Before long the Janes have a mission, to bring a bit of art and life into their town via their club, P.L.A.I.N.: People Loving Art in Neighbor More...

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Oct 17, 2009

The Loft rated it:

Jane’s parents freaked after a terrorist attack and moved from Metro City to the suburbs, and so did Jane. But what’s in the suburbs for Jane? She is not a suburban girl. At her new school, the popular girls invite her over . . . should she go sit with them?

When the terrorist attack happened, Jane saved a man’s journal. He was really hurt, and he is in the hospital now, and Jane visits him. He didn’t have a wallet, so they call him John Doe. But for Jane, his journal keeps him More...

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Aug 29, 2009

Vicki rated it:

Jane survives a bombing in Metro City and after she recovers, her parents decide to move to a faraway suburban area, hoping it will make them feel safer. Jane, of course, already knows that no place is actually safe. Take the town where they're now living -- everybody seems asleep to Jane. But she finds a table full of rejects, all of them named Jane, and she decides that they are her people. Eventually, the Janes form a group dedicated to performing acts of art -- bringing art to a somewhat More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jul 23, 2009

Mercedes rated it:

Jane’s parents freaked after a terrorist attack and moved from Metro City to the suburbs, and so did Jane. But what’s in the suburbs for Jane? She is not a suburban girl. At her new school, the popular girls invite her over . . . should she go sit with them?

When the terrorist attack happened, Jane saved a man’s journal. He was really hurt, and he is in the hospital now, and Jane visits him. He didn’t have a wallet, so they call him John Doe. But for Jane, his journal keeps him More...

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Jun 16, 2009

Christina rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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May 21, 2009

Anna rated it:

I loved, loved, loved this graphic novel and had no idea how much I would enjoy a novel in comic book format. The Plain Janes opens with Jane just shortly after 9/11 type of attack on Metro City which causes her parents to move from a city on high security alert to the blander but safer suburbs. However, their move is more complex than Jane’s adjustment to a less hip and less interesting environment: she finds meaning in a dandelion that doesn’t get stepped on during the attack and in a drawi More...

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May 14, 2009

Kate rated it:

The story is of a "Metro City" (fictional NYC) teen-ager Jane who is walking down the street one day when a bomb goes off right next to her. Her parents whisk the fam out to the suburbs, where things are safer, and, unfortunately for Jane, much more bland. She's arty and interesting and likes "culture."

The man next to her on the sidewalk that day, an artist, went into a coma after the explosion. Jane keeps his sketchbook. She writes him letters on the blank pages an More...

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Mar 01, 2009

Joe rated it:

I think there is a lot about The Plain Janes that appeals to teens. First, there is the feeling of being alone that we all feel at times. To go with this, the way Jane seeks those special people to have in her life is very familiar to many of us, especially when we are teens. There is also the humor in the book. Amidst all of the serious topics, such as the bombing, the humor kept the book from being all serious. Next, the book had a bit of rebellion in it, which most teens would enjoy. Th More...

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Feb 02, 2012

Caitlyn added it

The Plain Jane’s is a wonderful graphic novel about a girl named Jane who grew up in Metro City (which is like New York City as we know it) until a bomb goes off and she was caught in the explosion. This caused her parents become depressed and sad to live in the city because of the effect the bomb had on their life so they moved across the country to a suburban neighborhood. Jane had stood out so much in the suburbs, for in New York no one was as judgmental about looks and artistic freedom, so More...

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Dec 13, 2009

Kateri rated it:

I picked this one up in class because I wanted to read another Graphic Novel, but I was kind of disappointed with this one. It's about a girl named Jane who lived in Metro City and one day, while walking home from school, a bomb goes off right by her. She sees others die and saves the life of a young man near her. Jane feels guilty because she's alive and well while the young man is in a coma. Obviously this scars her, and her parents decide it best to move to a smaller town. She hates it here b More...

1 comment like

Apr 18, 2011

Megan rated it:

Well, since my library didn’t have Watchmen or Persepolis and I was in the mood for a graphic novel, I ended up picking this one. I really liked the cover art and the back of the book asks the question “But can art really save a group of misfits from the hell that is high school?” That sounded kind of familiar so I decided to give it a try. In high school I was definitely a plain Jane (still am, whoop whoop!), and some of my favorite memories are the ones that took place in the art room. Art was More...

2 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 21, 2010

Michael rated it:

The Plain Janes is an interesting graphic novel about a girl named Jane who moves away from her big city to a smaller town. She is finding it difficult to fit in among the different cliques. She can't find any where she fits in. She eventually finds some people with whom she gets along. Coincidentally, all the people in this group are named Jane. They are all people who are not outstanding in any of their interests, just plain Janes. They try to find things to do, and eventually they come More...

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Dec 09, 2010

Stevecrandell rated it:

This is an enjoyable graphic novel, with a simple message about conviction, teen cool, and conformity. The main character has to work through the post-traumatic-stress of a 9/11-style attack. She turns to her art, and a new set of friends in a new “safe” suburban home.

The P.L.A.I.N. Janes aren’t all especially likeable, but they’re honest with themselves. And they stage some fun public statements. I especially like the police gnomes and New Years.

The political lines are dra More...

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Oct 29, 2011

Ellen rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Apr 01, 2010

Elisabeth rated it:

I'm not into graphic novels as a rule, but I enjoyed this one. A teenage girl survives a bombing in New York City; afterward, her traumatized parents decide to move the family to Suburbia, where our heroine struggles to adjust to a new high school, new people, a whole new world - not to mention the residual grief and fear she feels after going through what she went through. Inspired by the sketch book of a man who happened to be on the same sidewalk when the bomb dropped, and who is now in a com More...

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Dec 09, 2010

Love YA Lit rated it:

Em's Review: After a terrorist bombing in Metro City nearly takes her life, Jane decides that in order to survive she will need to become a new Jane. She gets a new look, turns to art, and finds hope in the Art Saves sketchbook belonging to John Doe, an unidentified victim of the attack who lies in a coma in a Metro City hospital. Her parents, feeling rattled from the terrorist attack and their daughter’s brush with death, move the family to the suburbs seeking a sense of security. In her new sc More...

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Sep 18, 2011

Vicky rated it:

A very short comic that was quite resonating at times with regards to overprotective parents, but the pace of this was too fast. The writing style reminded me of Felicia Day's comic, The Guild, and the "fast" pacing works better as a web series than comic.

Impressions I had while reading this:
- very twee, almost uncomfortable twee
- art will save the world theme is also cringe-y because it wasn't pulled off as "cool" as the girls from the Itty Bitty Titt More...

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Jun 26, 2010

Cammym rated it:

Jane has suffered a traumatic event in the big city, and her parents, wanting to protect her, move to a small town. Jane has trouble fitting in and finds solace with a group of aloof misfits who all share the same name. To spice things up they decide to start anonymously doing street art and leaving their calling card, PLAIN. The message is generally positive and uplifting, but local authorities are not amused and they take steps to quash the movement, specifically by canceling school events More...

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Aug 15, 2009

Sabrina rated it:

Loved the idea of communicating with a comatose stranger, bonded to her only because he was also hurt in the same terrorist attack as she was. The public art attacks are a lot of fun, though I have to admit that I did twinge over the bubbles in the fountain - I've been wanting to to do that for a long time, but had heard that it can destroy the plumbing/pump. While I agree that the other Janes were rather "stock" characters (I saw part of that as their individual attempts to fit in a More...

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Jan 20, 2008

Jenny rated it:

Castellucci's (of Boy Proof fame-- totally good) first graphic novel. From the hip new Minx imprint. Nice mix of homeland security style paranoia and exuberant teenage art loving. The title Janes are actually a group of girls all named Jane, total social rejects, who start a top secret guerrilla art group. And the graphics are really nice too.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 04, 2010

Mary rated it:

CASTELLUCCI, Cecil. The Plain Janes. 145p. D C Comics. 2007. ISBN 1-4012-1115-1 ISBN 13: 978-1-4012-1115-8
We are all shaped and fashioned by what we love. -Goethe
Jane narrowly escapes death in a Metro City bomb attack. In the midst of the chaos, she finds hope in the form of a dandelion unharmed by the madness that surrounds it. She knows she too will survive. She picks up a sketchbook titled Art Saves, belonging to a man in the hospital lying in a coma, and promises to return it when More...

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