I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the POIKO by Brian Middleton Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!
Brian Middleton has been telling stories in one form or another for his whole life. His first comic book (published by his brother's 4th grade teacher and the school's copy machine) sold out at the distributor level. After that there was no looking back! He continued drawing as the years went on and wrote several short stories. Eventually he married the woman of his dreams and together they started a family. At this point his mind began to drift back to his first creative passion: comic books! After dipping his toe in the water with a handful of self-published and
work-for-hire comics he decided to take the deep dive and create his first series, Wulfborne.
The three issue mini-series, published by Scout Comics, released in February 2019 to rave
reviews. The comics review site, Reading With A Flight Ring, called the book "an understated
masterpiece of fiction" and called Brian "a madman, a fool and a genius", which, as far as anyone knows, is all true. With the creation of Wulfborne complete Brian has turned his
creative attention toward his next project, Poiko: Quests and Stuff. The rest of his attention is
focused squarely on his one wonderful wife, two beautiful daughters and six (feel free, dear
reader, to fill in here the adjective of your choice) cats.
Title: POIKO: Quests Stuff
Author: Brian Middleton, Rebecca Taylor (Editor)
Pub. Date: April 12, 2022
Publisher: Wonderbound
Formats: Paperback, eBook
Pages: 128
A new adorable anthropomorphic adventurer awaits, and his name is Poiko! Perfect for fans
of Mouse Guard, Little Robot, and Hilda!
THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS AN “AVERAGE” DAY FOR POIKO!
Have you ever had to deliver a care package to a dragon with allergies? Have you ever been
waylaid by a school of space fish? That’s just an average day for Poiko, the kingdom’s most
reliable courier. The world can be a big, scary place, but it can also be wondrous. Sad things can
happen, but there are always good friends to turn to, or new friends to make. And no matter
what, there is always, always someone who could use your help. Poiko learns all these lessons
and more every time he brushes his tail, pulls on his hoodie, and steps out into a new
adventure. The philosophical whimsicality of Calvin & Hobbes meets the fantasy scapes of
Adventure Time in this modern-day classic.
“In this sincere and exuberant fantasy adventure … Fanciful, visually engrossing backdrops and
the sprawling cast of characters bring to mind classic Sunday comic aesthetics.” -- Publishers
Weekly
#1 Weekly pick from Good Comics for Kids!
Reviews:
“In this sincere and exuberant fantasy adventure … Fanciful, visually engrossing backdrops and
the sprawling cast of characters bring to mind classic Sunday comic aesthetics.”― PUBLISHERS
WEEKLY
Poiko: Quests and Stuff will delight young readers and drop them into a world that’s magical
and interesting while reflecting something incredibly human in the way the characters interact
with their community." -- Eliza Viera ― Gate Crashers
Download DIGITAL ITEMS (Bookmarks, Digital Wallpapers, and Poster), HERE!
https://www.readwonderbound.com/books/poiko-quests-and-stuff/
🐉I chatted with the authors. Check it out below!!🐉
List your favorite graphic novels this year and why you like them.
Murder Falcon by Daniel Warren Johnson really blew my mind. The story that he crafted built
so perfectly with every reveal, and the art conveys the emotional heart of that story so
perfectly. Warren’s art captures the energy of movement in a way that really is striking, but he
is just as deft at capturing the small moments. That’s a definite must read.
I recently read The Flower of the Witch by Enrico Orlandi and I absolutely loved it. The art is so endearing as are the character relationships. The action and character designs are fantastic as well. This is a book that I handed to my daughter as soon as I finished reading it. Seeing her eyes shine with the same light that had recently been behind mine was wonderful.
The Bigger Bang by D.J. Kirkbride and Vassilis Gogtzilas is a perennial favorite of mine. It
harnesses the energy of the Silver Age to tell a story that is beautiful and modern. I absolutely
love the world and characters that they build in this book. It puts me in mind of Stan Lee’s Silver
Surfer, the original Star Trek, and the Silver Age of Superman. That’s a recipe for success, if you
define success as “Brian Middleton will love this!”
When I was in Senior High, I was in a Commercial Art class at the local vocational school for
three periods out of every day. There were students from my school, but also from other
schools in the surrounding area. The best part about that class was interacting with and
learning from those other students, and seeing their influences. I was a “Calvin and Hobbes
meets Superman” kind of guy, but I was learning a ton about manga, graffiti and punk music
album art. Mawrth Vallis by EPHK feels like a book that has taken all of those diverse influences
and turned them into one high energy story. It was a blast reading this book, and took me right
back to my Vo-Tech days!
There are three types of characters that I love to write about, and if you’ve read any of my comics, you could probably guess at least two of them!
One type of character that I love writing is a nice, chill person who is generally not bothered by
what’s going on around him. I’m not that way at all, so it’s refreshing to get into that headspace
when I’m safe in my recliner, clacking away at the keys. In Poiko: Quests and Stuff, Poiko
travels over high rope bridges, climbs down oversized dinosaurs and climbs up mountains. He
falls from incredible heights and sometimes finds himself in over his head, literally! None of this
bothers him at all, but it gives me fits just typing this. That’s one of the many things I love about
the character!
Another type of character whose head I love getting into is a somber wanderer who has seen
many battles while also having loved and lost. There is something enjoyable and possibly
cathartic about getting behind a strong and mostly silent protagonist who has the weight of the
world on his shoulders, but is bearing it semi-admirably. I love a character who has the sort of
pain that comes from loss, but directs it inward, rather than out. I enjoyed writing this type of
character in Wulfborne, and likely will revisit the archetype again one day.
The third type of character that I really enjoy writing is a strong guy who is a bit of a buffoon. I
love writing the words and actions of that sort of lovable schmuck who is bad with money, can’t
pick out a matching outfit to save his life, but who can also throttle monsters and other
dungeon-related obstacles in his sleep. That’s the type of character I hope to write more about
soon!
Giveaway Details:
2 winners will receive a finished copy of POIKO, US Only.
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