Nothing has been the same since Wendi stopped drawing and this book proves it. It lacks the depth Elfquest used to be known for. If you want to remain true to yourself, leave this book behind and stick to Wendi's work.

This book is in a sense the successor to the "Hidden Years" collection. That book collected the first five issues of the series of that name; this one includes the next five - but rearranged to form a complete narrative.

Only the last story, the highly-regarded "issue 9.5", was actually drawn by Wendy Pini herself. The other segments were among the first EQ issues drawn by the Pinis' apprentices and, while competent, are not really in Wendy's league. Fortunately, the full-color presentation is very lavish and more than compensates. Indeed, though three of the five issues in "Challenge" are duplicated in "Shards" (volume 10), it remains worthwhile to check out this volume, since the reproductions of the three pieces (8, 9 and 9.5) look glorious in color, very poor in black and white (to the point that, for example, important detail in no.9 "The Enemy's Face" is lost).

That said, the real glory of "Challenge" is the storytelling, much of it among the best in the series. Though Rayek is the main character of this book, there is a fascinating digression in the form of the two-part story "How Shall I Keep from Singing?", about the arrival of the High Ones, ancestors of all the elves. All the stories herein display the penetrating views of character that have made the EQ stories loved - and this study of Rayek, the most controversial character of all, is fertile ground for storytelling.

it was sorta confusing though. it goes off the story when it talks about the crash, then in book 10-shards it has book 9's ending as its own beginning.

Maybe it's just me and my own sense of humor, and seriousness, but I wasn't amused by these stories at all. Bursting out with laughter? No. And the artwork is awful. I'm a fan of the ElfQuest series all the way up to Kings of the Broken Wheel, and the change from beautiful, symmetrical elves to ugly, lopsided weak characters was shocking. There's a lot of fanart out there that's better than this! And the dialogue was flat and simple.

If you're a really diehard fan of EQ, stay away. If you like the series, but can accept the art, boring stories, and all, then go and read it. I hope the artists that drew this get better. I don't think I could take it if they started doing the main stories.

The first time I looked at Bedtime Stories I was really upset. I love ElfQuest, and Bedtime Stories seemed like nothing more than a bunch of half standard artwork. But then I sat down and actually read it. And thought about it. And then I laughed so hard I thought my sides were going to split. This is not an example of the mature, highly involved stories we've come to expect from the world of two moons. This is what we have been telling our children for as long as fairy tales and Elves have existed. Why should Elf parents be any different? I found the artwork crude but the Elf twist on some very familiar stories amusing and interesting. After all, a good story *is* a good story, right?

I don't own this book, I read it at the library. Now, I wish I did own it! The art isn't the same quality as the Elfquest comics by Wendy Pini, but it was good and kind of "cute" looking. And the stories were hilarious - I burst out laughing in some parts! This Elfquest book is intended for children, but it can be enjoyed by anyone - especially Elfquest fans.

I love elfquest, but this is one of the worst books in the readers collections. There are a collection of stories that don't fit anywhere else, and all but one shoudln't have been published at all. The store of Egg's meeting with Timmain is wonderful, good art, good story. It is the only one worth while. The others have poor art and chatoic story lines. The store where sutter was a cross breed between elf and human, rather than a wolf rider wear bearable to read, but not really enjoyable. The other stories I couldn't get through. Don't wast your money. Find a back issue with the the storry about Egg.

How the mighty have fallen. This series has become so bad, so blatantly money grubbing, so sloppy and insincere, I suggest you RUN, DO NOT WALK AWAY from this dog, with reproduction so bad it looks as if it could have been printed in mud. I am a former, devoted EQ fan. "Forevergreen" makes me a fan nevermore. Despite the Pini's garish self promotion and pleas to support them while they are working on their movie which they expect to make them zillionaires, they are doing it on the dollars of fans they expect to love them enough to buy this trash. There are many graphic novels out there from other companies, by creators who not only care about their work, they care about their fans. The Pinis are not among them. Don't give them your money. This is trash.

DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY! If I could give it less than one star, I would! This is the most abyssmal book I have ever owned and I ashamed to have it sitting on my bookshelf. In the case of a power outtage, it is the first thing I will burn! If you love elfquest, then you will hate this...that Wendy and Richard even published it destroys my faith in their integrity and makes me very skeptical of future releases. This is the most hackneyed, untalented, uninspired, unbelieveable and nauseating book I have ever read! (and I've read a lot of stinkers) If you want EQ, read the Hidden Years graphic novel or Dreamtime...don't waste your time on this.

I have read this book and agree with most of the other reviewers. As an avid elfquest fan, I was disappointed by the the art - it doesn't possess the quality of the Elfquest legacy. The art is substandard and embarrassing for Elfquest. The story, too, is mediocre. There is too much jumping around, holes in the plot, and departures from characters. The actions of the characters just seem out of sync with the other elfquest stories - did someone other than the Pinis write it? Of course I bought this since I am a fan and stupidly bought Phoenix, which is even worse than this one! EQ fans beware.