I’m so excited to be back and sharing books with you! Possibly bubbling over, in fact! And the books I’ve got on my brain lately are graphic novels since I’ve become slightly obsessed with them. 😀

Some long-timers may remember my mentioning that I was a late reader, and dealt with just enough dyslexia to be a terrible speller (still!) and have a hard time getting into the whole reading thing. The truth is, the only thing I read willingly prior to age eight (or nine…or maybe even ten) was the comics, and my copies of Dennis the Menace books, of which I had a sizable collection. I was definitely using the pictures to help me decode, as discussed here as one benefit of graphic novels. At the time I took a fair amount of flak over reading ‘the funnies’ so religiously, but I’m so grateful I had them! They not only helped me understand reading, they gave me access to worlds outside my own (very important for an underprivileged kid in unfortunate circumstances), and helped me understand that there was something magical about stories, and reading, if only I’d keep working to decode it. Every book I’ve read since is thanks to that foundation. 🙂

Perhaps that background explains some of why I took to graphic novels like cheese to pizza. What’s exciting about this latest evolution of my fascination is I’m taking it to a new level and writing my own!
Years ago a MG of mine won a SCBWI Carolinas award and attracted some attention from editors. But everyone felt the content was too old or too young, or couldn’t seem to fit it in anywhere. Privately, I wished I was capable of turning it into a graphic novel but the task seemed impossible since I’m not an artist. Well, I’ve decided to tackle the impossible and write it anyway! There are some great resources on Matthew Holm’s blog and elsewhere which have encouraged me in the how of that, [and if you’re an educator, be sure to click on his resources for using GNs in the classroom!] Plus, later this month I’ll head to my local SCBWI conference and get to attend a panel dedicated to graphic novels, and taught by editor Greg Hunter.
I’m seriously doing moon-hops over here. 😀 😀

Which brings us (finally!) to today’s spotlight of Babymouse: Queen of the World, by Matthew Holm and Jennifer Holm. You may remember the other spotlights I’ve done on a couple of Jennifer’s amazing books. You can find those here and here.

The first thing I noticed on opening up Babymouse is that it’s not nearly as um, babyish, as I feared it might be. What can I say? Between the name and the pink cover, I was expecting something aimed at very young girls. However, Babymouse took my preconceived notions and showed them to be so much nonsense. This is the sophisticated story of a third grader sorting out what kind of person and friend she wants to be. We follow Babymouse as she schemes to get invited to the popular girl’s party, then learns that her success might come at a price she’s not okay with.
She’s kind-hearted and imaginative, with frequent fantasy moments caught in richly illustrated detail as she pictures herself in full famous detective mode, or attacked by a monster that’s crawled out of the lockers. She’s the kind of person who’s never known a dull moment, and is a fun character to spend time with!

And speaking of illustrations–these are stunning! I loved the way they capture not only the story itself, but the vibe of the kids and the school. There’s the feeling of being fully immersed in Babymouse’s world, and the creative comfort between this brother-sister team is obvious as well. It’s also has quite possibly the best use of the ‘gutter’ that I’ve seen in the dozen plus graphic novels I’ve read (not to mention hundreds of comics!), and a truly wonderful grasp of how to maximize the strengths of this medium. I may sound like I’m raving…but that’s kind of how I felt! As a highly visual person myself I’m often just a wee bit disappointed in graphic novels that struggle to keep the flow of written story and illustrations in sync and maximize the potential in each. It’s no small challenge, I know! But when it all comes together, the sum of the parts equals more than the pieces in a way that sings to my soul. 🙂
I have no doubt you’ll hear more of all that in future spotlights, since I can’t contain my enthusiasm when it’s all working well!

Another interesting detail about this book is its deliberate and consistent breaking of the fourth wall. Not only is Babymouse self aware but at times she argues directly with the narrator–especially if s/he says something unflattering about Babymouse. As a rule, I’m not generally a fan of this and it can come across as gimmicky, but in this series it really works. Some of that may be the format, some her age and active imagination, but I’ll bet some of why it works is once again thanks to the seamless pairing of text and illustration. The reader has absolutely no doubt they’re in good hands that are more than capable of taking them on a wonderful story ride, and is therefore able to sit back and roll with it.

But enough from me! Let’s see what Apricot-kitty thought:

Must you persist in reading me mouse stories, and then asking what I think of them? They are about a mouse. What more do we even need to know?

You know, a part of me thinks my cat may be a bit too set in her ways and wants to see her come to better accept mice stories. The other half of suspects that’s like saying I’m too fond of sunshine, or chocolate, and suspects I should just give it up.

At any rate, she’s right that despite the modern school setting, Babymouse is indeed a mouse. As it happens, her best friend is a weasel and the popular girl is a cat. Plenty of other animals are represented as well, and all of them are drawn in the simple but effective style that Babymouse is.

What books are you reading? Got any new projects on the table? Tell me in the comments, and be sure to stop by our host Greg Pattridge’s blog for the full Marvelous Middle Grade Monday roundup of reviews, spotlights, interviews and giveaways! And happy reading!

Share, share away: