Pendragon Book One: The Merchant of Death

PENDRAGON Graphic Novel Book One: THE MERCHANT OF DEATH by Carla Speed McNeal. Based on the novel by D.J. MacHale (Aladdin, 2008).
GENRE: Graphic Novel / Adventure
HONORS: None

REVIEW: Bobby Pendragon is an enviable kid. He's popular, good at sports and romantically linked to a really great girl. But he's also what's known as a "traveler"- people who travel between worlds through "flumes" or passages in time and space. Travelers move between dimensions righting wrongs and doing good, ultimately battling the Traveler-gone-wrong, Saint Dane, the series' big villain. It's a very appealing premise, one with a lot of fantastic potential. Unfortunately, that potential remains unmet, at least in this graphic novel adaptation. Bobby is a singularly unappealing protagonist - weak, vain and shallow - and, unfortunately, there is little growth shown over the course of the narrative arc. One gets the sense that, as Bobby accepts his new, inter-dimensional role, he will only become a different shade of insufferable. The story itself is a storehouse of recyled tropes - boy discovers true identity and gets dragged into a "fight that isn't his", adult role models hang around just long enough to get captured or killed before the apprenticeship is over, and there's even an arena fight. A decent adventure, but nothing to write home about.

OPINION: There's nothing wrong, exactly, with this story. It simply rings shallow and predictable. McNeal's illustrations, though competent, are relatively generic, often tending towards the cluttered and unclear, while the slang incorporated to appeal to tweens ("coolio", "lou-zah!" etc.) rings false and forced. An overall middle-of-the-road offering that will probably appeal to younger male tweens, but make no lasting impression.

IDEAS: A fun supplement to the book series, it's a good introduction to the novels for reluctant readers (especially boys) intimidated by the longer form.

Nightmares and Fairytales: 1140 Rue Royale

NIGHTMARES AND FAIRY TALES Volume 3: 1140 RUE ROYALE by Serena Valentino; Illustrated by Crab Scrambly (SLG Publishing, 2007)
GENRE: Graphic Novel / Horror
HONORS: None (though the series has enjoyed many positive critical reviews)

REVIEW: Nightmares and Fairytales is a series of graphic novels wherein the uniting factor is a strange little doll called Annabel. Annabel is said to be cursed, but her current owner, a girl named Gwen understands her, so Annabel tells her stories of the horrors that she's seen. 1140 Rue Royale is one of Annabel's stories. Though an integrated part of the series, it can easily be read alone. It tells the story of a woman named Victoria and her niece who move into the house on 1140 Rue Royale - a house that is said to be haunted by the slaves who were tortured and killed there years before. What unfolds is a story full of foreboding and magnificent creepiness. Valentino's writing is perfectly paced, giving the reader just enough of a break between frightening occurrences to relax before she ratchets up the wrongness even more. Scrambly's illustrations are gorgeous and atmospheric - one part Edward Gorey, one part early Tim Burton - with odd angles and shadings that make you want to look over your shoulder. Everything about 1140 Rue Royale, it is based on the true story of Delphine LaLaurie, from the panel design to the narrative itself, is meant to sweep the reader along into a story that is dark and honestly horrifying (what was done to the slaves is diabolical). A beautiful, effecting and impressive work.

OPINION: The Nightmares and Fairytales series is, generally speaking, not one for younger adolescents, and some volumes should be consigned strictly to YA. 1140 Rue Royale is an exception, though I would only recommend it for those 12 and above, given the level of horror-style tension, some of the imagery and the violence that is implied. That said, 1140 Rue Royale is horror at it's best - driven not by blood and guts, but by a sense of injustice that must be avenged. Between Valentino's haunting story and Scrambly's evocative illustrations, it's one that the reader will think about long after it's been put down.

IDEAS: A good edition to any display containing darker fare, along with Neil Gaiman, Ted Naifeh etc., 1140 Rue Royale is a good suggestion for older tweens who are into Stephen King and serious poltergeist style ghost stories. Given the abuses to slaves that are depicted, it would also pair well with the Newbery award winning books, The Slave Dancer, Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry and The Dark Thirty: Southern Tales of the Supernatural.

The Charmed Bracelet

THE CHARMED BRACELET (Nancy Drew Graphic Novels #7) by Stefan Petrucha, illustrated by Vaughn Ross (Papercutz, 2006)

GENRE: Graphic Novel

HONORS: None

REVIEW: Unlike some other graphic novel adaptations of classic tween series, the Nancy Drew Girl Detective series introduces the famous amateur sleuth through a series of new mysteries. Unfortunately, they lack the cleverness and interest of either the original series, or the Case Files series from the 80’s and 90’s. Superficially speaking, The Charmed Bracelet is glossy and fast-paced with Nancy wise-cracking her way through a pithy narration. And that’s just the problem – the entire treatment is superficial. Nancy Drew is known for her independence, intelligence and loyalty to her friends – they are the qualities that have made her endure for over nearly 80 years. But this new Nancy has a shallowness to her that is, at best, unappealing. There is no great mind at work here, no serious determination to solve anything. There is just a chest jutting petulance that is odd and strangely off-putting given who this character is. The mystery itself suffers from the same lack of depth, with little to no tension and an extremely pat resolution, and while Ross’s illustrations are attractive for the most part, they are also cluttered, over-busy and difficult to make out, as if they are trying to hide the fact that there really isn’t anything going on below the blurb.

OPINION: Though I can see how the Papercutz graphic novel adaptation will appeal to tweens and perhaps even introduce a new generation to the famous girl detective, it feels like a bit of a waste. While the idea for a graphic novel adaptation is fantastic, the execution leaves much to be desired, and while I wouldn’t keep the series out of a collection, I would do my best to push the novels to interested readers, as well.

IDEAS: Might make a fun addition to a “Nancy Drew Through the Years” display in a library. Could also make for good comparative discussion in a book group or even classroom, with students reading one of the older novels along with the graphic novels and comparing characterizations.

The Truth About Stacey

THE TRUTH ABOUT STACEY (Baby-Sitter's Club Graphic Novel) by Ann M. Martin, adapted by Raina Telgemeier (Graphix, 2006)

GENRE: Graphic Novel

HONORS: YALSA Great Graphic Novels for Teens list, 2007; ALA's Top 10 Graphic Novels for Youth list

REVIEW: Kristy, Claudia, MaryAnn and Stacey are back in a series of graphic novel adaptations of Ann M. Martin’s beloved Baby-Sitter’s Club. Though the format is 21^st century, the stories themselves remain timeless. In The Truth About Stacey, the girls grapple with a group of rival baby-sitters while Stacey quietly wrestles with her diabetes and her parents’ stifling, if well-meaning, attempts to control it for her. The bulk of Martin’s original text remains in tact, having been transcribed to dialogue bubbles and narrator’s panels, providing a sense of immediacy and emotional warmth. Telgemeier’s clean, black and white illustrations beautifully render each girl, updating their styles without sacrificing the class  of Martin’s original conceptions (while Claudia sports a magenta streak in her long black hair, her clothing is entirely appropriate for a hip, artistic seventh grader.) Emotions are conveyed with a minimum of fuss, bringing each girl, as an individual, to life. These girls care about each other, and they care about the kids they sit for. It’s the heart of the series and it’s clear in every panel.

OPINION: Telgemeier has succeeded in producing a series of graphic novels that, far from detracting from the original books, heightens the already towering appeal of the novels. Emotionally down to earth, yet complicated enough to resonate with tweens, the graphic novels bring a whole new audience to the original stories, and judging from the well worn copies at the library, they are doing it quite well. A strong addition to any school of public library collection.

IDEAS: The Baby-Sitters Club graphic novel series is a great recommendation for tween girls who are reluctant readers. The adaptations are as resonant as the original novels were over 20 years ago, but the graphic novels, with Telgemeier’s spot-on illustrations and clean lay-out, make them an especially un-intimidating introduction to storytelling in book form. 

Courtney Crumrin and the Night Things

COURTNEY CRUMRIN AND THE NIGHT THINGS by Ted Naifeh (Oni Press, 2002)

GENRE: Graphic Novel 

HONORS: Eisner Award nominations – One for Best Limited Series (2003); One for Best Title for Younger Audience (2005)

REVIEW: Courtney Crumrin and the Night Things is the first volume in the three volume series that chronicles the not-so-normal everyday life of a loner girl who learns magic from her mysterious uncle and uses it to navigate a world of school bullies and bloodthirsty goblins and adolescent peer pressure. Throughout her adventures, Courtney displays ingenuity and intelligence, qualities that see her through some truly strange things (a good-girl doppelganger, goblins stealing a baby she’s sitting, etc). But though she is independent, strong and loyal, Courtney is far from perfect – she’s sarcastic and grumpy too, making her a fantastically real adolescent heroine. The world she inhabits is, by turns, normal to the point of banality, as well as gothic and creepy. Thanks to Neifeh’s clean, expressive illustrations (everyone but Courtney, Uncle Aloysius and select Night Things have vacant, empty eyes – a nice commentary on how Courtney feels about “normal”, suburban life), it’s a world that the reader can’t help but want to enter.

OPINION: Courtney Crumrin and the Night Things is excellent on several levels – the stories are fast-paced, engrossing and easy to read, making it a great selection for reluctant readers; and the subject matter veers elegantly between the fantastic (spells gone wrong) to the very real (bullying and isolation). It’s simply too good not to have in a library’s tween collection.


IDEAS: Excellent recommendation for reluctant readers or tweens with an alternative vibe, great addition to any graphic novel display, particularly with other, darker / alternative stories like Gloomcookie and any of Neil Gaiman’s work.