Claire and the Water Wish

You know, I got a good taste of literature (Frankenstein, Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde, Dracula) through graphic novels. I'm glad to review yet another graphic novel (the other being Dracula Madness). With so many kids struggling to read at grade level, I highly recommend these new series as they will encourage novice readers. Claire and The Water Wish is fresh, action-packed and targets the most important thing to girls in this age group - friendship.

Reviewed by Galia Popov (age 11) for Reader Views (6/09) "Claire and the Water Wish" is about a girl named Claire and her friend Jet. When Claire moves to the country, she makes best friends with Jet. But when Jet wins a new camera, she seems like she'd rather take pictures of popular kids than hang out with Claire. Claire makes friends with Sky, a girl from Lovesick Lake who's on her team for a project at school. Sky tells Claire that people are dumping in Lovesick Lake, but no one has actually caught them at it. One day, Jet and Sky see some people dumping into the lake. The people chase them, but Jet and Sky get lost. Claire finds them, and in the end the three girls save the day. I thought that this book was fairly well written, but it was slightly below my age, aimed more towards seven to nine-year-olds. Maybe it's because I'm older than the book's age range, or maybe because "Claire and the Water Wish" is a graphic novel, but I thought that the story was a little too flat and predictable. The characters could have a little more depth, and the plot could be a little more exciting. An example is at the end, when the bad guys are caught. The girls signal a ranger in a helicopter, call the police, fly over to the bad guys, and the police catch them and take them to jail. I would like a more exciting storyline. It would be more interesting if the bad guys escape the first time and have to be caught again. Even so, the book was a pretty good read. One of the good things about this book is that the illustrations were great, especially in the part where Jet and Claire go to the market. I liked the pictures of stalls and customers, which were interesting because you could see what everyone was selling. I also enjoyed the crafts included at the end. I think that "Claire and the Water Wish" by Janice Poon would be better for seven to nine-year olds, or any younger kids interested in the environment. Though the story is bland, the illustrations are good enough on their own to make me want to read this book.