"Youth! Youth! There is absolutely nothing in the world worth having but youth!""The Picture of Dorian Gray" is a graphic adaptation of Oscar Wilde's classic work, stunningly re-imagined by writer Ian Edginton and artist I.N.J. Culbard. This Gothic morality tale is the story of a man who, taken by his own beauty, pledges his soul in a desperate bid for eternal youth. But when his wish is granted, things go terribly wrong. A painting of Dorian begins to age in his place, while Dorian himself becomes a dangerous narcissist who destroys everyone standing in his way until the day he is forced to come face to face with the ugliness of his own conscience. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

The classic tale of a man who sells his moral health for the opportunity to retain his youth and good looks, and the portrait that reveals his own corruption to him, is well-suited to this graphic novel adaptation. Edginton retains many of Wilde's eloquent phrasings, and Culbard's black-and-white images give us a Belle Epoch London to fit with Dorian Gray's recklessness. Lord Henry Wooton's Svengali role is clearly defined here, and the working-class victims of Gray's appetites and denials including the Vane siblings have some of the most distinct and personalized features among the cast of characters. Gray himself verges on cartoon proportions, a fitting tribute to Wilde's presentation of him as lacking moral depth. Fitting with the original story, Culbard uses scenes from taverns, opium dens, and bawdy houses, and includes an image of an accurately rendered male nude garden statue. Teens who have read the original will appreciate this rendition, and those who haven't read Wilde directly should be encouraged to give him a try after this taste.--Goldsmith, Francisca Copyright 2009 Booklist From: Syndetics Solutions, Inc. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.