Top reviews from the United States

• 

  Y. Hirata

  5 out of 5 stars

  Charming, engaging, and utterly entertaining.

  Reviewed in the United States on June 28, 2001

  Format: Paperback

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  For almost any popular art fan, the Gon books are a must, with a level of amazing detail that is unmatched in the comic book genre of any country. Gon on Safari continues Masashi Tanaka's reputation for artistic quality and the warped humor that makes his little dinosaur an engaging hero for all ages. These are books accessible to any language; there are no words, excepting the titles themselves. Language is unnecessary, as all the characters are either animals or Mother Nature herself. Gon survives, -- thrives, -- on a life that tips everybody around him into chaos. The natural order of things is turned upside-down as he bulldozes his single-minded way through the African Veldt, championing the occasional underdog, and unlinking the food chain as he goes.

  Despite the fact that the character is a dinosaur that borders dangerously on the 'cute' side, Tanaka doesn't make the mistake of putting Gon in a Sanrio world. Predators prey, the vulnerable die, and even the best of animals meet death when it comes for them. Gon is the anti-Barney, hot-tempered, voracious, and unstoppable; Tanaka's meticulous pen depicts it all with real genius, and an incredible eye for detail that makes it no surprise that it can sometimes take weeks to draw a single page.

  This volume contains the following stories:

  Gon with the Huge Wise Elephant

  Gon and the Bird Nest on his Head

  Gon and his Wounded Fellows

  Gon Climbs a Mountain

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• 

  TBS

  5 out of 5 stars

  Walking through the Wild

  Reviewed in the United States on September 21, 2002

  Format: Paperback

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  In this edition of the Gon saga, our dinosaur tourguide takes us from the snowcapped peaks of Tibet to the acrid plains of the African Veldt as he goes on Safari. While it is in the same short story format that Gon readers will, no doubt, find themselves familiar with, one of the stories actually deals with more than perseverance and curiosity, holding pangs of sadness within it as it branches out to deal with the slightly touched venue of demise.

  A short synopsis of the stories (without spoiling them):

  Gon with the huge wise elephant is a tale that starts with the adventuresome Gon traveling with a herd of elephants in the middle of a huge storm. It slowly morphs into something more, however, placing Gon in the midst of an elephant's struggle to find its final resting spot, a cavern filled with the bones of other elephants. Though filled with some comical portions of classic Gon exploits, it is a bit more serious than most other portions of the book.

  Gon and the bird's nest on his head finds Gon with, you guessed it, a bird's nest on the top of his head. Three chicks are living inside at the time, three riders in for the experience of their lives.

  Gon and his wounded fellows pits Gon and some hardened animals against the wiles of an unfriendly, sometimes fire-riddened forest.

  Gon climbs a mountain, the final story in the book, puts Gon up against an impossible seeming task, that of climbing a mountain with stubby, almost nonexistent, arms. Besides weather and the height, he also has some other woes, like that of a very unfriendly Ibex dancing on his head.

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• 

  Shantell Powell

  4 out of 5 stars

  More fun than a miniature Godzilla!

  Reviewed in the United States on August 16, 2000

  Format: Paperback

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  If you've never "read" a Gon book, get thee to a bookstore. I use the word "read" in quotation marks because the only words in Gon books are the titles. Gon is a delightful meticulously-rendered itty-bitty dinosaur with a bad attitude. Sometimes, underneath his scaled tough exterior, he's a big softy. My favourite tale in Gon on Safari is "Gon and the Bird Nest on His Head". While on a typical rampage, he knocks a bird nest out of a tree, and somehow ends up with it as a bizarre hat. The three baby birds who live in it are terrified, at first. After a while, they become accustomed to their new "tree," and begin to notice some fringe benefits.

  The story may sound trite and simplistic, but seeing the art will change your mind. Masashi Tanaka is a master cartoonist. Each of his drawings must take hours, and sometimes even days to complete. He pays careful attention to even the most miniscule detail, and the end result is pure joy.

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