Many science-fiction stories follow Mary Poppin’s advice of providing a spoonful of sugar to go with one’s medicine. While readers are usually enjoying the fantastic technologies and interdimensional shenanigans, they are also assimilating the story’s moral about universal problems that affects most everyone on earth, at least ideally. Sometimes, that’s a delicate balance. Too much sci-fi sweetness and the author’s message becomes lost, but too little and the audience becomes resistant to the author’s didactic delivery. Luckily, Acid Box, with its story provided by Sara Kenney and art provided by James Devlin, Emma Vieceli, and Ria Grix, manages that delicate balance.
This time travel adventure begins in 2026 with Jade Nyo, a Glasgow woman more interested in dancing and getting high (and taking care of her brother) instead of saving the world. During a trip to a seemingly normal restroom, however, she becomes acquainted with three women who call themselves Liminals, guardians of doorways through space and time. Jade becomes responsible for the Acid Box, a device that can potentially cause geological catastrophes. Jade and her companions, including her brother, go on a quest, traveling through space, time, and the 90’s rave culture scene to repair the Acid Box while hopefully not destroying the world.
As much as Kenney’s story is about environmental issues and humanity’s role in them, this story also serves as a love letter to rave culture and what music itself provides. Jade and the people she encounters on her journey serves as musical and historical tour guides through the ‘90s as the book explores the rave music genre along with historical events. Such a statement might sound like a synopsis from a PBS show about the power of music, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. The main benefit of this musical genre, argued by Kenney’s story, is its power to connect people and unite them under a common cause. This trip through musical history also allows Jade to experience her own hero’s journey of self-discovery once she stops relying on recreational drugs to handle the mindbending time-travel narrative.
Complementing this mindbending journey is the visuals provided by the multiple artists that lend their talents to this book. There are many opportunities for these artists to be creative, from depicting natural disasters that seem to be sentient to trips through different time periods that take their toll on the body. Many of these panels take up whole pages, so the artists have a lot of canvas to show off their talents. Combined with Kenney’s story, the art is as vibrant and stirring as the music serving as the narrative’s heartbeat.
This book is ideal for librarians wanting graphic novels that take advantage of both the linguistic and visual aspects of the medium. Acid Box provides a visual feast for the eyes, a compelling protagonist, and a story that doesn’t dilute this message, the proper ratio of sugar and medicine.
Acid Box
By Sara Kenney
Art by James Devlin
Not in listAvery Hill Publishing, 2025
ISBN: 9781917355056
NFNT Age Recommendation: Adult (18+), Older Teen (16-18)
Creator Representation: British,
