#reading level 3

Bolt City is the name of the home to Copper and his dog Fred and it is also the name of the very talented Kazu Kibuishi's website. Kibuishi is also the creator of the Amuletseries of graphic novels (look for book 3 sometime this spring) and contributor to and editor of the Flight series for adults. There is also Flight Explorer for kids, featuringJake Parker's Missile Mouse, now star of his own book (scroll to the bottom for a cool picture...) Kibuishi also is responsible for the Daisy Kutter and the 14 chapter webcomic Clive Cabbage.

Even though I am an art school drop out with an ongoing love of art, it has taken me a long time to fully understand and totally appreciate graphic novels. When I read a graphic novel, I sometimes either feel that there is not enough text to go along with the story being told by the illustrations or that the illustrations are not creating a complete enough world to draw me in and hold me. I am kind of an impatient reader and I often read for plot. If you do this with a good graphic novel, you can miss so much of the story. The format of Copper is not that of a graphic novel per se, but a comic strip and when I gave it my first read through I felt like a light bulb went on!

42 of the 45 comics in Copper are one page stories that can have as many as 17 panels arranged on that one page. I think because I didn't feel like there was one long story I needed to be following I was able to let myself go and dive in to the world of Bolt City. And what an amazing world it is! There is no way that a traditional novel could have created this elegant, fantastic world with words alone. Pictures MUST be part of this story, which tracks the exploits of the optimistic Copper and his more pragmatic dog Fred.

The images and geography of the book stayed with me long after I had finished reading, as did the always forward thinking personality of Copper. And Fred, despite the fact that he can be a bit of a worry wort, brings a sort of voice of reason to the story.

I think that Copper is a great first graphic novel for a young reader to pick up and definitely something that will stick with you long after the last page, which is actually a fabulous 10 page "Behind the Scenes" spread that takes you inside Kibuishi's studio for a step-by-step look at how Copper is created, from the pencil sketches, to the hand inking and the final digital coloring, this deepened my appreciation for the art of the comic book tremendously. It may even inspire some young artists and writers to try their creating their own comic books!

If you have read enough of my reviews, you know that I am always on the lookout for great books written at the 3rd grade reading level, since there seems to be a definite gap on the shelves in that general area. I am very happy to report that another great series has hit the shelves! The Bed & Biscuit books by Joan Carris, charmingly illustrated by Noah Z. Jones, are kind of a cross between James Herriot's stories of the country veterinarian and Dick King-Smith's wonderful stories with anthropomorphized animals as characters and often narrators. Grandpa Bender, a retired veterinarian, runs the Bed & Biscuit, an animal sitting service, at his farm. His own menagerie consists of Gabby, the mynah bird with the sharp tongue, Ernest, a mini-pig with a good heart and an even better head on his shoulders, and Milly, a persnickety tabby cat who, even though she is a year old, is the baby of the family and thinks she deserves to be treated accordingly.

When Welcome to the Bed & Biscuit, the first book in the series, opens, Grandpa gets a call asking him is he has room for Frou-Frou, a Pekingese. He does, but the only spot open is next to Sherlock, a bluetick hound who does not want his peace disturbed by a yippy little dog. By the end of the first chapter, Grandpa has to cut Ernest's birthday party short so that he can rush to a neighboring farm to help put out a fire. When he finally returns home from McBroom's farm the next morning he is carrying a mystery box and all the animals are very curious to know what is inside. When they finally learn that the box holds a newly born puppy rescued from the fire, Milly immediately expresses her dislike, insisting, "We don't need another baby in this family!" She storms out of the house, her frustration growing as Grandpa Bender ignores her gifts (dead moles) in order to tend to the puppy. Ernest, a typical middle child, is a fixer. Worried about Milly and her increasingly long absences from the farm, he also wants to help his friend Sherlock and his irritation with his yappy neighbor Frou-Frou, all the while making sure Gabby doesn't make things worse by answering the phone and pretending to be Grandpa Bender. A mystery ensues, but the intrepid Ernest gets to the bottom of it and the animals and Grandpa all come together as one happy family again, especially happy since the health of the puppy improves enough for him to leave the incubator and earn a name.

In the second book in the series, out in hardcover this month, the puppy, a Scottish Terrier named Sir Walter, is being trained by Ernest, but it is proving difficult. Grandpa has also taken in a wounded Canada goose, a cranky old muskrat and two fox kits. Both books include excellent Author's Notes at the back of the book that give details on the animals in the story and what their natures and habits in the wild are. Carris's writing is gentle and thoughtful, her characterizations of the animals in the story are equally humane and evocative of the animals' true natures at once. And, on top of that, the difficulties and experiences that the animals have over the course of the books can easily be read as issues faced by real children. The sibling rivalry between Milly and the new puppy and the ways that Milly asks for attention and how she responds when she doesn't get it are so well written that readers should have no problem finding parallels in their own lives. The issues of appropriate behavior and learning restraint in Wild Times at the Bed & Biscuit are also handled deftly, while at the same time making important points about the difference between wild and domestic animals.

Geronimo Stilton is a mild mannered mouse, editor of the Rodent's Gazette, New Mouse City's most widely read ("famouse," as Geronimo would say) daily newspaper. He is the devoted uncle to his nine-year old nephew, Benjamin and brother to his adventure loving younger sister Thea. In addition to calling him by annoying endearments such as "Geronimoid," "Geronimouse" and "Gerrykins," Thea is constantly dragging Geronimo along on her escapades, along with Trap, their annoying, plump, cousin. Any similarities to other children's books that have come before end here. The Geronimo Stilton books, despite the fact that Stilton himself is listed as the author, even on the copyright page, are written by Elisabetta Dami, and were first published in her native Italy in 2000. They have since been translated into 35 languages and made their American debut in 2004. The 40th and 41st book in the series are slated to be published in 2010.

Aside from the fact that this is one of the few series that is written at a solid third grade reading level, the Geronimo Stilton series is unique in that it is a cross between a graphic novel and a traditional chapter book. You feel a bit as though you have just watched an episode of a Saturday morning cartoon when you finish reading a Geronimo Stilton book. Not only are there colorful illustrations on every page, as well as many maps and a labeled illustration at the beginning of each book that tags all the characters in the series, but the text itself jumps off the page. Different fonts, sizes and colors are used to emphasize thoughts, dialogue and important plot points. To top it all off, Stilton and his friends frequently drop descriptives into the story that utilizes any words related to "mouse" and "cheese" to humorous effect. When Geronimo exclaims on the first page of the book he says, in bold yellow print, "Cheese slices!" Characters also utter, "Well, tickle me with a cat-fur feather!" and, "The enormous roots clung to the rock like a cat with a tuna sandwich." This is very entertaining and engaging and, with all the great graphics, sure to grab a reader's attention and hold it.

These books have boy and girl appeal, with Thea's roll in the story diminished only by the fact that it is her brother narrating the story. In fact, the series is now publishing special editions that are narrated by Thea herself. And, while every story involves a mystery or adventure, the plots are never too complex for readers to follow.

The first book in the Ottoline Series, Ottoline and the Yellow Cat, is now available in paperback. Full of superb illustrations and details, this is a great book for an emerging reader. All the books by the team of Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell that I have ever encountered have knocked my socks off. The combination of creative creatures, wild circumstances and great adventures in their Far-Flung Adventures is pitch perfect for the younger crowd, where are their series for older readers, The Edge Chronicles, adds suspense, life threatening danger and occasional violence and even death. Sort of Tolkein for the pre-teen... Their newest series, Barnaby Grimes is set in a Victorian London. Barnaby, who has a nose for intrigue, is a tick tock lad who jumps from rooftop to rooftop in the poorer, crowded part of the city in which he lives and works. The Ottoline series represents Ridell's first chapter book on his own, and, as to be expected, it is spectacular.

Ottoline and the Yellow Cat is a treasure chest of visual details, oddities, maps and diagrams included, with touches of red highlighting the intricate illustrations (Ottoline Goes to School is accented with blue. No word on what color will brighten Ottoline at Sea, book three). The cast of characters include wonderfully strange creatures, villains, absent parents and disguises. Ottoline lives in in the Pepperpot Building, number 243 with her parents, Professor and Mrs. Brown, who are collectors and world travelers and have amassed such wonders as a four-spouted tea pot collection and a shelf-full of emperor's hats, to name a few. Ottoline herself is a collector (of odd shoes and postcards, all of which are sent to her by her traveling parents) and a graduate of the Academy of Subterfuge. 

 Mr Munroe, who resembles Cousin Itt from the Addams Family, but with bare-human like feet showing from beneath his hair, cares for Ottoline when her parents are traveling. More than anything, Mr Munroe hates to get wet, take baths and have his hair brushed. However, Ottoline loves to brush his hair when she is in a thinking or planning mood, which happens often because she is a bit of a mystery hound, and Mr Munroe submits to her whim. The relationship between Ottoline and Mr Munroe is very well developed and touching. My favorite part of the book is when, separately and on separate occasions, both Ottoline and Mr Munroe find themselves eavesdropping, but confess that they keep this pastime a secret because they each believe the other would disapprove. Ottoline and the Yellow Cat finds the duo investigating the disappearance of lap dogs and diamonds. After finding a trail of clues, Mr Munroe bravely volunteers to go undercover to crack the case and trap the cat burglar. The climax involves a very funny scene which depends largely on the services of the many businesses employed by the Brown's to keep Ottoline's life running smoothly in their absence. This housekeeping staff includes Marion's Bathroom Supplies, the Smiling Dragon Clothes Folding Co., the Happy Nest Bed Makers and the Home Cooked Meal Company.

I picked up Kazu Kibuishi's graphic novel Amulet one day on my lunch break and I was sucked in instantly. It's like a cross between The Spiderwick Chronicles and a Miyazaki movie with something special, amazing and hard to forget thrown in for good measure.

Amulet begins with a sad prologue that leaves Emily and her brother Navin without a father. There are intense emotions and internal thoughts in Kibuishi's work that can be conveyed more immediately and precisely with images than words and his style utilizes this magnificently, both in emotional situations and scenes of action. Fast forward a few years and the family is moving to a small town in the country to a house owned by Emily's great-grandfather Silas Charnon. While cleaning, Emily explores Silas's study and discovers a hidden amulet that Navin helps her tie around her neck. In the middle of night the night the amulet begins talking to her, giving her instructions, telling her of the danger her family is in. When a noise wakes them and Emily's mother, she grabs a flashlight and heads down to the basement to investigate. Once there, a swirling apparition leads her to a giant, spidery-squid-like creature that inhales her and runs off. The children follow and the adventure begins. Although they won't know it until the second book, they have entered the kingdom of Alledia, an alternate version of planet earth, where a cruel elf king is ruling a land in the grips of a curse that is slowly turning all of the citizens into animals, albeit human-like animals that walk upright and are sentient. 

Book one finds Emily trying to save their mother from the stomach of the monster and trying to harness the power the Amulet possesses. In this, the children are not alone. They make their way to a house where they find Silas Charnon still alive, although barely. Welcomed by a fleet of robots of varying shapes and sizes, all built by Silas, the children are lead to his bedside. The robots are definitely the comic relief in the book, although they are also serve as the children's guides to Alledia and ultimately their protectors. Miskit, a pink rabbity-robot who seems to have jumped right off of a Pokémon trading card, is both wise and brave, having been created to serve and protect Emily and Navin. Silas dies shortly after meeting his descendants, but not before he informs Emily that the Amulet, should she learn how to master its power, will give her a "great and glorious power beyond anything you ever imagined," including the power to turn back time, making Emily think of her father. Silas tells her to listen to the stone, follow its instructions and gain the power to "shape your own world." But, she must also must choose to take on the role of Stonekeeper and all that it entails or walk away. Despite Navin's shouts, Emily makes her choice.

The two story lines, Emily's struggle to master the Amulet without letting it master her, as well as the fate of Alledia, are very compelling. The world that Kibuishi creates is both magically beautiful and threatening at times. Trellis, the son of the elf king, sent to kill Emily, is truly frightening in appearance but also possibly a conflicted, Severus Snape-like character who will be interesting to watch over the course of the series. Just between the first two books, the growth of Emily and Navin's characters is exciting to watch. Emily, serious and sad, stoically takes on her new role in Alledia. The scenes in which she learns to harness the power of the Amulet and fight off attackers are wonderful. While I eschew violence in movies, the fight scenes in Amulet seem more subtle and subdued than those on film. A lightening-ish stream of light from the Amulet is the weapon Emily yields most often. Their is a sword fight in the second book, but no lost limbs or blood, and I appreciate this. I realize that you can't tell an epic story without battles between good and evil and Kibuishi does a fine job of illustrating this clash without carnage.

Without much background knowledge of the world of graphic novels, all I bring with me to my reading of Kibuishi's Amulet series is my love of the artwork in illustrated books and an deep appreciation for the films of Hayao Miyazaki, founder of Studio Ghibli. In fact, the image of the walking house above reminded me instantly of Miyazaki's adaptation of the Diana Wynne Jones novel, Howl's Moving Castle, in which there is a house that walks on chicken feet, like Baba Yaga's in Russian folklore. I was thrilled to learn that Kibuishi worked in animation for a time and, when asked who his influences in the comic format are, he replied, "Hayao Miyazaki and Jeff Smith are my biggest influences. Both of their works reflect the interests they have outside of the comics field. In Miyazaki’s case, his love of children’s literature and his experience as a director of animation shines through in his loose aesthetic and dense, action-packed panel layouts of Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind. And for Jeff Smith, his love of old comic strips is fused with a grand Tolkien-inspired fantasy story to create the classic graphic novel series. I only hope that every time I draw comics, I’m bringing something new and interesting to the table as well."

Kibuishi freely admits other influences besides Miyazaki, including movies and video games and other movies like The Neverending Story, The Empire Strikes Back and ET. Readers will notice other influences as well but will ultimately be pleased with the way that Kibuishi makes the settings and characters his own. Jeff Smith's Bone series of graphic novels (which features and anthropomorphized femur bone as the main character) are HUGELY popular in the kid's section at the store where I work. They sell almost as much as Jeff Kinney's Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, which technically are not graphic novels, I suppose, but end up in that section anyway. As an aside, Charles Vess has provided the illustrations for Smith's prequel to the Bone series titled, Rose.

For those of you in Southern California, check out the happenings at Gallery Nucleus in Alhambra, California. Kazu Kibuishi is hosting a workshop at the gallery titled, "Storytelling for Comis and Film." Beginning on September 15, 2009 it will last for seven weeks and each student will leave the course with a ten page comic! The gallery has hosted other kid's book related events and will have more in the future.

With The Year of the Rat, we find Pacy Lin, narrator of Grace Lin's wonderful book The Year of the Dog at almost the same place we left her - a celebration of Chinese New Year with her family and friends. The Year of the Pig has ended and two years have passed since we first met Pacy. As the Year of the Rat, a time of new beginnings and change, kicks off Pacy finds herself wishing that nothing would change. She has found her best friend, Melody, and she has discovered her true talents.

As with The Year of the Dog, Lin seamlessly weaves traditional Chinese tales like "The Story of the Twelve Animals of the Chinese New Year or How the Rat Was First," and family stories about parents and grandparents growing up in Taiwan into her the story of Pacy and her family. As Pacy experiences typical American kid situations - she goes on field trips, worries about the talent show and copes with her loneliness and feelings of alienation after her best friend Melody moves to California, she also participates in family life which for her is rooted in her Chinese heritage and therefore not your typical American kid experience. Once Melody moves, Pacy struggles with being the only Asian girl at her school and also with the presence of Dun-Wei, the son of the family from China that has moved into Melody's house. Pacy doesn't like him at first and finds it difficult to welcome him into her life the way she did with Melody and her family, despite the fact that Pacy's mother has become fast friends with Dun-Wei's mother. When the other kids start calling him "Dumb-Way," Pacy doesn't join in but she also doesn't stop them, at first. The complexity of this situation is a step up from The Year of the Dog and is appropriate, considering Pacy is older in this book. Lin handles the insensitiveness and compulsion to ostracize anyone who is different that school age children are prone to and addresses them through the observations and ideas of Pacy in a very thoughtful, realistic manner.

I love coincidences that happen in the world of books. A few months ago I noticed a book on the shelves that was based on a true story about a dog. Being a big sap when it comes to animal stories, I filed it under "Books I Should Read and Review Because Kids will Like It Even If They Make Me Cry," and went on with my work. Then, I was delighted to hear from author Pamela S. Turner, who, among her other fabulous non-fiction books for children, has written a picture book based on the same dog. To top it all off, Pamela informed me that the award winning director Lasse Hallstrom has made this story into the movie Hachiko: A Dog Story. Prompted by this confluence, I read Hachiko: The True Story of a Loyal Dog by Pamela S. Turner, pictures by the brilliant illustrator Yan Nascimbene and Hachiko Waits, by Leslea Newman, pictures by Machiyo Kodaira.

Both stories use a fictional character to tell the story of Haciko, the akita dog who was loyal to his death. Hachiko's own story is a simple one. He belonged to Dr. Ueno, a resident of Shibuya who took the train into Tokyo every day to teach at Tokyo Imperial University. Hachi came to live with Dr Ueno when he was three months old. One day, Hachi, which means "eight" in Japanese, Hachi being Dr Ueno's eighth dog, followed him to the train station and watched him leave for work. Hachi returned in the afternoon and was on the platform to greet him as he returned from work. This was the routine for Hachi and Dr Ueno for a little over a year until, on May 21, 1925, Dr Ueno did not return home to Shibuya, having died of a heart attack while at work. For the rest of his life, almost ten years, Hachi waited at the station for the return of his master, disappearing at night. He would not allow himself to be taken in by a new family. His devotion did not go unnoticed. Reporters began to write articles for him and a collection was started to erect a statue in his likeness at the Shibuya train station.

As Pamela S. Turner writes in her The Story Behind the Story at the end of Hachiko: The True Story of a Loyal Dog, "Some years ago my family moved o Tokyo, and we rented a home not far from Shibuya Station. Everyone, it seemed, knew that Hachiko's statue was the place to meet at the huge train station. No matter what time of day or night I visited Shibuya, I would always see someone standing near the large bronze dog, with eyes searching the crowd." She sums it up perfectly by saying, "I thought Hachiko's story was lovely, both sad and wonderful, and I wanted to share it." For her picture book, Turner invents the shy young character of Kentaro, who first meets Dr Ueno and Haciko while he waits at the Shibuya Station for his father. Afraid of the trains and Hachi at first, Kentaro soon overcomes his fears and makes fast friends with the akita. When Dr Ueno dies, Kentaro asks if his family can take in Hachi, but Hachi has plans of his own. Kentaro keeps track of Hachi over the years, contributing money to help build his statue, and he is there at the end of Hachi's life as well. Turner tells the moving story of Hachi's life (Hachiko, as he is now called, is a name that was given to him by a newspaper reporter who wrote a story about him before his death and infers honor and respect) simply and movingly in a way that will have meaning for listeners and readers of all ages. The information provided at the end of the story further illuminates aspects of the amazing story and reiterates the significance of Hachiko's life and the legacy that he leaves behind. Yan Nascimbene's magnificent illustrations bring Japan in the 1920s to life in a way that is both gentle and evocative at the same time.

At 92 pages and with a glossary of Japanese words and terms, Leslea Newman's Hachiko Waits has a plot and complexity that is perfect for a read out loud book or as a read alone for a second or third grade level reader. Newman weaves a fictional story around the real life Hachi, Dr Ueno and Mr Yoshikawa that centers on a boy named Yasuo who proves to be as loyal to Hachiko as Hachiko is to his master. Yasuo makes caring for Hachiko, making sure he is fed and has water while he waits at the station, his priority, even missing out on games with his friends to do so. Mr Yoshikawa, the station master who also watches over Hachiko, tells Yasuo that his loyalty to Hachiko will be rewarded. When Hachiko dies, Mr Yoshikawa comforts Yasuo, now a young man attending college, by sharing his belief that, "there is a special train to bring those who have obtained Enlightenment up to Heaven. Every day for the past ten years, Professor Ueno has met this special train to see if his beloved Akita-ken is on it. Day after day he has waited up in heaven, just as Hachiko has waited here on earth. And today, when that special train reaches Heaven and opens its doors, Hachiko will be the first one to step out. Just think how happy he will be to see his master again." And, as Mr Yoshikawa predicted, Hachiko does reward Yasuo in the end. It is in front of Hachiko's statue that Yasuo meets his future wife and, at the end of the story, it is in front of this statue that he proposes to her.

Newman does a wonderful job enriching the simple but poignant story of Hachiko, and the addition of the Japanese words and terms make it all the more enjoyable. Any dog lover will enjoy this book and, being on the shorter side, it is a great book for emerging readers ready for something more complex. Also, having watched the preview for the movie, I highly suggest reading the book first.

Readers who like this book might also enjoy these other homeless dog stories:

Arabel's Raven by Joan Aiken follows the adventures of Arabel Jones, who finds a raven in her refrigerator one morning - an indicator of his voracious appetite - and names him Mortimer. Set in almost 100 years ago in Rumbury Borough, a small village outside of London, these stories are rich with silly ideas and crazy adventures - like Mortimer's obsession with machines you can put coins into, which necessitates a trip to the newly renovated tube station that has tons of machines, even one that can blow your nose for you. Mortimer also enjoys answering the phone, shoving things under the doormat and/or the linoleum and "packing spaghetti into jam jars or sponge bags or old yogurt pots."

Aiken is capable of the same playful ridiculousness that is found in most Roald Dahl books (her writing here is enriched by the illustrations of Quentin Blake, illustrator of all Dahl's books) but without the self-centered, cruel adults that often populate Dahl's stories. The books are also sprinkled with jokes that parents will get, like Mortimer's continual, well timed cries of "Nevermore." Since ravens are not very common or popular here in America, their smaller, more omnipresent and infinitely less interesting cousins the crows are. Before, or while, reading about Arabel and her alter-ego, Mortimer, you might want to give your kids a little background information about them. Ravens have a historical place in British culture, and a permanent home at the Tower of London, the oldest part of which was built by William the Conquerer in 1078. The Tower of London has been a fortress, a prison and is now the repository of the Crown Jewels. However, most kids probably won't even care about this since Mortimer is infinitely entertaining and even more rambunctious and destructive than a puppy who can never be left alone.

Broken into three stories, my favorite chapter of Arabel's Raven is titled, "The Bread Bin," with a chain of evens which unfolds a bit like a Rube Goldberg contraption. During an extremely wet February Mortimer is cross because he cannot do the two things he wishes to do above all else - be pulled around the garden in Arabel's wagon and sleep in the bread bin. Mrs Jones complains that that bird "gets more attention than the lord Mayor of Hyderabad," and Arabel (who is feeling a bit ticklish in her throat) responds by pulling him around the house on one of her roller skates. Through a series of events, a claw caught in the roller skate leads to an open window (by way of a toppled crate of brussels sprouts and an exploding can of oven cleaner) and a return to the red wagon. Once out the window, "Mortimer took no notice. There were half a dozen horse chestnuts floating in the red wagon. The next-door cat, Ginger, was sitting under a wheelbarrow, trying to keep dry. Mortimer jumped out into the wagon (he was up to his black, feathery knees in water) and began throwing chestnuts at Ginger. He was a very good shot." I am a cat lover, but this paragraph-long sentence made me laugh out loud. Mortimer is a free spirit with no social constraints. He does what he wants when he wants and makes the most of the moment whenever he can. The chapter goes on to involve a hair dryer, a roller rink, Arabel's awful cousins Cindy, Lindy and Mindy, a wild chase in a parking garage with Mortimer skating up and down the ramps. A mix-up with a shopping bag one wheels means Mortimer goes home with the cousins where he is chased mercilessly and ends up hiding out in the chimney. This necessitates the arrival of Mr Suckett, the chimney sweep and ends with Mortimer, followed by a stream of soot, shooting out the window with "the speed of Boeing 707." The chapter ends in the hospital, Arabel's ticklish throat turning into a full blown illness, and Mr Jones sneaking Mortimer into the hospital to be with her - in the very bread bin that he began the chapter being told he couldn't sleep in.