Jellaby: The Lost Monster

Jellaby is wonderful. I couldn't get over how amazingly cute it was. Recommended for all ages.

Portia, a lonely 10 year old girl with no friends, meets a mysterious monster who looks a bit like a baby Barney the dinosaur. Shades of E.T. emerge as Portia and one of her classmates try to figure out where the monster comes from and how to get him back home. A very appealing plot and striking design make this a real winner; the book features Japanese-style "chubi" drawings and a largely purple, black and white graphic design with accents of gold and red.

I spent the last two weeks writing two 20ish page papers about graphic novels. I can rattle off titles, a brief history of the term, benefits of the format, the difference between graphic novels and comics (trick question!), and even how to develop a graphic novel collection at your library. Having become one of those experts on graphic novels without reading any graphic novels, I decided to read Jellaby yesterday. I also decided to cross-post its review as this week's CLW post and my inaugural graphic novel review. (I could have merged this with another category, but graphic novels/comics are so unique I thought they needed a different category.) Having read Kean Soo's Eisner nominated graphic novel Jellaby (2008) in a couple of hours, I can see why Lea over at Library Voice selected it as a reluctant reader pick. How cool is it for a child who dislikes reading to pick up a title and be able to read it in a few days? This story does not, however, start with Jellaby. It starts with a ten-year-old girl. Portia does not like her new school. In fact, almost everything about school bores her. Even having the freedom to write her book report on "Reason and Emotion: Classical and Romantic Philosophies in Tom Stoppard's Arcadia" doesn't do much to challenge Portia let alone engage her. Liking school is even harder when no one in school seems especially fond of Portia. With the added problems of a missing father and a busy mother, it's no wonder Portia seems less than happy. When Portia hears something outside her window in the middle of the night, she isn't sure what to expect. But being a resourceful child, Portia takes a flashlight and goes out to investigate. She finds a large purple monster who tries to eat said flashlight. Instead of being scared, or running away, Portia invites the monster inside and makes him a tuna sandwich. Suddenly Portia has exactly what she needed: a friend. Matters get more complicated when Portia's classmate finds out about Jellaby and insinuates himself into Portia's decision to help Jellaby find his home. Thus begins a journey that, I should warn you, will not finish in this volume. The illustrations are drawn primarily with purple, lavender, and black (with yellow and orange accents). I was impressed with how much variety Soo was able to get so much variation from such a small palette. I also liked the configuration of this graphic novel. The panels flowed in a sensible way so that sequencing wasn't a challenge (sometimes I have a hard time reading comic book panels in the correct order). The writing is also large enough to make it easy to read without eye strain. My Mom doesn't agree with me on this-I think the word repulsive might have been used-but I think Jellaby is adorable--possibly cuter than either Portia or Jason, though I don't know that they had a chance when being compared to a lovable, large purple monster. The story here is complex, but clearly plotted out, with a lot of fun characters. Like many ot

There are graphic novels that stroll in, hit their mark, and bring the GN lover what they're looking for. The recent "Amulet: The Stonekeeper" comes to mind. If you're into the genre, you'll be a fan - but it's not necessarily recruiting new believers. Then there are your 741.5's that have the ability to bring readers into the fold who have not considered said fold an option. "Jellaby" is one of those books. Honest emotional moments, humor, and mystery combine to make one of the best books of Aught 8. Portia is an outsider, but not for the usual reasons. She's smart and thoughtful. Her intelligence draws ire from her classmates and leaves her bored in her studies. One night, after a strange dream, Portia discovers a scared monster behind her house. How the purple creature ended up in her yard is not clear, but Portia is determined to keep her new friend a secret while she figures things out. In her efforts to keep "Jellaby" hush hush, she inadvertently pulls classmate Jason into the mix. Now they're partners. A tip from Jellaby about her (his?) possible origins results in a secret trip to Toronto to find out the truth. The story ends just before the threesome reach the big city, with plans for a second book to wrap up the tale. I can't help but think of one of my favorite movies, "The Iron Giant", when reading this book. There is something about an outsider finding friendship with a really outsider that draws you in. The illustrations are on point throughout, using just a few colors to get the job done. Overall, the effect is an artful and beautifully subtle story that leaves you eager for more.

You ever been in love? I don't mean the passing fancy of a crush or the slight flutter you feel when you're fifteen and desperately trying NOT to make eye contact with the object of your affection. I'm talking gut-sucking, heart-churning, complete and utter abstraction, distraction, fractal, fantastic obsession, elation, and absolution. The love that sucks out your breath and leaves you a hollow shaking wreck until you see your beloved again. That kind of love. I don't get that kind of feeling very often. It takes a special somebody. Someone with big blue eyes, a cute smile, maybe a jagged set of lower canines complemented nicely by a red-striped tail. Someone just like Jellaby. Man, the moment I read a mere three panels of this graphic novel I was a goner. "In love" doesn't even begin to cover it. I save my adoration for works of children's fiction that go above and beyond the call of duty and "Jellaby" is one of those comics that can charm you with the merest sigh or shuffle of the feet. With great art and a story to match, Kean Soo knocks it out of the park with this amazing comic that has successfully made the leap from screen to page. It wasn't long ago that Portia and her mother moved to a new town to start their lives over. Portia hasn't made many friends since then, and she's just going through the motions in her classes as well. What better time to discover a huge purple monster in the back yard then? Naming the strange mute creature Jellaby, Portia unwittingly enlists the help of fellow student Jason, as they two search for a way to find the their new friend's true home. Their search may connect to Portia's missing father, a series of odd dreams she's been having, and a door that's miles and miles away. The stakes, it seems, can be high even when you don't know the rules. Kean Soo was born in England, raised in Hong Kong, and currently resides in Canada. At a loss to describe what exactly Soo's style of drawing is I searched through the Web to find some kind of list of his influences. I pretty much came up with nothing, so all I can do is call it like I see it. Soo utilizes clean lines and a color palette of four colors: purple (mostly), red, and orange, and the tiniest spots of green. His kids are all big heads with tiny bodies, much as you'd find in something by Bill Watterson. Actually, in an interview with Newsrama, Soo said that initially there was a definite Calvin and Hobbes influence to his work. "I'd like to think that the characters have since overcome that." I'd agree. The physical similarities (not to mention the whole possibly-make-believe-character aspect) are there, but "Jellaby" is its own beast. So to speak. In the book Understanding Comics, graphic novelist Scott McCloud spends a lot of time talking about how artists working in the comic medium will indicate "invisible ideas", particularly emotions, by distorting the backgrounds of their characters. Japanese comics in particular are adept