Book cover image:
Book Summary: After
a tragic car accident kills their father, Emily, her younger brother, Navin,
and their mother move to an old family house in the country. After solving a
puzzle in the basement, Emily finds a mysterious amulet and has Navin put it on
her. Everything seems okay until their mother goes to investigate noises in the
house and is eaten by a creature. Chasing after her, Emily and Navin go through
a door and end up in a world where terrifying creatures are trying to kill
them. An assistant of their great-grandfather, Silas, leads them to safety, and
Silas explains to Emily that she is the new amulet stonekeeper and must use the
amulet to protect this land. Using the amulet, Emily, Navin, and their new
guide, Miskit, journey to save their mother from death.
APA Reference of Book:
Kibuishi, K. (2008). Amulet:
Book 1: The Stonekeeper. New York, NY: Graphix.
Impressions: While
the story has very familiar fantasy tropes, this graphic novel was enjoyable. I
like the artwork, especially the fact that no two characters look alike. Emily
is a serious young teenager who yearns for power to protect her family and
friends, and so she is a good heroine and role model for children and young
teens. The characters are interesting so far, and I actually can’t wait to read
the next graphic novel in the series to see if Emily and Navin are able to work
together to save their mother from poison. Seeing what Emily ultimately does
with the amulet and what it means for her to have inherited the stonekeeper
gift is intriguing to me. I also hope that although Navin does not have a
powerful amulet, he will be able to show his true strength in future
installments. An older sister to a younger brother myself, I like the sibling
dynamic, and I hope that the author continues to use their relationship as a driving
force of the overall story.
Professional Review:
Teale, W. H., Kim, J., & Boerman-Cornell, W. (2008, 05). Amulet: Book
one-the stonekeeper. Book Links, 17, 7.
Grades 4-7. Kibuishi, the creator of the action-packed Daisy
Kutter series, sets his sights on a slightly younger crowd here. This first
volume in the new Amulet graphic novel series introduces Emily, who has
relocated to a strange house in the woods, where she finds a magical amulet
left behind by her great grandfather. Soon after, she and her brother engage in
a wild adventure to learn the secrets of the amulet and save their mother.
Emily is as high-spirited a heroine as you are likely to find, and,
propelled by uncluttered visuals, her action-packed adventure
sequences move at an exciting clip. However, there are also dark
elements in the tale—the gut-wrenching opening in which Emily loses
her father in a car accident. the autumnal tones of the animation-like art, and
the ambiguous agenda of the amulet itself. Part fantasy (anthropomorphized
animals, elves) and part manga (transforming robots, tentacled monsters), this
volume has much to appeal to readers, though they may be in for a
more emotionally complex read than expected.
Library Uses: Students will create their own comic strip, poster,
or book trailer to promote this graphic novel. Include discussions on why
graphic novels are important to read.
No comments:
Post a Comment