Sophie Johnson loves unicorns. In way she’s like any dreamy-eyed kid between four and eight who wants to believe in magical things. For a short period of our lives trolls, elves and unicorns populate our world. For some people it’s a combination of these creatures, while others are fully invested in one of them. Sophie Johnson, Unicorn Expert is what her business card would say, if six year-olds started carrying them around. What makes this book work is that it goes beyond the imagination of a young child, has fabulous colors and has just a touch of meta to make any kid in that age range enjoy it.
A worry is not a physical thing. The moment you stop obsessing over said ‘worry’ it magically disappears into the background of life. It’s natural to have illustrated books about being worried because some miss and some hit. Ruby Finds a Worry is by Tom Percival and expertly brings his warmth, pacing, sublime story telling ability and art to a worthy book about a topic that we need to address…but not be worried about.
Eight pages should not be this entertaining and be able to tell a contained story. That’s what I was thinking at the end of each profile in Awesome Achievers in Technology, Super and Strange Facts about 12 Almost Famous History Makers. Awesome Achieves is a new book series written by Alan Katz, who wrote the very funny book The Day The Mustache Took Over, its sequel and many others. This is an educational book, but it’s also fun to read and provides dozens of ‘light bulb’ moments when readers will see the moment that something special in history was created.
Wordless books are awesome. They allow readers to use their imagination to entirely propel the story forward. We don’t know anything about their character’s background or the people who are in the story. There are no names and it gives kids, provided they want to play along, a chance for them to tell their own story within the picture narrative that the author has established. Spencer’s New Pet is by Jessie Sima and has a couple neat hooks that will capture young readers.
Being worried is a challenging state of being for kids to process. We want them to be concerned and to be cautious, but worrying about anything and everything is counter-productive. I’m Worried by Michael Ian Black with illustrations by Debbie Ridpath Ohi tackles the concept of worrying in a way that some kids will understand.
What’s new in all age comic books this week? In the podcast we’ll chat about Marvel Team Up, Tangled and a couple other comic books that tie-in to some announcements made at D23 recently.
If you’re looking for a comic book that’s great for ages 8 and up this week check out Lumberjanes or Invader Zim. If it’s something a little younger you’re looking for dig into Tangled: Hair It Is, My Little Pony or Casper’s Capers. Our favorite all age comic book (or in this case, graphic novel) is Tyna of the Lake. This is volume 3 in the ongoing Gamayun Tales series by Nobrow Press. This graphic novel is beautifully illustrated and full of the sorts of imagery and monsters that live in fables that ages seven and up will love. This a great example of an all age graphic novel that appeals to those in elementary school and up-without watering down the action or adventure older readers yearn for.
Humor
The Art of Bravest Warriors, UE, M, H
Casper’s Covers #6, E, M
Ducktales Silence & Science #1 of 3, M
Lumberjanes #65, E, M, H
My Little Pony Friendship is Magic #81, E
Pumpkin Heads, M, H
Red Sonja Vampirella Betty Veronica #4, M, H
Sonic the Hedgehog #20 E, M
Tangled the Series Hair It is, E, M
Superhero
Amazing Spider-Man #28, UE, M, H
Harley & Ivy Meet Betty & Veronica, M, H
Marvel Team Up #5, UE, M, H
Mighty Morphin Power Ranger #42, M, H
Moon Girl & Devil Dinosaur #46, E, M, H
Power Pack #1, UE, M
Action/Science-fiction
Archie vs. Predator II, #2 of 5, UE, M, H
Tyna of the Lake, E, M, H
Invader Zim #46, E, M, H
Steven Universe #31, UE, M, H
Hear me roar. For some reason when I say I Am Hermes!, hear me roar just follows naturally. In actuality the official title is I Am Hermes! Mischief-Making Messenger of the Gods. I say mischief, you say Gods, I may think Loki, but nay, this is the OG, original gods, son of Zeus and daughter of Maia. It’s not a stretch to say that the Gods, their powers, relationships and history are Greek to me. Our two children know more about the Greek Gods than I do and that’s due entirely to through what they’ve learned from their friends.
Our Greek friends know that Hermes is the one that invented astronomy, the alphabet, gymnastics, music and more. I Am Hermes!, by Mordecai Gerstein paints the legacy of the original king of mischief in a way that those who don’t know Greek about him will be able to enjoy it in many ways.
Presenting educational text in an actual entertaining format
is challenging. I know, the Greek gods didn’t really exist, it’s the sort of
mythological beings that allow people to dream. It’s not ‘technically’
education in a non-fiction sense, but it’s fun reading and done in a graphic novel
format that ages 8 and up will enjoy.
This is a hardback graphic novel that’s the size of a book.
Its format is different and is complimented by the Gerstein’s art. Its painted
art with watercolors allows some of the color within the panels to blend into
each other or outside the lines. The effect is lighthearted and makes the book
read very quickly.
I Am Hermes! is broken up into a couple of chapters, with each one telling a specific angle of his life. Again, at times I have to remind myself that Hermes wasn’t a real person. If it’s someone that you’ve heard of for ages then they must be real, right? Hermes was apparently quite the challenging child for his parents. He was often playing jokes on his parents, all the while trying to figure out his place in the world. So, the story of Hermes is unlike any real person and any similarities to erstwhile siblings who might joke around too much is entirely coincidental.
Think of I Am Hermes! as a starter story for a Greek God whose title, Messenger of the Gods is perhaps better known than he is. The vocabulary is such that those in upper elementary school will be able to easily read it and have the life experiences required to appreciate-and learn the lessons that these myths can teach us.
Turtles, hermit crabs, rabbits and hamsters are what I call, fringe pets. Granted they are domesticated animals, but they’re way down in the pecking order of pets. Either due to space or one of the parents putting the kibosh on getting a kitten, these are the pets that you’ll remember from your childhood. I was right there with you as I had rabbits and a crow. Yes, a crow. Truman, however, is a turtle and his human is Sarah. She’s about to start going to kindergarten this is story is about how Truman handles it.
Bravery, independence and being excited about new
experiences all happen on a two-way street. Sarah is somewhat of a solitary
kid. She’s not a two-legged, shell-less version of a turtle, but there are some
similarities. They’re both a little shy
and are both about to embark on a paradigm shift to their lifestyle.
Until now, it’s just been Sarah and Truman all day. She’d feed him seven green beans each day. He would lie on the floor while she colored and life was simple, slow and just the two of them. One day she gives him two extra beans, reminds him to be brave and closes the door. This of course, freaks out Truman out because her backpack, she’s dressed up more than usual and she was a tense (she’s never tense)-something is wrong.
This leads Truman to go on a mighty quest to investigate
what’s the problem with her today. Alas, Truman is in a glass container (as all
good turtles are) and sometimes just getting from the piece of lettuce to the
water can be challenging. What is a concerned turtle to do?
Be brave and explore things that you’re uncomfortable with, that’s the answer. That is just what Truman does. From a turtle’s perspective we see him explore, as much as he’s able to, on his rescue mission to see what’s become of Sarah.
Truman works on so many levels as a children’s illustrated
book. First up the art is immediately appealing. The vantage points that Truman
sees and the emotions that his little turtle face convey will hook young
readers. It hooked me and I’m far older than a young reader. The art is also
great for this book. Some pages are corner to corner with color and landscape.
Other pages are sparse and illustrate how big the room is relative to the
Truman. The one constant is that the colors in the book are the colors. The colors
are bright, with a slight retro hue that will remind older readers (me) of
comic strips in the Sunday newspaper. However, they have that timeless vibe
that will bring in elementary school readers.
Truman is a great, illustrated book with a timeless feel. It’s got lessons for anyone and will appeal to boys or girls aged 5 and up. Those in early through middle elementary will laugh at his adventures and those younger ones will relate to the new, scary experiences, like pre-K or kindergarten.
Facebook
Twitter
Youtube