I hadn't realized that the author of the adorable Phoebe and Her Unicorn books is the same person who did Ozy and Millie and I Drew This, webcomics I read regularly back in the day. I was disappointed that these weren't new strips because I really wanted the further adventures of Ozy and Millie. But it was fun to read these and it's been so long that they were almost like new again. And there's some funny stuff here.

Okay, so maybe I wasn't completely unbiased when I requested this from Netgalley. When I found out Phoebe and Her Unicorn was done by the author of Ozy and Millie, I had a minor fangirl brain blow up, because I loved Ozy and Millie oh so much when a friend showed me the comics back in 2004'ish. And I was so, so sad when Dana stopped making them.

Needless to say, I am EXUBERANT about this book. Not just because I get to revisit comics I've completely forgotten about, but also because people who never knew about them now get the chance to see the smart, hilarious humor of these two friends and their parents. Including the dragon, who I've always thought was remarkably similar to Aziraphale from Good Omens.

These aren't new comics, they're "remastered" (see also: colored) comics from back in the day. Dated references have been removed, sadly, but the humor is as sharp and funny now as it was then. All of the characters are shown to their best, and I really hope this is a sign that more Ozy and Millie books will be forthcoming.

My only concern, though, is that I'm not sure what the demographic for this is. Kids who adore Phoebe and Her Unicorn may not understand some of the smarter humor here. I honestly think this would be a great book for disenchanted teenagers, but I'm fresh out of those at the moment. I definitely think adults and children alike can very easily fall in love with these characters, though.

DNF at a quarter - just wasn't getting anything out of this.

DNF at a quarter - just wasn't getting anything out of this.

ARC Copy...if you liked the humor if Phoebe and her Unicorn, you might enjoy this...hehe copy righting fire hehe.

The kids are split on this one. One did not want to finish, saying it's a rehash of Phoebe and the Unicorn and not any better. In fact, it's boring compared to Dana Simpson's P&U and gives it 1 star. The other thinks it's better and says 3 stars.

This is a very cute series, but the first thing that comes to mind is that it's very well could be a Calvin and Hobbes rip-off. However, I was pleased to see (after reading a few more pages) that this was not the case. Despite not featuring a young boy and his favorite stuffed animal, the series explores similar themes to Calvin and Hobbes, such as a child's desire to rebel, adventure, school, and dealing with other children, with a hyper, incredibly imaginative (and smart!) main character with a cool-headed voice of reason for a best friend. The characters were very cute, the jokes were snappy, and it had just enough going for it to make it different from Watterson's books, but also close enough that fans of that series would find something to love here, too. This is one that I would highly recommend to readers who have exhausted those books and are looking for something new and different.

Ozy and Millie is a collection of Dana Simpson's early work: the best strips picked from her webcomic of the same name, as she explains in the introduction. While not as polished as Phoebe and Her Unicorn, the art is still appealing, and her trademark tongue-in-cheek humour shines throughout, making it an enjoyable read.

I didn't enjoy this as much as I thought I would. The humor was just kind of weak for me. There were very few pages I found funny. It's listed as "middle grade", but I am sure that my daughter who routinely reads middle grade novels would not have understood a great portion of the references in these comics. A comic book shouldn't have to have a glossary and explanation of people/places/events!

I have no issue with the artwork here; it's the content I didn't care for.

Ozy and Millie is a graphic novel, or collection of comic strips, by Dana Simpson. While I’ve never read any of her other works and really only picked this one up because of my great love of all things fox related, I did think it was quite an adorable read for the afternoon today. Simpson appears to have gained popularity with Phoebe and her Unicorn and while cute looking, I don’t think I’ll be reading them. Unicorns just aren’t my thing.

Ozy and Millie follows two fox fifth graders as they get into all sorts of fiasco-driven fun, go to school, and bug their parents. And it was pretty dang adorable. I love the artwork and I’m especially in love with Ozy’s dad, Llewellyn, who is a dragon. As Ozy is a fox, he’s also adopted. Llewellyn is great fun to read when he’s around and his text takes on an entirely different font than the others to match a more medieval theme which I thought was super cool.

While I did adore the book, I do feel that it doesn’t really fit the middlegrade genre. Despite the ages of the main characters, there are a lot of discussions they have throughout the strips that just don’t seem to match the age level of children who might end up reading them. One comic directly references Machiavelli which I frankly don’t think many fifth graders will even have heard of by this point in their lives, let alone know what it means. That being said, there were a few that I feel kids would enjoy and understand.

Overall, it’s a cute work and one that I certainly wouldn’t mind having on my shelf, though I wouldn’t go out of my way to get my hands on a copy. Simpson is a genuinely talent artist, though I do believe her story fits more of a teen audience. And though I know this particular book was meant more as a collection of old works than as a full story, I was a little disappointed at not having more of an introduction to the characters themselves at the beginning as I felt the whole thing began by sort of throwing readers straight into something with very little background (though the introductory letter from the author at the beginning was an appreciated touch).

I think maybe this just wasn't for me. The illustrations were neat and the characters were realistic (despite being foxes and dragons) and had insight, and all were relatable, but the humour fell flat for me, and I never really thought it was anything more than vaguely amusing. I think that if you enjoy Phoebe and Her Unicorn (which I didn't, either, and that definitely says more about me that I'd like) this will be right up your alley.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What a wonderful collection. This was one of my favorite webcomics, and this new color volume is fantastic.
Ozy and Millie are charming and funny and I am ecstatic to be able to revisit them.

Before Dana Simpson created "Phoebe and Her Unicorn", a sort of Calvin and Hobbs with a unicorn instead of a tiger, she was working on "Ozy and MIllie". She writes, in the introduction, that this is where she learned about doing comics. It has a bit of her current humor, and a bit of "Peanuts" humor, where children talk about things that are beyond their years, such as philosophy.

If you love Phoebe and Her Unicorn, you might want to pick this book up, to see where it developed from, or if you love all things Dana Simpson. There is nothing outrageously funny, though. It is more like, a grin or a smirk. I have gathered the ones that made me smile, below, as well as the glossary, she includes at the end, so that some of the bigger concepts are explained.

<img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-767" src="http://www.reyes-sinclair.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Screen-Shot-2018-07-22-at-8.45.38-AM.png" alt="Ozy and Millie" />
<img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-768" src="http://www.reyes-sinclair.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Screen-Shot-2018-07-22-at-8.44.41-AM.png" alt="Ozy and Millie" />
<img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-769" src="http://www.reyes-sinclair.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Screen-Shot-2018-07-22-at-8.43.23-AM.png" alt="Ozy and MIllie" />
<img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-770" src="http://www.reyes-sinclair.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Screen-Shot-2018-07-22-at-8.13.02-AM.png" alt="Ozy and MIllie" />
<img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-766" src="http://www.reyes-sinclair.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Screen-Shot-2018-07-22-at-8.53.23-AM.png" alt="Ozy and Millie, glossary" />


Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

*thank you to Netgalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

2 stars.

Umm. While the illustrations were pretty good, I didnt enjoy this collection of short comics as much as I'd hoped I would have. The humor didnt make me laugh but some got a smile out of me. It's a light and easy read about two friends Ody and Millie and their lives together. While I would recommend it to others, I would say if it sounds like something you want to read, or have enjoyed the authors previous works, then yeah, give it a go, see if you liked it more than I did. I'm still glad I read it.