Diamond Island

Hapless Richie Rockstein is a cog in his father%E2%80%99s corporation, and his repeated disastrous missteps lead to his inevitable ousting. At rock bottom, Richie acquires a map to the legendary Diamond Island, where precious stones litter the landscape. He acquires great wealth, but Richie%E2%80%99s nature as a disaster magnet trumps his luck, resulting in a crushing reversal of fortune and important life lessons learned. This all-ages graphic novel suffers from being overlong and having problems with its visual pacing. Sequences attempt to replicate the flow and timing of animation, but they paradoxically slow the proceedings to a near-halt while bloating the page count. The story%E2%80%99s moral lesson is also hammered home with the impact of a frozen ham to the skull, which comes off as deeply patronizing to its intended audience. (Feb.)