Laika

Author & Illustrator: Nick Abadzis

Genre: Graphic Literature, Modern History

Age Range: 14+ (This is only due to there being the odd swear-word. Handled with care, then a deeper child who is younger could read this if assisted by an adult who can help them deal with the themes.)

Theme/Subject: Russia, Space Race, Cruelty to Animals, America vs. Soviets

Publisher: First Second

ISBN: 9781596431010

Synopsis: (Amended from the Inside Sleeve)

Laika was the abandoned puppy destined to become Earth’s first space traveller. This is her journey. Along with Laika, there is Korolev, once a political prisoner, now a driven engineer at the top of the Soviet space program, and Yelena, the lab technician responsible for Laika’s health and life. Abadzis gives life to a pivotal moment in modern history, casting light on the hidden moments of deep humanity behind the cold hard facts.

Review:

I saw this on the ‘Just In’ shelf in Borders and it caught my eye immediately. Judging by the text on the front, I knew the story had to be something to do with Russia (the Soviet Union as it turns out) and so I picked it up and saw, to my joy, that it was a graphic novel. This was the first piece of work I had encountered by Abadzis.
In short, the story deals with the launch of the Soviet’s launch of Sputnik (1957) and the race afterwards to launch a second ship into space. We become involved in Krushchev’s desire to out-do Eisenhower and the Americans and show them that Communism in the Soviet Union was, in his eyes, successful. Whilst this battle for the heavens goes on, the reader follows the story of Laika, a homeless stray dog who is painfully searching for companionship and comradeship. Ultimately, she is taken in and trained to be the first living creature ever to enter space. However, heartbreakingly, it was never to be a return journey.
Abadzis does a wonderful job on trying to capture the Soviet Union in the 1950s; the struggle for power in the space race; but more importantly, the struggle for compassion and love in a country only just coping with the repressive control that Stalin had placed upon them.
There are so many facets that I loved about this graphic novel: the relationship between Yelena and the dogs she handled and the huge social differences and difficulties in the Soviet Union during the 1950s, to name but a few. Abadzis handles the story with a warm and caring touch, so much so that I could not help but cry and reflect on the impact that the little dog, and all those attached to her story, had on me.

Mr. Gum and the Goblins

Image taken from pgcbooks

Title: Mr. Gum and the Goblins

Author: Andy Stanton

Illustrator: David Tazzyman

Genre: Nonsense, Humour

Age Range: 7-11

Theme/Subject: Nonsense

Publisher: Egmont

ISBN: 9781405228169

Synopsis:

Something is rumbling up in the high-distant hills of Goblin Mountain. It is the pitter patter of wild, rampant badgers? Possibly, but it’s more likely to be the angry mob of goblins led by the evil Mr. Gum! Can Polly and her friends put an end to his evil shenanigans before the wonderful town of Lamonic Bibber is left in ruins? Only the badgers know. Well, I know too as I’ve read it.

Review:

I am a huge fan of Andy Stanton and his style of writing. The Mr. Gum series is a fresh injection of nonsense humour. The style of humour smacks of Philip Ardagh only even battier; if that is conceivably possible. Whereas Ardagh (of whom I also thoroughly enjoy) seems to think of a plot first and then weaves his humour around that, I feel that when I read Stanton, he seems to just go with the flow, inject belly-blastingly funny moments and weave a plot around that instead.
For me, what makes the Mr. Gum’s series work so well is Andy Stanton’s utter embrace of pure nonsense and chaos. It is his wonderful play on words and the structure of a story (or even a book for that matter) that drives the reader on. Tazzyman’s scratchy, sketchy pen illustrations help bring Lamonic Bibber to life a little more too (I really liked the goblin pictures – my favourite being Big Steve).
The amount of times I laughed out loud at something funny a character has said or done or a scene that Stanton had created that was just plain daft, I could probably count on my fingers (I have quite a lot of them as I went out and bought a huge bag of ‘Findus Fish Fingers’ this morning). I can see this being a great book to share with someone who has a taste for the silly and shows a touch of Pythonesque humour. Andy Stanton is a unique voice out there at the moment and although not the deepest of writers (which in no uncertain terms is he even attempting to be) certainly must be one for children who will get the most laughs.

My Swordhand is Singing

Image taken from http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/

Author: Marcus Sedgwick

Genre: Historial, Horror,

Age Range: 11+

Theme/Subject: Vampires, Folklore, Ukraine, Historical, Loss, Redemption

Publisher: Orion

ISBN: 1842551833

Synopsis: (Edited from the inside of the jacket)

In the bitter cold of an unrelenting winter Tomas and his son, Peter arrive in Chust and settle there as woodcutters. Tomas digs a channel of fast flowing waters around their hut, so they have their own little island kingdom. Peter doesn’t know why his father has done this not why his father carries a long, battered box, whose mysterious contents he is forbidden to know. Set in the remote and forbidding landscapes of the seventeenth century, this is a heart-rending story of loss and redemption, and inspired by the original vampire folklore of Eastern Europe it represents a unique regeneration of a timeless myth.

Review:

This is the fourth Sedgwick that I have read and must admit to taking a shine, not only to his style of writing, but also the eye with which he sees the world. Sedgwick’s ‘Swordhand’ is a real triumph in portraying a time when people were still greatly affected by folklore and dark whisperings in the world that surrounded them. Much like ‘The Dark Horse’, Sedgwick has encompassed a land where, in terms of knowledge and understanding, people are still in their infancy and the Europe is still vastly untamed.
The book’s dark and brooding pace suits the story’s mood. Written in third person, the tale oversees the life of Peter whose secretive father hides a tragic past and whose distant and offhanded demeanour makes growing up in the cold wild of 17th century Romania difficult. After moving from place to place we find father and son beginning to settle on the fringes of the village of Chust. Here, Peter tries to forge relationships with the guarded locals, but all is not as it seems as the nights are plagued by vampires. Peter finds himself not only entangled a web of deceit within the village but also in the grip of his father’s past which will not leave them alone.
Although aimed at the younger teens, I have found ‘My Swordhand is Singing’ fits 10+ in age as long as the reader is prepared to be scared and is competent. The landscape and characters are so well crafted and the storyline so deeply sown into the world painted by Sedgwick that this is a book you shouldn’t miss. I was particularly taken by Tomas (Peter’s father), who is handled with great mysteriousness and who plays well opposite Sofia, a gypsy girl whom Peter befriends. With no end of scary moments and gripping episodes, the book ends in a climax that leaves the reader wanting more. This is a vampire story that deals more with their origins rather than the typical soft-brush that they tend to be painted with these days.